Cultural History of Modern Korea Book

A Cultural History of Modern Korea is a good source for those people who understand the culture and history of modern Korea. It is written by Wanne J. Joe and revised and edited by Hongkyu A. Choe. The author planned to write a two-volume Korean cultural history, covering from ancient times up to the current. The first volume, Traditional Korea: A Cultural History was published by Hollym Corporation Publishers. Now this volume has been revised with continuous effort by the author's close companion.

Modern Korea is an extension of the Yi dynasty, and the cultural ingredients needed in its shaping are those of the Yi dynasty culture. The Korean "response" to the foreign pressures at the turn of the century produced a series of national movements, each having the internal logic of its own. Yi dynasty literature is seen as a profound expression of the motives and experiences of the Yi culture and of the nature of modern Korea.

Korean culture has often in the past been unduly depreciated by dictatorial writers with wrong details and committed viewpoints. In this elaborate study, the author argues that the act of writing history is the key to the political and cultural concerns. This volume is a major contribution to Korean studies in terms of a work of intellectual and cultural history. This book also provides a major text in order to describe how Korean people have conflated political and individual concerns as a means to their own social authority.

Over 110 color photos with b/w illustrations.