| Over the last 600 years, Seoul underwent a tremendous urban metamorphosis from a royal capital of the Confucian Choson state (1394-1897), an imperial capital of the Korean Empire (1897-1910), then a colonial capital of the Japanese Empire (1910-1945), and now into one of the largest multicultural megacities in the world. Along this long trajectory, various actors and communities have left their traces upon the surface of urban space in the constructed environment, transforming Seoul into a rich living archive offering a glimpse into Korea’s history and memory. This course offers an interdisciplinary surveyof the city from the Choson dynasty to the contemporary era. Tracing changes and developments of Seoul, we will pay particular attention to the larger political, economic, and social contexts that enabled its transformation. In doing so, we will examine Seoul from various perspectives, such as Seoul as a Confucian city, civilizing city, colonial city, Cold War city, dissident city, and multicultural city. This course is divided into two parts: (1) “Present Pasts of Nation’s Capital” explores Seoul’s changing urban landscapes in the context of the nation-state building process in South Korea; and (2) “Social Exclusion and Urban Marginality” examines various urban communities, and how their diverse presences and activities–whether invisible or forgotten–make up the city of Seoul as a whole. |
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Section 401 – SEM
T 0300PM-0600PM
LEE, SINWOO
(Cross listed: EALC581-401, HIST-092-401, URBS-182-401)
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