20th Century Korean Literature - Essay Example

20th Century Korean Literature There are various forms of violence depicted in post-war, Korean literature. This forms of violence range from political violence to sexual violence among women, which were witnessed during and after Korea’s independence, as depicted in Korean literature. This essay explores the various forms of violence depicted in post-war, Korean literature. The sources of the forms of violence are discussed, along with the effects of violence and the remedies for violence. Finally, the essay discusses the relationship between violence and writing. The most prevalent form of violence that has been depicted in post-war, Korean literature is political violence. According to most post-war Korean literature writers, Korea was filled with political violence. For instance, writers such as Yi Pomson, Son Ch’angsop and O Sangwon have portrayed the Korean society as a society ravaged by political violence and civil war, hunger and homelessness, as well as, immorality (Wallace). Political violence was witnessed in Korea due to internal conflicts. Another cause of political violence was competition among forces from China, Japan and Russia (Nam-ho, Ch’anje and Kwangho 5). After its victory, Japan colonized Korea by use of political oppression and economic extraction (Nam-ho, Ch’anje and Kwangho 5). During the time when Korea nationals struggled for independence, violence between Koreans and the colonial government was witnessed. However, the colonial government used repression as a weapon and this led to a lot of misery among Korean Citizens (Nam-ho, Ch’anje and Kwangho 5). The Korean citizens were persecution and massacred by Japanese military. Many Korean nationals lost their lives during this period. The cause of these persecutions and massacres were political. For instance, members groups that demonstrated or protested against the colonial government such as the Korean Artista Proleta Federetio (KAPF) were arrested and tortured. Specifically, the colonialist government ensured that KAPF members were arrested and subjected to torture. There was intense suppression on Korean citizens by the police (Pihl 71). Even after independence, political violence was evident in Korea and this has been depicted in post-war Korean literature. For instance, college students who criticized President Pak’s Government were arrested and frequently subjected to torture. The cause of student protests against the then Korean government was majorly the corrupt nature of the government. President Pak’s Government was involved with corrupt practices and ensured that the wages were low so that it could have a competitive advantage in international markets. Another instance of political violence was witnessed between 1948 and 1949. This period is referred to as the Cheju Insurgency. Post-war, Korean literature writers such as Kim Sok Pom note that the American military and South Korean Militias tortured and killed communists and suspected sympathizers (Foxworth 48). This resulted into the death of about eighty thousand Cheju Islanders who had opposed the American imperialism in Korea. In particular, the Cheju Islanders were against the South-only elections that were inspired by America. The resultant killings have been classified as state violence, whereby genocide was politically influenced. Among the many effects of political violence is psychological effect. Psychological trauma results from political violence and it has various adverse effects on individuals and society. Children are victims of political violence who are affected most by psychological trauma. In addition, political violence led to the establishment of bureaucratic governance and separation of the two Koreas, which are separate countries to date (Kang 146). Many people lost their lives during the political violence period while many others were injured or incapacitated and others still displaced from their home. For instance, some Cheju Islanders fled to Japan during the 1948 insurgency. Respect for human rights, advocated by activists is among appropriate remedies for political violence. It creates both short-term and long-term solutions. When human rights activists push authorities through protests, implementation of structural solutions is eventually achieved. The most commonly used approach is international, nonviolent protective accompaniment. This involves the use of unarmed international escorts alongside local activists (Smith, Chatfield and Pagnucco 82). It reduces attacks because political oppressors are afraid of directing violence and threats at foreign nationals or the people that foreign nationals escort or guard. Threatening or violating the rights of foreign nationals is associated with higher political costs for transgressors, compared to the violation of rights of unaccompanied local citizens. This approach could apply in Korea’s case. Another form of violence witnessed in the post-war Korea and has been documented by literature writers is military violence. It has been depicted in post-war, Korean