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Mediating the Koreas Through Popular Culture: Music, Cinema, and Cyberspace

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Mediating the Koreas Through Popular Culture: Music, Cinema, and Cyberspace Korean 5256 (OSU) KOR 498 (PSU) EAS301-003 (UW) Autumn 2015 Mediating the Koreas through Popular Culture: Music, Cinema, and Cyberspace Lecture: WF 2:20-3:40pm EST Hagerty 145/101 Old Botany; 1:20-2:30pm CST Van Hise 290 Instructor: Pil Ho Kim, Ph.D. Office: Hagerty Hall 369 Phone: (614) 292-9601 Email: [email protected] Course website: http://u.osu.edu/k5256/ (password protected) Electronic office hours (on Skype): Thursdays 1:45-2:45pm and by appointment Skype ID: djplateaux (for electronic office hours only) In-person office hours: Thursdays 3:00-4:00pm and by appointment Grader: Will Chou ([email protected]) PSU Proctor: Gabe Williams ([email protected]) UW Proctor: Neal Davidson ([email protected]) Course Description This is an introductory course for undergraduate students of all levels who are interested in how popular culture has been mediating Korea in the modern era and the complex, often tormented relationship between North and South Korea since the national division. In particular, we will focus on South Korea’s newfound soft power and its global impact that reaches even North Korea. In addition to academic texts, this course will make use of a wealth of materials from popular literature, music, film, TV dramas, cartoon, animation, internet and sports. Through the lens of popular culture, we can observe how the nation responded to the inroads of modern western culture during the early modern period; how the politics of the Cold War and American hegemony affected them; how Korean popular culture has evolved and adapted to the rapid economic development and social changes in the postwar period. In terms of both export industry and lifestyle practice, the South Korean pop culture phenomenon – commonly known as the ‘Korean Wave’ or Hallyu – has come to enjoy global recognition. We will also compare and contrast North Korea’s self-image with popular cultural representations of North Korea by the South Korean media and the Hollywood/western media. Korean Studies e-School This course is part of the CIC (Committee on Institutional Cooperation) e-school for Korean Studies, which consists of ten core universities in the Midwest and the Mid-Atlantic regions. This course will be primarily taught at the videoconferencing classroom (Hagerty Hall 145) on the Ohio State University campus and linked to students at Penn State University (101 Old Botany 1 Building) and the University of Wisconsin-Madison (Van Hise Hall 290). Instructor will teach a session from UW on October 16 and from PSU on November 11 (OSU will be closed on both dates). CIC Korean Studies e-School Summer Study Abroad Scholarship With the generous support from the Korea Foundation, students from OSU , PSU, and UW are eligible to receive financial support to study abroad in Korea at the Yonsei International Summer School. For more detailed information, please visit http://www.ii.umich.edu/ncks/academics/ciceschool/summerabroad Required Texts and Course Materials All course readings listed on the syllabus are required and readily accessible on the course website at http://u.osu.edu/k5256/ (password will be notified later by email). They are online resources available either in public domain, OSU Library, or under fair use. Links to audiovisual materials, and other recommended texts will be also made available on the course website. Students are expected to finish required readings before coming to class. Assignments and Grading Pop quizzes There is no written midterm or final exam, but a total of six pop quizzes will be taken over the semester. Refer to Course Schedule for the date and coverage of each quiz, which tests students’ knowledge of the course material. The lowest two quiz scores will be dropped and the remaining four scores will count for 40% of the final grade (i.e., 10% per quiz). No makeup quiz will be given. Documentary film reviews All students are required to write a minimum of 400-word review paper for each of the two documentary films screened in class. Each paper counts for 5% of the final grade. Review paper is due in the next class following each screening, preferably to be uploaded on the course website but email or paper copy also accepted. Late submission will be penalized by 1% point deduction for each day past due. Final project: proposal hearing and essay All students are required to conduct a group or individual project, which consists of a proposal hearing a final essay. Students can form a group (of no more than three) to do a project together. Students will choose a topic, seek for instructor’s approval by October 2, and then and write a short proposal of about 500-600 words in length (about 2 double-spaced pages) including a list of references. Proposal hearings will proceed when instructor is present on campus (Oct. 16 at UW, Oct. 21 and 30 at OSU, and Nov. 11 at PSU). Final paper should be at minimum 2,500 words (about 10 double-spaced pages) for single-author (4,000 for two and 6,000 for three co-authors) including proper citations, endnotes and bibliography. The final project counts for 35% of the final grade – 5% for proposal and 30% for term paper. 