Korea and its Futures

Despite the passage of over forty years since the official end of the civil war in Korea, the north and the south sections of the country remain technically at war. In Korea and its Futures , Roy Grinker argues that the continued conflict between North and South Korea, and the prospects for peace on the Korean peninsula, must be understood within the broader social and cultural contexts in which Koreans live. Grinker suggests that a fundamental obstacle to peace on the peninsula is that South Korea has become a nation in which nearly all aspects of economic, political, and cultural identity are defined in opposition to North Korea. He further demonstrates that in spite of its status as a sacred goal for all Koreans, the idea of unification threatens the world in which almost every South Korean has been born and raised. In chapters on defectors, divided families, student protests, and early education, Grinker reveals how South Korean conceptions of unification prevent either side from recognizing that a unified Korea must also be a diverse Korea. In other words, Grinker points out, unification is largely perceived by South Koreans not as the integration of different identities but as the southern conquest and assimilation of the north - in short, as winning the war.

Autorentext

Roy Richard Grinker is Associate Professor of Anthropology and International Affairs at George Washington University and Senior Asian Fellow at the Atlantic Council of the United States in Washington, DC.

Inhalt
Introduction Unification and the Disruption of Identity in South Korea Nation, State, and the Idea of Unification: Speaking of the Unspeakable North Korean Everyday Life on Display Loss, Mourning and Resentment: Han Divided Families Elementary Forms of Korean Historical Representation: School Textbooks Democracy and Unification: Student Protests Dissidence and Border Violations The Defectors Conclusion: Preparing for Unification: The Problem of Complicity and Differences Bibliography Index