Korea's history has had a deeply influential and significant impact on its modern language, and concomitantly, on the country's modern poetry and prose. Despite the artistic and literary value, there is a substantial lack of English translations available for Korean works. The continued rapid development of Korean and its considerably different grammar and syntax often pose difficulties for English translators. Korean poetry, specifically, follows a form unfamiliar to English readers which makes interpretation for translation challenging. This thesis hopes to provide context for the lack of scholarly translations of Korean poetry by discussing the historical and linguistic context of the Korean language, the impact of nationalism on its development, and how the language's grammar and syntax reinforce the ambiguity of translation. At the end of the thesis, translations are provided for various poems to advance the number of works in the academic community and make Korean poetry more accessible to English readers.

In recent years, South Korean filmmakers have repeatedly drawn upon the nation’s experience of Japanese colonialism as an element in the construction of their films. This thesis examines the multiple ways in which contemporary South Korean cinema has drawn upon this period in the nation’s history, through both direct representation, and allegory and evocation. I demonstrate how new perspectives have emerged, creating a space to construct more nuanced considerations of the colonial period beyond nationalist paradigms, whilst not shying away from the traumatic elements which had heretofore defined the dominant perceptions of the era. Utilising trauma theory as a key framework, I argue that by restaging the traumatic events of the past on-screen, filmmakers have provided an opportunity for audiences to come to terms with this past. Turning towards the Korean concept of han, which addresses the accumulation of negative affect and how these negative emotions can be purged through the expression of han, I explore how the folk song Arirang has been mobilised as a way of connecting a film to this legacy of sorrow. By invoking the feeling of han in their work, South Korean filmmakers have tied their personal concerns to a wider national sentiment. I then draw upon the notion of spectrality, and the depiction of ghosts in contemporary films, in order to demonstrate the ways in which the present is haunted by the unaddressed actions of the past. Finally, I argue that a series of films featuring amnesiac protagonists serve to allegorise the ‘settling the past’ movement, which saw the establishment of a number of ‘truth councils’ tasked with investigating aspects of the nation’s twentieth century history. Ultimately, this thesis argues that it is only by addressing and coming to terms with the traumatic elements of our past that we can ever hope to be rid of their negative influence.

In this thesis, I argue that traditional notions of Confucianism and its growing modernity within Korean society have contributed to the continuing issue of child abandonment, inhibiting Korean mothers from gaining bodily, social, and economic independence. There are a variety of governmental and societal pressures, including the emphasis on motherhood and the nuclear family, and expectations for the women, that push these unwed mothers to make undesirable decisions on whether or not to keep their child.

This senior thesis studies the character and influence of a young American naval officer and diplomat. George Clayton Foulk, the 1st Naval Attaché to the United States Legation and the 2nd U.S. Minister to Korea, brought his intellectual ability and passion to this East Asian country. He hoped for Korea to become an independent, modernized state. Due to the strong Chinese opposition and lack of assistance from the U.S. government, Foulk failed to realize his dream and left Korea in disgrace. However, his service instilled a positive image of America in the minds of many Koreans. By closely examining his letters and journals, this thesis brings an image of a cosmopolitan who expressed genuine understanding of and sympathy for Korea. More importantly, this thesis introduces his vision that America must become an exceptional country which spreads its values across the world through peaceful means. Even today, the clash between Foulk’s idealism and the realpolitik of Washington policymakers raises a question on the future of American diplomacy.

Korea had traditionally confined literacy to a small elite ruling class, who were trained to read and write in Chinese characters until the end of the nineteenth century. Literacy education must be made both easier and more accessible, argued Korean intellectuals who endorsed the promotion of hangul, a phonetic native Korean alphabet that had only been circulating among the less privileged. The notion that hangul should become the standardized national script of Korea has also been voiced by Western missionaries in the country. Korean nationalists who became heavily influenced by Christianity further elaborated this goal. A nationalistic movement to promote mass literacy and to reclaim Korea’s lost cultural legacy had a foreign origin that had been overlooked for a long time. This thesis seeks to analyze the degree to which foreign influences had on the inception of Korea’s scripto-nationalism.

Pastoral ministry in the context of Korean American Catholic parishes brings many challenges, including that of cultural conflict. Frequent miscommunications occur between the Korean speaking and English speaking groups who coexist in these parishes. Considering some of the socio-cultural and theological factors of this issue, which are explored in this paper, a pastoral plan utilizing social media is proposed.

Hanbok is the traditional fashion of South Korea, and literally translates to “Korean clothing.” Once worn every day, today hanbok is reserved for special occasions and holidays; however new “modern” versions of the attire are becoming more and more popular for everyday wear. This new iteration of the traditional clothing created a new vernacular of Korean nationalism and “Koreanness” through the incorporation of modern fashion trends and traditional Korean aesthetics. Modern hanbok represents the unique relationship between nationalism, globalization, and fashion, and can be seen as an example of cultural hybridization. Looking at modern hanbok through the lens of Hallyu, or the Korean wave, provides insight into how constructions of Korean nationalism and notions of “Koreanness” are created, maintained, and change over time. In order to examine how modern hanbok operates as a new form of Korean nationalism and “Koreanness,” this thesis explores the hanbok tourism industry and the K-Pop industry in conversation with one another. Together these analyses highlight how globalization and nationalism interact with one another in different ways, and showcases Korea’s efforts to create and maintain a national imaginary while negotiating their growing economic, cultural, and political power in the world.

