[HanCinema's Digest] Culture Corner

The Korea Times reviews Moon Jae-in's new book about his political vision, Korea Expose holds no punches against Korea's education culture, get to know the bestselling Zen Buddhist who's sold millions of copies worldwide, and do North and South Korean even speak the same language anymore?

Advertisement

"[Book Review] 'I want to build a world of justice'"

South Korea's film industry (and K-pop!) has done wonders to help spread Korean culture in the twenty-first century, but reading is still the most tried and tested way to gauge a nation's current pulse and really tap into their zeitgeist. Last year "Vegetarian" break the seal by winning the prestigious International Man Booker Prize, and in this review on The Korea Times, you'll hear about a new book from the presidential frontrunner, Moon Jae-in, about his vision of Korea in the twenty-first century: "The liberal candidate strongly argues for a change of government, as involving the President's confidant Choi Soon-sil in state affairs has put the country in crisis, writes Kim Jae-heun. "Moon says he believes in common sense, the restoration of justice and battling corruption of the past".

...READ ON THE KOREA TIMES

"An Assault Upon Our Children: South Korea's Education System Hurts Students"

The hard-hitting Korea Expose had this article published in the The New York Times back in 2014. The piece critically examines the state of South Korea's youth in a culture that has advanced at a stellar rate. Questions around the pressures and structures of South Korea's education system and family structures are hot topics today, but how troublesome are they really? In this article, Se-woong Koo makes the case for change through criticism...

...READ ON KOREA EXPOSE

"Zen and the art of family maintenance – lessons from the bestselling Buddhist monk"

Here's another novel suggestion: Haemin Sunim is a Zen Buddhist whose 2012 book "Things You Can See Only When You Slow Down" has sold millions of copies worldwide. If reading about politics is too removed, you'd do well to consider picking up a copy of this monk's mindful contemplations for some peace of mind we can all appreciate: "It would be great if we could gift to ourselves a moment of calm and quietude, to find our own centre, and go out and live more intentionally, rather than being pulled in many different directions and getting sucked in, and losing control".

...READ ON THE GUARDIAN

"Do North and South Korea speak the same language? Yes, but not quite"

The answer, at first, seems intuitively obvious, but do North and South Korea speak the same language? In evolutionary science, when members of the same species are separated (by, say, a natural disaster) for an extended period of time, a new species may emerge. Does the same sorta thing happen with cultural evolution and language? And have the two countries been separate, and exposed to varying cultural forces, to notice a significant change in the languages they use?

...READ ON THE GUARDIAN