literature that most soldiers went through torture and abuse of human rights in their camps. Therefore, soldiers were being mistreated in soldier camps during the war era. For instance, a story set in a South Korean army camp in 1963 is a narration of a Korean student soldier who offers to teach his illiterate comrades in the camp to read and write (Pihl 83). This training on how to read and write makes the illiterate comrades aware of the injustice of their army life. They even realize how a company commander has been to them. For instance, the company commander is so soldiers in the camp that he lets an army officer die of neglect. The inspector general schemes with the company commander to perform actions that are against the student soldier when the student soldier makes efforts to report the cause of the soldier in the camp. Consequently, the company commander beats the student soldier mercilessly and threatens him with a gun while still in bed with his injuries. The student soldier kills the company commander and is imprisoned. Therefore, there was a lot of inhuman maltreatment of soldiers who are alleged to suffer in the hands of South Korean Army. This is episode depicts some of the violence that was witnessed in soldier camps in Korea during the war and post-war period. The main cause of military violence in soldier camps was the need to use and advance torture as a way of instilling fear among Korean nationals and cruelty among soldiers so that abuse of human rights could go on. During the time when Japan ruled Korea, most Koreans suffered a lifelong social injustice under the military during wartime. Fear among trainee soldiers and citizens could make it easier for transgressors to rule and oppress citizens as they wished. A soldier whose training included torture is likely to be obedient to his or her masters and very cruel to citizens. This means that such a soldier can be ordered to participate in violent activities so as to safeguard the interests of transgressors. There various effects associated with torture or maltreatment in soldier training camps. For instance, torture causes stress. Depending on the severity of the torture itself, this could lead to multiple problems. For instance, victims of torture may develop psychiatric disorders. About two hundred World War II and Korean conflict former prisoners who underwent torture were diagnosed with psychiatric disorders (Başoğlu 109). It was surprising to learn that the psychological effect of such violence can last for more than forty years. People who have undergone torture are characterized with anxiety disorders and depression. This may turn them to be cruel towards others. As for the case of trainee soldiers, undergoing violence during their training in the form of torture meant that they became afraid of their seniors and could obey to perform any task assigned to them, no matter how inhuman it might be. This creates fear and affects all citizens. It should be noted that violence in the military camps is associated with mental and physical damage. In particular, soldiers who had been tortured during their training had their personality destroyed and they are ready to terrorize society. The physical damage caused by violence in the form of torture in camps could remain for a long time. This violence also leads to psychological effects in the form of stigma, which survivors or victims must endure for the rest of their lives as they remember the torture experience. Violence and torture in soldier camps could be remedied through human rights activities such as protests. Various human rights supporting organizations could use their personnel to investigate cases of torture in the camps. In addition, people could be mobilized to participate in human rights protests to reduce the incidences of torture by speaking against torture and violence. Human rights activities are also required to sensitize nationals and trainee soldiers about their human rights. This could reduce the instances of silent torture, in which case soldiers under training are subjected to maltreatment and they do not complain or seek redress because of fear. On the other hand, when student soldiers and other military trainees are aware of their human rights they may be willing and ready to report any cases of maltreatment or resist. In addition, treatment of victims of this form of violence could assist a great deal in remedying the situation. Counseling should be offered to the victims and survivors so as to try and rehabilitate them. Sexual violence among women has also been depicted in post-war, Korean literature. Poverty, sexual availability and labor movement heroism contributed to sexual violence during and after the time of war in Korea. The Korean state may be categorized as a repressive state. This means that cultural assumptions pertaining to the feminine population contributed significantly to violence. During and after war in Korea, economic, social and sexual issues had undergone disturbances to an extent that there was no clear description of the ubiquitous