2015 CAU International Summer Program Course Syllabus
Course Title
Instructor
University
Department
Introduction to Korean Studies
Yung Bin Kwak (PhD)
Institute for Media & Culture, Sogang University
[email protected]
Email
Course
Description
Course Goals
Course
Procedures
Grading
And
Evaluation
Phone #
010-2808-8549
This class is designed to introduce students to contemporary Korean culture. Taking an
interdisciplinary approach, it seeks to provide a broad purview of Korea at its most
historical, helping you better grasp how South Korea has arrived the present. Rather
than offering a mere compilation of factual knowledge, however, it seeks to challenge
banal assumptions about Korean Culture being ‘Totally Unique’ or ‘Absolutely Other.’
To that end, it will engage with key aspects of modern Korean history such as
Confucianism, comfort women, the Korean War, the Gwangju Massacre, and
globalization, focusing on heated debates and recent controversies about them. Set
against this backdrop, your understanding of K-Pop and New Korean Cinema will never
be the same.
No prior knowledge of Korea or the Korean language is expected.
-
Introducing students to contemporary Korean culture
Helping them better grasp its historical multidimensionality
Challenging students to call into question their assumptions about Us and
Them, Identity and Difference
This course is based on lectures, screenings of clips, discussions, and student’s final
presentation.
.
Attendance (10%) + Participation (20%)
ONE Research Paper (30%)
Final Presentation (40%)
1. Detailed class schedule will be distributed on the first day of class.
Additional
Course
Information
2. You are expected to complete the assigned readings and to bring those readings
to class, prepared to think aloud and participate in discussion and debate. Your
engaged presence is essential to the success of the course. Attendance is
mandatory ―your third unexcused absence will automatically result in a FAIL.
If for any reason you cannot attend class, you should inform me in advance. In
the case of absences, only documented excuses (doctor's note, jury duty, and so
on) will be accepted.
3. Use of mobile phones and laptops in class, except as note-taking devices, is
strictly prohibited. Repeated provocations (however unintentional) will lead to
an irreparable damage to the final grade. The work you turn in should be your
own original work. Defined as the submission or presentation of work, in any
form, that is not a student's own, without acknowledgment of the sources,
plagiarism is a serious offense and can result in disciplinary action up to and
including suspension or expulsion from the College.
Text and required supplies
There is no main textbook. Readings will be provided in PDF format or via internet links.
Instructor’s Profile
Yung bin Kwak (PhD) is Research Fellow of Institute for Media & Culture at Sogang University. He received
M.A. in Mass Communications (Film Studies and Cultural Studies) at Sogang University, and Ph.D. from
Dept. of Cinema and Comparative Literature at University of Iowa, U.S.A. He holds B.A. in Pedagogy from
Seoul National University. He taught at Cornell College and University of Iowa before coming back to Korea
in 2013 to start teaching courses on cinema, literature, art and media aesthetics. He presented and published
essays on contemporary Korean art, literature, and animation. His book of critical essays on contemporary
Korean culture and politics will be published by Sogang University Press this year.
Weekly Course Schedule
Week
Topics
Assignments
1
Images of Korea: Between
Stereotypes and Uniqueness
Reading Assignments
2
Legacies of East Asia: From
Confucianism to Colonialism
Reading Assignments
3
Haunting Historical Traumas: From
the Korean War to Gwangju
Massacre
Reading Assignments & the
Research Paper DUE
4
Riding the Korean Wave: From KPop to New Korean Cinema
Reading Assignments
5
Final Wrap-Up
Final Presentation
Remarks