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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Dear List: </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Gari's remembrance of Jim Palais moves me to write
as well. I was fortunate to study with Jim for my eight years of graduate
study (1971-79). I suppose I was part of a third generation of Koreanists
being trained in the 1970s. I was at the beginnng of Jim's career of
training graduate students so at the time I took for granted his methods and
habits as a teacher. Of course at the beginning I was completely
intimidated by his inexhaustable knowledge about Korea, China, Japan, and
seemingly everything else. But as time went by intimidation turned to
genuine admiration and appreciation for his generosity in sharing with us at
such a high level of engagement. Jim's commentary on seminar papers (and
later article and book drafts) are legend among his students. More than
once I trembled at the sight of yet another 6 page single spaced commentary
of one of my small papers. I remember thinking my life was over when I
opened his reactions to my first monograph running to 25 of his single spaced
pages. I could only wonder how I was going to respond and ever finish the
project. The time and care that he took with this sort of feedback to
students was simply amazing. And I truly understand today having had
my own graduate students what a sacrifice this was in his own time. THat
he produced as well his enormous body of scholarship makes me wonder if he every
slept? I feel badly everytime I take a short-cut with a student, or
begrudge my time in any way teaching. I will never measure up to his level
of generosity and commitment. Intellectually there was no half
measures for Jim, he was on, full bore, with every topic. where this
might have been a failing at times with his own interpersonal realtionships, as
a mentor it was a quality that urged us on to really strive to do our
best. As Gari rightly pointed out, Jim did not suffer fools lightly.
Many an unsuspecting visitor to the China, Japan or Korea seminar at the
University of Washington learned this the hard way. One just didn't ride
on reputation, it was what was being said at that moment that received the full
measure of Jim's penetrating intellect and criticism. Watching full
professors in fields outside of Korean studies being taken apart was certainly
not condusive to feeling confident as one approached an oral exam. But in
the end what many people (or at least those those who remained intimidated)
did not recognize that this was simply the only way Jim could think and
interact. Beneath this exterior lay a very warm and caring person.
Too bad that some students didn't stick it out long enough to see this
side. We who were fortunate enough to study with him, receive his massive
critiques, play basketball with him, enjoy his family and friends over wine and
lasagna, or just have the sheer pleasure of laughing with him have lost an
irreplaceable force and presence in our lives. He was at times the most
irritating and rigid moralist one could encounter and often clueless as to
his effect on people (for those he sent crying from his office), but one will
never find a better teacher, a more generous mentor, nor a more loyal
friend. I will miss him terribly, but he will live on among all the
students, colleagues, lecture attendees, readers, and friends that the
spirit and force of his intellect and personality touched. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Mike Robinson</FONT> </DIV></BODY></HTML>