Friday, June 18, 2004
Why Korean culture seems so strange
Korean history has a period where Korea was called the "Hermit Kingdom". For about 300-400 years, the magma of Korean culture and ideology had no external pollutants and was allowed time to solidify on its own. Add to this the fact that the dominant philosophy at the time was a neo-Confucian one (Confucianism is heavily weighted towards social heirarchy and respect for age and tradition) and you've got a recipe for a rigid culture that doesn't necessarily have to be able to function in the world at large.
Many Korean traditions are in jeopardy because South Korea has entered the world theater and is attempting to become a major participant ... for example, they lobbied extremely hard to host the 1988 Olympics and 2002 World Cup. Korean culture is not naturally flexible, so that is why it seems to break rather than bend. There is a huge generational gap here in Korea, and that is a symptom of this cultural break.
Contrast this to American culture, which has been developing for about 1/12th the time of Korean culture and has ALWAYS been subject to outside influences and cultures. American culture is extremely fluid and changes rapidly. There are always generational gaps in the United States, but they are not as severe and the older generation is still capable of responding to the newer generation's culture.
American (and most Western) history is more heavily influenced by violence and politicking, so strength and the appearance of strength are important on both a national and personal level. The violence of the culture also adds to this, so Americans in unfamiliar or uncertain circumstances will naturally assume a show of strength in order to discourage others from trying to take advantage of us. In Korean culture, promoting harmonious social relationships is far more important. This makes sense because that's all that they needed to worry about for a long time ... since they had China as a buffer state.
So, a lot of Western culture was forged in the fire of practicality, whereas Korean culture was allowed to bloom into an art in and of itself.
Many Korean traditions are in jeopardy because South Korea has entered the world theater and is attempting to become a major participant ... for example, they lobbied extremely hard to host the 1988 Olympics and 2002 World Cup. Korean culture is not naturally flexible, so that is why it seems to break rather than bend. There is a huge generational gap here in Korea, and that is a symptom of this cultural break.
Contrast this to American culture, which has been developing for about 1/12th the time of Korean culture and has ALWAYS been subject to outside influences and cultures. American culture is extremely fluid and changes rapidly. There are always generational gaps in the United States, but they are not as severe and the older generation is still capable of responding to the newer generation's culture.
American (and most Western) history is more heavily influenced by violence and politicking, so strength and the appearance of strength are important on both a national and personal level. The violence of the culture also adds to this, so Americans in unfamiliar or uncertain circumstances will naturally assume a show of strength in order to discourage others from trying to take advantage of us. In Korean culture, promoting harmonious social relationships is far more important. This makes sense because that's all that they needed to worry about for a long time ... since they had China as a buffer state.
So, a lot of Western culture was forged in the fire of practicality, whereas Korean culture was allowed to bloom into an art in and of itself.