occurrences such as sexual harassment or sexual assault (Barraclough and Faison 61). Given that Korea, especially South Korea was run by military, sexual violence was prevalent. However, poverty has always been cited as one of the main cause of sexual violence in Korea during and after war times. Another major contributing factor that led to sexual violence in Korea is Korea’s masculinity sexual culture and the capital political economy imposed by colonialists (Soh 242). Korea’s colonizer, Japan, instilled prolonged violation. This led to class conflicts due to differences in occupations and division. Most writers have portrayed anger about the image set by colonialists about women as objects. Japanese military in Korea were also the cause of sexual violence among Korean women during the colonial period. This has been cited in various cases, for instance, in 1992, Korean women testified that Japanese military personnel had force them into prostitution between 1932 and 1945 (Skjelsbaek 229). Therefore, sexual violence in Korea was initiated by Japanese military. The poverty status of the Korean economy during the period of colonization affected women and girls most. This led to an increase in prostitution. In particular, sexual violence among women under the regime of Japanese military led to psychological effects. Some Korean women underwent suffering as a result of structural violence that was witnessed especially, among the poor. This has been depicted in post-war, Korean literature. The military comfort system and the aggression of wartime Korea and sexual violence among women led to psychological suffering. There are both psychological and physical effects of sexual violence. The survivors or victims of sexual violence are relegated to mere tools of society and second class citizens. Shame and stigmatization associated with violence leads to long term psychological suffering. It should also be noted that sexual violence against women during periods of conflicts or military rule has effects that are beyond the victims and their families (Eboe-Osuji 6). It makes sexual violence appear as normal to the society. For instance, cases of rape and other forms of sexual violence increase among civilians because they copy this trend. Human rights activists demonstrations against sexual violence can help remedy sexual violence. Society can engage protection policies to ensure that women who are vulnerable to sexual violence are protected. Women can organize feminist movements against sexual violence. It is imperative to note that writing and violence are related. Violence is structured like a language. Violence is a language of violence and its incidences can be reduced through literature writings. For instance, writing enables elites to enlighten society about the effects of violence and instill good morals in society. Writing is treated as a very special task of educated elite who are responsible for moral leadership of the society. For instance, writings intended to instill western thought so as to enlighten citizens from Korea while other writings depicted information that was against violent acts by colonialists. Therefore, in Korea writing has been used as a response to the Japanese occupation between 1910 and 1945, with an aim of educating and warning society on the negative effects of violence. In Korea, antigovernment writings of the intellectual opposition in the South posed liberation socialist realism of the communist North (Soh). Works Cited Barraclough, Ruth and Elyssa Faison. Gender and Labour in Korea and Japan: Sexing Class. Abingdon: Routledge Publications , 2009. Print. Başoğlu, Metin. Torture and Its Consequences: Current Treatment Approaches. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 1992. Print. Eboe-Osuji, Chile. International Law and Sexual Violence in Armed Conflicts. Leiden : Extenza Turpin Press, 2012. Print. Foxworth, Elise. "A Tribute to the Japanese Literature of Korean Writers in Japan ." 2013. Web. Kang, Miongsei. "The Impact of the Korean War on the Political-Economic System of South Korea: Economic Growth and Democracy." International Journal of Korean Studies (2011): 10 (1), 129-153. Print. Nam-ho, Yi, et al. "Twentieth-Century Korean Literature." November 2011. Web. Pihl, Marshall R. "Engineers of the Human Soul:Appendix: North Korean Literature Today "The Son" by Kim Puk-Hyang." Korean Studies (1977): 63-92. Print. Skjelsbaek, Inger. "Sexual Violence and War: Mapping Out a Complex Relationship." European Journal of International Relations Copyright (2001): 7(2) 211-237. Print. Smith, Jackie, Charles Chatfield and Ron Pagnucco. Transnational Social Movements and Global Politics: Solidarity Beyond the State. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 1997. Print. Soh, Chunghee Sarah. The Comfort Women: Sexual Violence and Postcolonial Memory in Korea and Japan. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2008. Print. Wallace, B Alan. The Columbia Companion to Modern East Asian Literature. New York: Columbia University Press, 2003. Print. Read More