KOREAN POP-CULTURE (TAUGHT IN ENGLISH)

Topics

• A Bird’s-Eye View of Korean History
• Unified Silla, Goryeo, and Joseon
• Historical Themes in K-Pop
• An Overview of Joseon History
• Food, Medicine, and Fashion
• Shamans, Slaves, and Consorts
• The Imjin War
• Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Yi Sun-sin
• Mythologizing Joseon: Movies about Joseon
• Japanese Colonization of Korea
• Colonial Modernity vs. Imperial Exploitation
• Anti-Japanese Imperialism and Korean Nationalism
• Origins of the Two Koreas and the Korean War
• Movies and Dramas on the Korean War
• Remembering War through Popular Culture
• Thwarted Democracy and Developmental Dictatorship
• U.S. Influence on Korean Popular Music
• The Roots of K-Pop
• Cultural Control under Park Chung-hee
• Trot, Folk, and Protest Music
• Television and Mass Popular Culture
• The Gwangju Uprising and Cultural Trauma
• Youth Culture and Ballads
• Media Liberalization and Performance
• Cultural Liberalization after 1987
• Seo Taiji and Boys