Lanterns on the river : essays on life and culture in contemporary South Korea / Diane M. Hoffman.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hoffman, Diane M., 1954-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Korea (South)--Civilization.

Korea (South).

Civilization.

Korea (South)--Social life and customs.

Manners and customs.

Physical Description:

viii, 197 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Lanham, Md. : Lexington Books, [1999]

Summary:

Lanterns on the River collects a series of reflective and interpretive essays on contemporary Korean life and culture. Diane M. Hoffman views Korea through a cross-cultural window, offering the non-Korean reader a base for understanding and appreciating aspects of Korean life. Among the topics these essays address are: the role of emotion in Korean life, the theme of conformity, the influence of religion, and the nature of the relationship between men and women. Hoffman has an anthropologist's interest in cultural meanings and values; however, the book also offers unique insights into themes not commonly addressed in the existing scholarly; literature. Lanterns on the River is thus a hybrid genre, and as such will have appeal not only for scholars of Asia and Korea and students of cultural anthropology and social psychology, but also for the general reader interested in the various dimensions of life in contemporary Korea.

Contents:

1 Introduction: Of Multiplicity and Unity 7

2 Emotions: The "Sticky Self" 29

3 Korea Is Best: National Cultural Identity in the "Light of the East" 39

4 Han 49

5 Foreigner! Self and Other in Korean Life 55

6 Body, Face, and Public Behavior 65

7 The Grayness of Knowing: Communication, Logic, and Decision-Making 75

8 Conformity, Individuality, and Uri 87

9 Bringing Up Baby in Modern Korea 97

10 Men and Women: A Korean Psychology of Gender 109

11 Yankee, Go Home! Anti-Americanism and the Cultural Invasion of Korea 125

12 The Tissue Box: Materialism and Cultural Transformation 135

13 Ondol, Tatami: Korea, Japan 141

14 The Neon Cross: Christianity Illuminated 157

15 White Socks, Blue Suit: Identity Translated 167

16 Self in Transition: The East-West Synthesis 175

17 Closing: Windows

Looking Out, Looking In 185.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [191]-194) and index.

ISBN:

0739100742

OCLC:

40990204