<p>This is a study of popular cultural representations of international adoption and adopted Koreans in Western countries. The study is carried out from a postcolonial perspective and uses a cultural studies reading of four feature films and four popular songs as primary sources. The aim is to examine how nationalism is articulated in various ways in light of the colonial experiences in modern Korean history and recent postcolonial developments within contemporary Korean society. The principal question addressed is: What are the implications for a nation depicting itself as one extended family and which has sent away so many of its own children, and what are the reactions from a culture emphasising homogeneity when encountering and dealing with the adopted Koreans? After an introductory chapter, Chapter 2 gives the history of international adoption from Korea, and Chapter 3 is an account of the development of the adoption issue in the political discussion. Chapters 4, 5, 6 and 7 analyse the cinematic and lyrical representations of adopted Koreans in four feature films and popular songs respectively. Chapter 4 considers the gendering of the colonised nation and the maternalisation of roots, drawing on theories of nationalism as a gendered discourse. Chapter 5 examines the issue of hybridity and the relationship between Koreanness and Whiteness, which are related to the notions of third space, mimicry and passing. Linked to studies of national division, reunification and family separation, Chapter 6 looks at the adopted Koreans as symbols of a fractured and fragmented nation. Chapter 7 focuses on the emergence of a global Korean community, with regards to theories of globalisation, diasporas and transnationalism. In the concluding chapter, the study argues that the Korean adoption issue can be conceptualised as an attempt at overcoming a difficult past and imagining a common future for all ethnic Koreans at a transnational level.</p> / Avhandlingen är även utgiven på Jimoondang Publishing Company (Seoul, 2006) och ingår där i Korean Studies Series No.32, isbn 8988095952. The thesis is also published at Jimoondang Publishing Company (Seoul, 2006) in Korean Studies Series No. 32, isbn 8988095952.

This is a study of popular cultural representations of international adoption and adopted Koreans in Western countries. The study is carried out from a postcolonial perspective and uses a cultural studies reading of four feature films and four popular songs as primary sources. The aim is to examine how nationalism is articulated in various ways in light of the colonial experiences in modern Korean history and recent postcolonial developments within contemporary Korean society. The principal question addressed is: What are the implications for a nation depicting itself as one extended family and which has sent away so many of its own children, and what are the reactions from a culture emphasising homogeneity when encountering and dealing with the adopted Koreans? After an introductory chapter, Chapter 2 gives the history of international adoption from Korea, and Chapter 3 is an account of the development of the adoption issue in the political discussion. Chapters 4, 5, 6 and 7 analyse the cinematic and lyrical representations of adopted Koreans in four feature films and popular songs respectively. Chapter 4 considers the gendering of the colonised nation and the maternalisation of roots, drawing on theories of nationalism as a gendered discourse. Chapter 5 examines the issue of hybridity and the relationship between Koreanness and Whiteness, which are related to the notions of third space, mimicry and passing. Linked to studies of national division, reunification and family separation, Chapter 6 looks at the adopted Koreans as symbols of a fractured and fragmented nation. Chapter 7 focuses on the emergence of a global Korean community, with regards to theories of globalisation, diasporas and transnationalism. In the concluding chapter, the study argues that the Korean adoption issue can be conceptualised as an attempt at overcoming a difficult past and imagining a common future for all ethnic Koreans at a transnational level. / Avhandlingen är även utgiven på Jimoondang Publishing Company (Seoul, 2006) och ingår där i Korean Studies Series No.32, isbn 8988095952. The thesis is also published at Jimoondang Publishing Company (Seoul, 2006) in Korean Studies Series No. 32, isbn 8988095952.

This thesis aimed to study and analyze the intercultural and intracultural encounters of students enrolled in an ESL writing class at a large community college in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States. Two basic questions guided the study: first, how did ESL students from Korea react to each other as well as to students from other countries while studying English in the United States; and second, how did these reactions affect Korean students' perceptions of their ESL classes? The purpose of this study was to investigate the intercultural experiences of Korean learners in an intensive ESL program, and based on its findings, to suggest ways to improve intercultural relations in such classes. The study used reflective journals to ascertain Korean learners' perceptions of their intercultural encounters with classmates. The study findings demonstrated a surprising candor and sophistication on the part of Korean learners to express themselves about these encounters. Based on the research findings, recommendations were made for incorporating intercultural relations sensitivity training into ESL course curricula. This descriptive study contributed to the body of education literature that advocates focusing more attention on students' perceptions of their learning environment.