Modernization and Nationalism in South Korea
Is it possible to preserve traditional Korean culture as South Korea continues to modernize and Westernize?
In the 21st century, modernity is often equated with capitalism-industrialization, though the concept is more complex than that. The idea of modernity can be defined on sociological, political and cultural platforms. Modernity is a powerful notion, a departure from tradition; driven by political, social and economic developments. It is the acceptance that progress is inevitable. Because this departure from conventional, cultural practices is essential to the implementation of modernization, many societies have struggled with breaking from tradition in an effort to modernize, to varying degrees of success. The difficulties to preserve culture while modernizing has been particularly prevalent in eastern Asian cultures -- especially those that have been affected by the deeply conservative thinking of Confucianism -- after they adopted the concept from the post-feudal West. Emerging countries such as South Korea are especially burdened by trying to strike a happy balance between their traditional culture versus the prospects of modernization. Couple this with Confucianism plus the Korean peninsula's self-imposed policy of isolationism in previous centuries, which resulted in limited contact with foreign innovation and one would expect South Korea to struggle bitterly to modernize while maintaining its traditional customs. However, tools such as Korean Nationalism, the influence of Confucianism and the impact of the Japanese occupation of the Korean peninsula enable Korean society to better preserve and protect their culture while entering the modern world as a dynamic nation. South Korean culture can be tough for an outsider to grapple with. Though it has imported Chinese elements, it has also been shaped by the nation’s unique experiences with shamanism. If you just skim the surface, it is a very Westernized place. The youth has wholeheartedly embraced
In the 21st century, modernity is often equated with capitalism-industrialization, though the concept is more complex than that. The idea of modernity can be defined on sociological, political and cultural platforms. Modernity is a powerful notion, a departure from tradition; driven by political, social and economic developments. It is the acceptance that progress is inevitable. Because this departure from conventional, cultural practices is essential to the implementation of modernization, many societies have struggled with breaking from tradition in an effort to modernize, to varying degrees of success. The difficulties to preserve culture while modernizing has been particularly prevalent in eastern Asian cultures -- especially those that have been affected by the deeply conservative thinking of Confucianism -- after they adopted the concept from the post-feudal West. Emerging countries such as South Korea are especially burdened by trying to strike a happy balance between their traditional culture versus the prospects of modernization. Couple this with Confucianism plus the Korean peninsula's self-imposed policy of isolationism in previous centuries, which resulted in limited contact with foreign innovation and one would expect South Korea to struggle bitterly to modernize while maintaining its traditional customs. However, tools such as Korean Nationalism, the influence of Confucianism and the impact of the Japanese occupation of the Korean peninsula enable Korean society to better preserve and protect their culture while entering the modern world as a dynamic nation. South Korean culture can be tough for an outsider to grapple with. Though it has imported Chinese elements, it has also been shaped by the nation’s unique experiences with shamanism. If you just skim the surface, it is a very Westernized place. The youth has wholeheartedly embraced
Cited: Rostow, Walter. Stages of Economic Growth: A Non-Communist Manifesto. Cambridge University Press, 1960