Sook-Jong Lee’s article “The Assertive Nationalism of South Korean Youth: Cultural Dynamism and Political Activism,” revealed a surprising generational gap between Koreans in their twenties and those older. While generational gaps are expected in any country, Lee’s article made Korea’s seem especially pronounced. I was surprised in particular by the different statistics on Koreans’ views on the US. I did not expect such a large difference, or inversion even, between the views of younger and older generations. I was also surprised at the level of negativity for Koreans in their twenties. Having now read about the impact that American culture has had on the youth of Korea, it was surprising to see the level of political disagreement (though it is understandable). Likewise, I was surprised that the older generation found the US so much more favorable.
How strong, then, is the connection between Hollywood and US pop culture and our foreign policy? Does disagreement with the government lead to backlash against American movies, music, and stars? We have read, for example, about the prohibition of Japanese culture following colonialism, but this was state-initiated. Since American doesn’t experience the same influx of foreign entertainment, it’s difficult for me to fathom how much a country’s politics impacts their cultural exports. Based on the statistics from the article, I would assume that among the younger generation there is a greater popularity of Korean movies and music compared to Hollywood products, but this is pure speculation.
Also, given the support for Korea’s unification among Koreans in their twenties, it seems that reunification may become more possible as this generation continues to age and gain gravitas within Korea’s political landscape. I’m unaware of the limitations in Korea regarding running for office, but again, as this generation ages it seems likely that their perspectives and values will shape Korea’s future policies. With Korea’s younger generation holding so many different views from the older generation, it will be interesting to see whether they keep these views in opposition to the older generation as they gain sway over the country.
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I don't know, I think that the United States does experience a fairly substantial influx of foreign cultural products, or at least products billed as foreign. Think of all the Mexican, Chinese, Italian, and other such restaurants found everywhere in the United States. Think of anime, kimono bathrobes, items embroidered or silk-screened with Chinese characters, etc.
However, I wonder if the reason why we are not affected by this influx is because the United States views itself as dominant foreign policy-wise throughout the world. In essence, for us, importing cultural products is not threatening because we do not need to fear being forcibly taken over or usurped by another country.
Incidentally, the fear of minority dominance over white people is one that affects some people's views on immigration. etc.
You ask some interesting questions, though.
I was interested in this topic but I am not Korean so I was asking to Korean friend about this. I think Korea gets a lot affected by US. my questions were what kind of moview do you like watching, or what foods do you like eating in Korea. My friend's answer was she like watching american movies more than Korean ones and like eating American foods more than korean foods. this is just a example. but I felt like our generation of Korean people got affected by US more than old generation.
I heard one Korean word "Ten jang Neyong" ( I dont know the spell in Eng). I heard that it is like girls who wanna be New yorker.
I thought Korean loves themselves alot comparing to Japanese but maybe this is getting changed little by little.
It makes sense that the older generation of Koreans find the US more favorable. My understanding is that during the Korean War, the efforts of the US military "helped" South Korea, and therefore many elders who have lived through this war see the US as a helpful ally. A couple of decades later, the younger generation sees the aftermath of a war that tore a country in half, and perhaps see the US as the source of these consequences.
In terms of the connection between American culture and its acceptance into the Korean population, I'd like to think that people keep entertainment and politics separate. However, you can apply your question about disagreement with the government leading to American backlash by looking at our own country and the "freedom fries" incident. America (or Bush, maybe it's unfair to generalize) made it a point to change the name of a fast food side just because of disagreements with the war in Iraq with France. Therefore, I wouldn't be surprised if anti-American sentiments do lead to less popularity of American products/entertainment.
I think it is very interesting and understandable to read of the animosity Korean youth has towards the U.S., but I am struck that this has not been portrayed in other ways. For instance, it is a major priority and even requirement amongst Korean youth to learn English in order to compete in the job market and globally ... but throughout our reading there has been no mention of upset regarding English obliterating other culture's languages.
I understand that the Korean youth's problem with the U.S. has more to do with our continued military involvement in Korea and some poorly thought-out words by Bush, but I do not get the sense that American products or pop culture is disliked or the desire to move to America is not there. Perhaps I am incorrect, but I wonder if these ideas also differ between the generations in Korea. For instance, does it upset the older generations that the youth has taken on more Western mannerisms, culture, values, or even clothing? How do the older generations feel about the great influence America has had on Korea the last fifty years? Of course they have been grateful for the protection provided but are they grateful for the McDonald's and rap music that the youth seem to be?
I see that above Young Ju has tied these similar ideas with the "freedom fries" incident ... if entertainment and politics are clearly separate in Korea, is it simply the older and younger generations have different ideas of what of American culture is worth keeping?
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