Unsettling Modernity: Korea, Empire, Diaspora

Korean history from the late 19th century to the present. Examines how colonialisms, cold war divisions, and transnational migrations have shaped modern Korean identities both on the Korean Peninsula and in the diaspora. Challenges dominant narratives of modernization by centering marginalized perspectives and exploring key moments in modern Korean history: Japanese colonial rule, liberation and division, the Korean War, ideologies of 'self-reliance' in North and South Korea, South Korea's role in the Vietnam War, and democracy in neoliberal South Korea. Engages transnational Korean literature, history, theory, and visual media to reassess the nation-state as a construct shaped by colonial and Cold War structures.