Despite the passage of over forty years since the official end of the civil war in Korea, the north and the south sections of the country remain technically at war. Roy Richard Grinker suggests that a fundamental obstacle to peace on the peninsula is that South Korea has become a nation in which nearly all aspects of economic, political, and cultural identity are defined in opposition to North Korea. He further demonstrates that in spite of its status as a sacred goal for all Koreans, the idea of unification threatens the world in which almost every South Korean has been born and raised.

Praise

“A provocative sociocultural study . . .” —Library Journal

“The subject of the unification of the Korean peninsula is crowded with the work of political scientists. The value of Grinker's book is that he introduces a fresh set of analytical tools, those of the anthropologist.” —Choice

“...thoughtful and provocative book....” —Journal of Asian Studies

About the Author(s)

Roy Richard Grinker

Roy Richard Grinker is Associate Professor of Anthropology and International Affairs at George Washington University and Senior Asian Fellow at the Atlantic Council of the United States in Washington, DC.

Table of Contents

Introduction: Unification and the Disruption of Identity in South Korea * Nation, State, and the Idea of Unification: Speaking of the Unspeakable * North Korean Everyday Life on Display * Loss, Mourning, and Resentment: Han * Divided Families * Elementary Forms of Korean Historical Representation: School Textbooks * Democracy and Unification: Student Protests * Dissidence and Border Violations * The Defectors * Conclusion: Preparing for Unification: The Problem of Complicity and Differences * Bibliography * Index