Now in a fully revised and updated edition including new primary sources and illustrations, this comprehensive and balanced history of modern Korea explores the social, economic, and political issues it has faced since being catapulted into the wider world at the end of the nineteenth century. Placing this formerly insular society in a global context, Michael J. Seth describes how this ancient, culturally and ethnically homogeneous society first fell victim to Japanese imperialist expansionism, and then was arbitrarily divided in half after World War II. Seth traces the postwar paths of the two Koreaswith different political and social systems and different geopolitical orientationsas they evolved into sharply contrasting societies. South Korea, after an unpromising start, became one of the few postcolonial developing states to enter the ranks of the first world, with a globally competitive economy, a democratic political system, and a cosmopolitan and dynamic culture. By contrast, North Korea became one of the world's most totalitarian and isolated societies, a nuclear power with an impoverished and famine-stricken population. Considering the radically different and historically unprecedented trajectories of the two Koreas, Seth assesses the insights they offer for understanding not only modern Korea but the broader perspective of world history.All readers looking for a balanced, knowledgeable history will be richly rewarded with this clear and concise book.
Contents
Primary Source Readings
Preface to the Second Edition
Acknowledgments
Maps
Introduction
1Korea in the Age of Imperialism, 1876 to 1910
Early Contacts with the West
The Opening of Korea
Early Reforms, 18761884
The Chinese Decade, 18851894
The Tonghak Rebellion
Kabo Reforms
The Russian Ascendency and the Independence Club
The Russo-Japanese War and the Protectorate
The Protectorate, 19051910
Korea in Transition
Korea in Global Perspective: Korea in the Age of Imperialism
Notes
2Colonial Korea, 1910 to 1945
The March First Movement
The PostMarch First Period
Cultural Ferment of the 1920s
Moderate and Radical Nationalism
Economic Development
Modernity and Social Change
Rural Society
Wartime Colonialism, 19311945
Forced Assimilation
A Society in Turmoil: The Legacy of Colonial Rule
Korea in Global Perspective: The Korean Nationalist Movement
Korea in Global Perspective: Koreas Colonial Experience
Notes
3Division and War, 1945 to 1953
The End of Colonial Rule in Korea
North Korea under Soviet Occupation
South Korea under U.S. Occupation
Trusteeship
Establishing a Separate Regime in the North
The Beginnings of a New Regime in the South
Toward Division
The Republic of Korea
The Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea
On the Eve of the Korean War
The Korean War
The Impact of the Korean War
Korea in Global Perspective: Divided Countries
Korea in Global Perspective: The Korean War
Notes
4North Korea: Recovery, Transformation, and Decline, 1953 to 1993
The Divergent Paths of the Two Koreas
North Koreas Recovery
North Koreas Great Leap Forward
The Political Consolidation of Kim Il Sung and His Manchurian Guerrilla Comrades
Creating a Monolithic State
The Cult of the Kim Family
Kim Il SungsJuche Society
Everyday Life
Foreign Policy
Economic Problems
Korea in Global Perspective: North Korea as a Communist Country
Notes
5South Korea: From Poverty to Prosperity, 1953 to 1997
The Syngman Rhee Years, 19531960
The Democratic Experiment, 19601961
The Military Coup
Economic Transformation
Economic Growth under Park Chung Hee
Chaebls
Transformation of the Countryside
Economic Development in the 1980s
Explaining South Koreas Economic Miracle
Education
Korea in Global Perspective: Educational Development
Korea in Global Perspective: Economic Development
Notes
6South Korea: Creating a Democratic Society, 1953 to 1997
Military Authoritarianism
The Yushin Era, 19711979
Seoul Spring, 19791980
The Fifth Republic
1987: A Political Turning Point
Transition to Democracy
Understanding the Democratic Turn
Student Activism
Organized Labor
Social and Cultural Transition
Korea in Global Perspective: Democratization
Notes
7Contemporary North Korea, 1993 to2019
In Decline: A Period of Crisis
Under Kim Jong Il
Ideology
Famine
Crisis and Summitry
Tentative Reforms
Confrontations and the Policy of Survival
North Korea Under Kim Jong Un
Reviving the Past, Moving Toward an Uncertain Future
Korea in Global Perspective: North Koreas Famine
Korea in Global Perspective: North Korea as a Failed State
Notes
8Contemporary South Korea, 1997 to 2019
Return to Civilian Government
Economic Crisis and Recovery
Domestic Politics
Foreign Policy
Rethinking Reunification
A Society Undergoing Rapid Change
Changing Gender Relations, Changing Families
Ethnic Homogeneity and Multiculturalism
Facing History and Preserving Heritage
New Crises and New Problems
Korea in Global Perspective: South Koreas Place in the World
Notes
Conclusion
Appendix: Romanization
Glossary of Korean Words
Annotated Selected Bibliography
Index
About the Author
