| Contents |
1. The Origins -- The Koreans -- Early Inhabitants -- The Age of Rice Farming Begins -- Sources for Early Korea -- Choson -- The Chinese Commanderies -- Chinese Commanderies and Their Neighbors: The Northern Peoples -- Chinese Commanderies and Their Neighbors: The Southern Peoples -- Politics of the Third Century -- Korea in Global Perspective: 5,000 Years of History -- 2. The Period of the Three Kingdoms, 4th Century to 676 -- The Emergence of the Three Kingdoms -- The Wa and the Mimana -- Korea and Northeast Asia in the Fourth and Fifth Centuries -- Culture and Society of the Three Kingdoms -- The Bone-Ranks, the Hwabaek, and the Hwarang -- The Changing Environment of the Late Sixth and Seventh Centuries -- The Unification of Korea under Silla -- Korea in Global Perspective: State Formation -- 3. Late Silla, 676 to 935 -- The Peninsular Kingdom -- Consolidation of Central Monarchical Rule under Silla, 676-780 -- Silla and the Chinese Model -- Supporting the Silla State -- Silla Society -- Silla and Its Neighbors -- Parhae -- The Decline of Silla -- The Later Three Kingdoms -- Korea in Global Perspective: Silla's Rise and Fall -- 4. Koryo, 935 to 1170 -- The New Koryo State -- Koryo in East Asia -- Internal Politics, 935-1170 -- Koryo Culture -- The Samguk Sagi -- Koryo Society -- Korea in Global Perspective: Koryo's Examination System -- 5. Military Rulers and Mongol Invaders, 1170 to 1392 -- Military Rule -- Son Buddhism -- Korea, Japan, and Feudal Europe -- The Mongol Invasions -- The Legacy of the Mongol Period -- Late Koryo Society -- The End of the Koryo -- Late Koryo Culture -- The Rise of Neo-Confucianism -- Korea in Global Perspective: The Mongols and Korea -- 6. The Neo-Confucian Revolution and the Choson State, 1392 to the 18th Century -- Establishing the Yi Dynasty -- The Choson State -- The Censorate and the Classics Mat -- Historians -- The Examination System -- Education -- Agricultural Improvements and the State -- Military and Foreign Affairs -- The Japanese and Manchu Invasions -- Competition for Power among the Elite -- Choson Politics in Perspective -- Korea in Global Perspective: Choson as an Ideologically Driven State -- 7. Choson Society -- The Family -- Women during the Yi Dynasty -- Social Structure -- Slaves and Outcastes -- Crime and Punishment -- Religious Beliefs and Practices -- Philosophy -- Arts, Literature, and Science -- Technology and Inventions -- Korea in Global Perspective: Women in Korea -- Korea in Global Perspective: Choson's Social Hierarchy -- 8. Late Choson, Early 18th Century to 1876 -- The Politics of Late Choson -- Late Choson and the Confucian World Order -- Korean Travelers to China and Japan -- Taxation and Reform -- Agriculture -- Commerce and Trade -- Cultural Flowering of Late Choson -- Sirhak -- Everyday Life -- Korea in the Nineteenth Century: The "Hermit Kingdom" -- Internal Problems in the Nineteenth Century -- Korea in Global Perspective: The Hermit Kingdom? -- 9. Korea in the Age of Imperialism, 1876 to 1910 -- Early Contacts with the West -- The Opening of Korea -- Early Reforms, 1876-1884 -- The Chinese Decade, 1885-1894 -- The Tonghak Rebellion -- Kabo Reforms -- The Russian Ascendency and the Independence Club -- The Russo-Japanese War and the Protectorate -- The Protectorate, 1905-1910 -- Korea in Transition -- Korea in Global Perspective: Korea in the Age of Imperialism -- 10. Colonial Korea, 1910 to 1945 -- The March First Movement -- The Post-March First Period -- Cultural Ferment of the 1920s -- Moderate and Radical Nationalism -- Economic Development -- Modernity and Social Change -- Rural Society -- Wartime Colonialism, 1931-1945 -- Forced Assimilation -- A Society in Turmoil: The Legacy of Colonial Rule -- Korea in Global Perspective: The Korean Nationalist Movement -- Korea in Global Perspective: Korea's Colonial Experience -- 11. Division and War, 1945 to 1953 -- The End of Colonial Rule in Korea -- North Korea under Soviet Occupation -- South Korea under U.S. Occupation -- Trusteeship -- Establishing a Separate Regime in the North -- The Beginnings of a New Regime in the South -- Toward Division -- The Republic of Korea -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea -- On the Eve of the Korean War -- The Korean War -- The Impact of the Korean War -- Korea