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Through a chronological analysis of Korea's dominant discourses from the late nineteenth century to the present, Kim demonstrates the historical nature of developmentalism and
seonjinguk discourse for Korea's developmental era, tracing their genealogy to
gaehwa (enlightenment) and
munmyeong (civilization) discourses.
List of contents
CHAPTER 1
Introduction: What Is the Discourse of Seonjinguk?
PART I (Chs. 2-4)
From "Munmyeong" (Civilization) to "Baljeon" (Development): The 1880s – The 1950s
CHAPTER 2
The Origins of Korea’s Eurocentrism: Gaehwa and Munmyeong Discourses from the 1880s to the 1930s
CHAPTER 3
The Politics of Modern Discourse of Civilization in Colonized Korea: The 1910s and the 1920s
CHAPTER 4
Competition between Civilization and Development Discourses: The 1950s
PART II (Chs. 5-7)
The Rise of Developmentalism and Its Current State: The 1960s – The Present
CHAPTER 5
The Rise of Developmentalism and Seonjinguk Discourse: The 1960s and the 1970s
CHAPTER 6
Change in the Discourse of Seonjinguk: The 1980s and the 1990s
CHAPTER 7
The Discursive Structure of Korea’s Developmentalism and the Mobilization of Nation: Geundaehwa (Modernization), Segyehwa (Globalization), and Seonjinhwa (Becoming Advanced)
PART III (Chs. 8-9)
National and Regional Identities and Mutual Perceptions in the Development Era
CHAPTER 8
A Comparison of Development Discourses in Korea, China, and Japan: National Identities and Mutual Perceptions
CHAPTER 9
A Comparison of Regional Identities between Northeast Asia and Europe: The Constructions of "Self" and "Others"
CHAPTER 10
Conclusion: Beyond the Discourse of Seonjinguk
About the author
Jongtae Kim is Humanities Korea (HK) Research Professor in the Asiatic Research Institute at Korea University, Seoul, Korea.
Summary
Through a chronological analysis of Korea’s dominant discourses from the late nineteenth century to the present, Kim demonstrates the historical nature of developmentalism and seonjinguk discourse for Korea’s developmental era, tracing their genealogy to gaehwa (enlightenment) and munmyeong (civilization) discourses.
Additional text
This is an important critique of west-centric progress worship in South Korea and a profound analysis of different modernization and development paths in East Asia, with comparisons of South Korea, Japan and China. A significant contribution to the East Asia literature and a good read.
Jan Nederveen Pieterse, University of California, Santa Barbara
This book keenly unravels very significant and under-represented aspects of Korean identity and world view in the modern era. One may barely grasp the Korean society and its development without reading this elaborate work.
Gil-Sung Park, Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, Professor of Sociology, Korea University
