The Fantastically Dark World of K-Lit
This essay was co-written by Charlotte Hammond, a Seoul-based American writer and copywriter. Contemporary South Korean literature has yet to take off in the way of South Korean cinema, cuisine or popular music. It hasn’t garnered global attention to the degree of the aforementioned mediums and may not have
A Confucian versus Capitalism at South Korea’s Centuries-Old Institute of Learning
Sungkyunkwan University, in the heart of Seoul, boasts a history dating back to 1398. Photo by InSapphoWeTrust On South Korea’s blue 1000-won note is a picture of Sungkyunkwan, the nation’s centuries-old bastion of Neo-Confucianism steps away from the old Changgyeong Palace in central Seoul.
Duck and Cover
IKR for Korea Exposé The confrontation between the two Koreas put residents of the peninsula on edge, but expats in South Korea are taking cover from a blast of a somewhat different kind.
When We Became Gangnam
There are a few things I cannot forget from my childhood: picking mugwort with my sexagenarian babysitter at a nearby park, to dry and put in bean-paste soup; delighting in a cheap candy ring that came in a range of bright shades so pretty I dared not eat it; a
The New Meaning of K-Pop
IKR for Korea Exposé K-Pop and K-dramas are not the only South Korean exports to make people weep around the world. To read more on this topic, please go to The Economist, Human Rights Monitor South Korea, and The Hankyoreh. More of IKR’s works can be found
South Korean Evangelicals' Anal Obsession
“They enter into carnal relations with multiple people several times a night, and wipe the semen, shit, blood, and lymphatic fluid from anal sex with discarded towels on the floor. Each morning the whole room is full of such towels and condoms covered in blood and feces. […] They reuse the
Room Salons: The Real Moral Scourge on South Korean Society
South Korea takes morals very seriously. From Enes Kaya’s TV fall from grace over alleged adultery to pop star Yoo Seung-jun’s apparent dodging of his military duty, South Korea is unforgiving when it comes to immoral behaviour. Christian groups protested against the recent gay pride festival, claiming to
Northern Limit Line: Taking Politics Out of a Political Conflict
Source: Next Entertainment World (NEW) Dramatic music swells up as the camera zooms in on a dying South Korean soldier, a plump and friendly character who wins immediate sympathy because he’s the loving father of an adorable baby. His head droops to the side in a moment of finality;
The quieter side of the MERS outbreak
Streets around a hagwon district in Jukcheon, Gyeonggi Province, are all but deserted as MERS forces schools and even private classes to go on a temporary hiatus. (Anna Park for Korea Exposé) It has been over two weeks since MERS landed in South Korea, and an unusual quiet has descended
Seoul: The Swing Capital of the World
Colton J. for Korea Exposé Seoul has garnered a global reputation for its mobile wired-ness, public transportation, and binge-drinking culture. But it holds another #1 spot: the world’s largest swing dance scene. As things are wont to in South Korea, swing suddenly and improbably erupted in popularity in the
The Failure of Women Cross DMZ
30 women from 15 countries crossed the DMZ dividing the two Koreas on 24 May 2015, under the banner of Women Cross DMZ. For months leading up to the crossing, I was excited by the promise of something grand. However, like many others, I was disappointed by the tepid conclusion.
Marching for Inter-Korean Peace: Why Women Cross DMZ
http://gty.im/182520278 May 24, 2015 is International Women’s Day for Peace and Disarmament. On this day, Korean women will walk for peace across the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), the 4 km wide buffer that divides North and South Korea. They will be joined by international peace