in Global Perspective: Divided Countries -- Korea in Global Perspective: The Korean War -- 12. North Korea: Recovery, Transformation, and Decline, 1953 to 1993 -- The Divergent Paths of the Two Koreas -- North Korea's Recovery -- Political Consolidation -- The Changing International Situation -- Confrontational Stance toward the South and the United States -- Relentless Militarization -- The Ideology of Self-Reliance -- The Cult of the Kim Family -- Society -- Economic Problems -- Korea in Global Perspective: North Korea as a Communist Country -- 13. South Korea: From Poverty to Prosperity, 1953 to 1997 -- The Syngman Rhee Years, 1953-1960 -- The Democratic Experiment, 1960-1961 -- The Military Coup -- Economic Transformation -- Economic Growth under Park Chung Hee -- Chaebols -- Transformation of the Countryside -- Economic Development in the 1980s -- Explaining South Korea's Economic Miracle -- Education -- Korea in Global Perspective: Educational Development -- Korea in Global Perspective: Economic Development -- 14. South Korea: Creating a Democratic Society, 1953 to 1997 -- Military Authoritarianism -- The Yushin Era, 1971-1979 -- Seoul Spring, 1979-1980 -- The Fifth Republic -- 1987: A Political Turning Point -- Transition to Democracy -- Understanding the Democratic Turn -- Student Activism -- Organized Labor -- Social and Cultural Transition -- Korea in Global Perspective: Democratization -- 15. Contemporary North Korea, 1993 to 2010 -- In Decline -- A Period of Crisis -- Under Kim Jong II -- Ideology -- Famine -- Crisis and Summitry -- Tentative Reforms -- Confrontations and the Policy of Survival -- Korea in Global Perspective: North Korea's Famine -- Korea in Global Perspective: North Korea as a Failed State -- 16. Contemporary South Korea, 1997 to 2010 -- Return to Civilian Government -- Economic Crisis and Recovery -- Domestic Politics -- Foreign Policy -- Rethinking Reunification -- A Society Undergoing Rapid Change -- Changing Gender Relations, Changing Families -- Ethnic Homogeneity -- Facing History and Preserving Heritage -- New Crises and New Problems -- Korea in Global Perspective: South Korea's Place in the World. |
| Abstract |
In this comprehensive yet compact book, Michael J. Seth surveys Korean history from Neolithic times to the present. He explores the origins and development of Korean society, politics, and its still little-known cultural heritage from their inception to the two Korean states of today. Telling the remarkable story of the origins and evolution of a society that borrowed and adopted from abroad, Seth describes how various tribal peoples in the peninsula came together to form one of the world's most distinctive communities. He shows how this ancient, culturally and ethnically homogeneous society was wrenched into the world of late-nineteenth-century imperialism, fell victim to Japanese expansionism, and then became arbitrarily divided into two opposed halves, North and South, after World War II. Tracing the past seven decades, the book explains how the two Koreas, with their deeply different political and social systems and geopolitical orientations, evolved into sharply contrasting societies. South Korea, after an unpromising start, became one of the few postcolonial developing states to enter the ranks of the first world, with a globally competitive economy, a democratic political system, and a cosmopolitan and dynamic culture. North Korea, by contrast, became one of the world's most totalitarian and isolated societies, a nuclear power with an impoverished and famine-stricken population. Seth describes and analyzes the radically different and historically unprecedented trajectories of the two Koreas, formerly one tight-knit society. Throughout, he adds a rich dimension by placing Korean history into broader global perspective and by including primary readings from each era. All readers looking for a balanced, knowledgeable history will be richly rewarded with this clear and concise book. |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| LCCN | 2010032330 |
| ISBN | 9780742567153 (cloth : alk. paper) |
| ISBN | 074256715X (cloth : alk. paper) |
| ISBN | 9780742567160 (pbk. : alk. paper) |
| ISBN | 0742567168 (pbk. : alk. paper) |
| ISBN | 9780742567177 (electronic) |
| ISBN | 0742567176 (electronic) |
