[KS] Re: Korean Identity in the New Millennium
Michael J. Pettid
pettid at aks.ac.kr
Fri Mar 17 23:42:59 EST 2000
Thank you for the interest and abstract. We will be in touch.
Michael Pettid
Visiting Assistant Professor
The Academy of Korean Studies
----- Original Message -----
From: <HKHogarth at aol.com>
To: <korean-studies at mailbase.ac.uk>
Sent: Friday, March 17, 2000 7:30 PM
Subject: Re: Korean Identity in the New Millennium
> Dear Mr. Pettid,
>
> I wish to participate in the 11th International Conference at the AKS in
> June. Please find below an abstract of my proposed paper. I am also sending
> it by post, since the diacritical marks may not show properly.
>
>
> Dr. Hyun-key Kim Hogarth
> 17 St. Thomas Hill
> Canterbury
> Kent CT2 8HW
> U.K.
> Tel/fax: (01227) 781187 From Korea: +44-1227-781187
>
> Institutional affiliation: The Roayl Anthropological Institute
>
>
> Title: Folkorization of the Shamanistic Heritage in Contemporary Korea:
> Folklore, National Identity and Korean Shamanism
>
> Abstract
>
> This paper discusses the 'folklorization' of the shamanistic heritage in
> contemporary Korean society. The ethnographic material that I focus on in
> this paper is one of the most celebrated festivals in contemporary Korea,
> commonly known as the Kangnung Tanoje Festival, held annually on the fifth
> day of the fifth month in the lunar calendar on the east coast of Korea.
>
> First I will present definitions of 'folklorization' and 'folklore.' The
> scholarly study of folklore began in the mid-nineteenth century, although
> there were precursors such as Johann Gottfried von Herder (1744-1803), a
> German critic and poet. The English term 'folklore' was coined in 1846 by
> British antiquarian William John Thomas, who defined it as 'the manners,
> customs, observances, superstitions, ballad, proverbs, etc., of the olden
> times' (cited in Bauman 1992). Borne out of the nineteenth century notions of
> romanticism and nationalism, folklore became a subject of serious study among
> 'individuals who felt nostalgia for the past and/or the necessity of
> documenting the existence of national consciousness or identity (Dundes
> 1980:1).'
> Although the concepts of 'folk' and 'folklore' have undergone great changes
> in recent years in western academe (Dundes 1980), Thomas's notion prevails in
> contemporary Korea. Folklore studies are mainly concerned with preserving
> the fast disappearing old customs and traditions, etc, and thus closely
> linked with the Korean national identity and cultural nationalism. The term
> 'folklorization' invariably has connotations of national identity and
> nationalism.
>
> The Kangnung Tanoje Festival is a prime example of how the shamanistic
> heritage is kept alive and cherished by modern Korean people, despite their
> great advancement in science and technology. It confirms the fact that
> Korean shamanism is an integral part of Korean culture. Although its
> practices may be disappearing, especially in an urban setting,
> 'folkorization' of the shamanistic heritage, will continue to occur, thus
> reconfirming its importance in the lives of the Korean people.
>
>
> References
>
> Akiba, Takashi. 1953/1993. Choson minsokchi. Korean translation by Shim,
> Usong. Seoul: Tongmunson.
>
> Babcock, Barbara A (ed). 1978. The Reversible World: Symbolic Inversion in
> Art and Society. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press.
>
> Bauman, Richard (ed). 1992. Folklore, Cultural Performances, and Popular
> Entertainnment: A Communications-Centered Handbook. New York: Oxford
> University Press.
>
> Caillois, Roger. 1979. Man, Play and Games. New York: Schocken.
>
> Dundes, Alan. 1980. Interpeting Folklore. Bloomington: Indiana University
> Press.
>
> Hong, Sokmo. 1849?/1989. Tongguk Seshigi. Translated into modern Korean
> with annotations by Ch'oe Taerim. Seoul: Hongshin Ch'ulp'ansa.
>
> Im Tonggwon. 1971. Han'guk minsokhak non'go (A Study of Korean Folklore).
> Seoul: Chimmundang.
>
> Kim Songwon (ed.) 1987. Han'guk ui seshi p'ungsok (Seasonal Customs of
> Korea). Seoul: Myongmundang.
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