2 Class attendance and participation An absence will be counted as an absence regardless of the reason, and will be excused only upon the instructor’s discretion for extenuating circumstances with verifiable written document on a case by case basis. A missing class will result in 1% deduction from attendance and participation, which counts for 15% of the final grade. Leaving early without instructor approval constitutes an absence. Those who are late (arriving well after class begins) will have 0.5% deduction. And the same 0.5% penality will be assessed on those who distract themselves and other students using any digital device (cell phone, tablet, laptop, etc.) for non-class purposes. Grading scheme and policy Pop quizzes (10% x 4 quiz scores): 40% Review papers (5% x 2 papers): 10% Final project (proposal 5% + essay 30%): 35% Attendance and participation: 15% As a matter of principle, grading is non-negotiable. The only exception would be apparent grading errors. In case of such errors, contact instructor with clear evidence. Letter grades will be assigned based on each school’s standard scheme. Following is the Ohio State University’s scheme: Percentage range Letter grade 93-100 A 90-92.9 A- 87-89.9 B+ 83-86.9 B 80-82.9 B- 77-79.9 C+ 73-76.9 C 70-72-9 C- 67-69.9 D+ 60.66.9 D 0-59.9 E Academic misconduct At OSU, it is the responsibility of the Committee on Academic Misconduct to investigate or establish procedures for the investigation of all reported cases of student academic misconduct. (The term “academic misconduct” includes all forms of student academic misconduct wherever committed; illustrated by, but not limited to, cases of plagiarism and dishonest practices in connection with examinations.) Instructors shall report all instances of alleged academic misconduct to the committee. For additional information, see the Code of Student Conduct (http://studentaffairs.osu.edu/info_for_students/csc.asp) Disability services Students with disabilities will be appropriately accommodated, and should inform the instructor as well as university disability services: the Office for Disability Services (OSU), the McBurney Disability Resource Center (UW), and the Office of Disability Services (PSU). 3 Disclaimer statement This syllabus is subject to change at the discretion of the instructor. Course Schedule Week 1 (Aug 26-28: OSU only). Ongoing military tension in the Korean Peninsula Tim Beal, “Theatre of War and Prospects for Peace on the Korean Peninsula on the Anniversary of the Yeonpyeong Incident,” The Asia-Pacific Journal Vol 9, Issue 51 No 1, December 19, 2011. Charles K. Armstrong, “The Korean Crisis,” The Koreas 2nd edition (New York: Routledge, 2013) pp. 88-110. Week 2. Cultures of a Divided Nation: the Korean War and the Cold War on Film Sep 4 (W) Course Introduction for all three campuses; no reading Sep 6 (F) Michael Robinson, “ Contemporary Cultural Production in South Korea: Vanishing Meta- narratives of Nation” in New Korean Cinema (NYU Press, 2005) pp.15-31 Mark Morris, “Northerners on Southern Screens: From Shiri (1999) to The Yellow Sea (2010)” in Rüdiger Frank et al., eds., Korea 2012 : Politics, Economy and Society (Brill, 2012) pp. 153-180 Week 3. The Rise of the Korean Wave and K-pop Sep 9 (W) KOCIS (Korea Culture and Information Service), The Korean Wave: A New Pop Culture Phenomenon (2011) pp. 9-55 John Lie (2012) “What is the K in K-pop? South Korean Popular Music, the Culture Industry, and National Identity,” Korea Observer 43(3): 339-363 Sep 11 (F) Documentary screening #1: Hark-Joon Lee (2012) 9 Muses of Star Empire Week 4. ‘Mass Culture’ at the Gate of Modernity: Colonial Modernity and Popular Culture Sep 16 (W) Review paper #1 due Sep 18 (F) Sun-young Yoo (2001) “Embodiment of American Modernity in Colonial Korea,” Inter-Asia Cultural Studies 2(3): 423-441 Michael Robinson, “Broadcasting, Cultural Hegemony, and Colonial Modernity in Korea” in Gi- Wook Shin and Michael Robinson eds., Colonial Modernity in Korea (Harvard Asian Center, 1999) pp. 52-69 Week 5. From Rags to Riches: American Dreams in the Cold-War East Asia Sep 23 (W) Quiz #1 Sep 25 (F) Shunya Yoshimi (2003) “‘America’ as desire and violence: Americanization in postwar Japan and Asia during the Cold War,” Inter-Asia Cultural Studies 4(3): 433-450 Pil Ho Kim and Hyunjoon Shin (2010) “The Birth of Rok: Cultural Imperialism, Nationalism and the Glocalization of Rock Music in South Korea, 1964-1975,” positions: east asia cultures critique 18(1) pp.
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