Eating Dog in Korea: A Historical Perspective

Koreans have been known ... and culturally condemned ... by the west for eating dogs. For the western point-of-view, dog is not a menu item but is an animal culturally known as "man's best friend", an animal to share a house with, to walk with and even emote with. Such an animal viewed as a friend is not to tweek the appetite but rather inspires an upheaval of bile if such a notion is mentioned. And so, ethnocentrism rules western thoughts on the eastern practice of eating dog.

However, ethnocentrism results in cultural blinders to a history not shared between the west and the east. While the west has had access to a wider range of foods, particularly meats, westerners can afford to choose animals on a more heirarchical caste and label them as closer to humans and so to be regarded more affectionately by them. Koreans, on the other hand, had limited meat resources and all those resources could be beneficial for human survival if eaten. Dogs did have a function closer to humans than many other animals, but no matter its relative closeness to humans compared with other animals, in times of want the dog was a nutritional item, much like the cow is to westerners. Long ago the cow, by the way, was probably closest to humans due to it being essential for fieldwork and so of utmost practical use, unlike the dog which had little practical use in traditional Korean life. However, one practical use was for the mutt dog called the "동걔" or "shit dog", which was called to clean up the urination or poop of the baby for keeping the household compound clean.


From a farmer's perspective too, the dog was a necessary protein item [although I rather doubt that long ago Koreans thought of "protein" but rather referred to the "energy" that the dog meat provided]. The farmers worked long and hard in their fields from early spring preparing the crops to the late fall when they harvested them. Rice accompanied by some grains was the staple of the Korean diet and vegetables accented the meals. In the summer when the summer blazed the hottest, the lunar calendar allotted 3 days spaced by 10-14 days as the hottest days of summer - 초복, 증복 and 말복, basically first dog day, middle dog day and last dog day. Those were the days when the men, failing from their hard fieldwork, needed to boost their stamina [nearly synonymous with virility] and eating dog was a cultural way of doing so.

When the fall came with the harvest, Korean farmers were tired and in need of strength and "energy" for the winter. Without money and the inability to hunt wild game, dog was an available food item. The dog was also viewed as a very favorable food item for humans as dog meat was seen to be more similar with man's body than cow or pig meat. Even in the present day, eating dog is viewed as an energy-booster, particularly for men. People in the west with their culturally-acquired views on what is proper to eat need to be aware of a history that encourages alternative dietary habits based on people having an alternative history.

Soju and the Provinces

The Korean peninsula is a land of many features - from the many mountains which are the highest along the eastern side of the long peninsula to the relatively warm and temperate climate in the middle latitude. The radically changing topography vary quite extensively between the northernmost and southernmost regions. (South Koreans enjoy a much warmer latitude and therefore a longer growing season while North Korea borders the cold steppes and is hit harder by the Mongolian winds of winter). Throughout the Koreas, and even so in the more temperate South Korea, there is a wide and varying difference in agricultural products being produced, farming techniques employed in production and traditional home construction to complement the variation between colder and warmer climates on the peninsula. And so, as can be expected, though the drinking of soju is widespread through South Korea, the ingredients and brewing vary quite a bit.

This is an introduction to soju as compiled by two of my students - Kim Jin Kyu and Kang Hong Soon. They looked at 6 different kinds of soju (in fact, there are many more!) and talked about the topography involved in the creation and resulting regional variation of each.

Chamiseul - Capital area

♦ most famous soju in South Korea

♦ has a cheaper price than most other soju - so that it could have very high sales, in fact, in 2010 1,600,000 were sold

 

♦ uses bamboo charcoal to filter the impurities and make the soju "softer"

 




Autumn Chrysanthemum - Kangwon

♦ unique chrysanthemum flavor made by using whole blooms

♦ made also of sweet rice, which gives it a soft, sweet, smooth effect when drinking

Pyongyang Soju - Pyongyang

♦ most famous soju in North Korea

♦ a distilled soju, making it very unusual and considered "good for health"

♦ has a very high degree of alcohol, reflecting the cold environment in which it is made (for keeping the people "warm")

♦ nice attractive chrysanthemum scent - sweetish and aromatic

Big Soju - Cheongju

♦ made from the famous local Cheongju apples, and therefore considered nutritious

♦ contains natural oligodang and honey for heightened sweetness to the soju

♦ contains 13% alcohol

♦ made with Pyongyang honey for added sweetness

Hanla Soju - Jeju

♦ made by using basalt in the purification process - basalt is the core ingredient and as it is porous, it is used to filter the water and simultaneously infuse the water with minerals, which in turn make the person wake early after drinking

♦ popular among young people

♦ contains a relatively low degree of alcohol - 11%

♦ said to contain vitamin A & C, respectively beneficial for the eyes and for smooth skin

Maesil mael - Hadong

♦ made from the Japanese apricot

♦ produced in a high altitude area - Hadong is located at 400meters above sea level

♦ grown in a lower temperature zone, which is higher alkalinity from the apricots (most sojus are very acidic) and so is appropriate for cultivating apricots

♦ 13% alcohol content

♦ contains minerals (as already said)

My further comments:

 

The soju-drinking culture is strong here, and while formerly in the early 1990s women were looked down on for drinking soju, especially publicly, women are sure enjoying it now. And, women are being used as sex symbols to market the soju - they hold the soju, shake the soju, smile with beautiful teeth and wearing skimpy clothes in the TV ads, wall posters, even in subway ads ... The drinking culture here is a marked difference between the US and Korea. In the US we just don't plop soju or hard alcohol on tables for evening meals. And advertising hard alcohol is controlled by laws - IF we advertise alcohol on TV, and I think advertising is limited to beer as I have never see hard liquor being advertised on public television, the people in the advertisements can hold the beer, heft it, salute with it, but absolutely canNOT drink it or pretend to drink it on national TV. But here in Korea, the women intermixed with the men, are toasting and one-shotting the hard alcohol down.   Since Koreans often talk about the location of the soju in reference to regionalism, costs and taste are descriptors suggesting age,  regionalism, sometimes economic concerns (the price of the better quality sojus are a lot more expensive than the Seoul brand for example), and of course cultivated taste. Since seeing this presentation by my students, I've started noticing that outside some drinking halls the location or type of soju is advertised to the passing public. Just a few days ago, I even saw the above picture outside a neighborhood hof clearly labeling some kinds of sojus and indicating where they originated from.

 

____________________________________________

 

My apologies ... I think the descriptions of the various sojus MIGHT be out-of-order. I had them nicely saved and when I reopened the file, the descriptions were located beneath the regional picture and the names and pictured sojus were above. If the desciptions are out-of-order, I take full responsibility. My students gave a well-organized presentation.

 

Eyes of the Tailless Animals (book)

The book Eyes of the Tailless Animals: Prison Memoirs of a North Korean Woman is the first-hand story of Soon Ok Lee's (author) prison experience. Soon Ok Lee states that she was married to the communist party from birth and "since there had no been a man in the family for four generations, [she] was thoroughly trained under the Communist doctrine. As a child of patriarchs, [she] received special treatment and attended the prestigious People's Economic College. After [she] graduated, [her] parents helped [her] enter the Noh-dong Party, which is the Communist labor party. [She] was assigned as a supervisor of the material distribution center and was considered one of the most successful women." (p1).

And then one day in 1985 all things changed. As the saying goes, "the soybeans were cooked at the speed of lightning" and her whole life changed. Security officers secretly arrived at her textile office and arrested her and took her to the interrogation center where she was ordered to sign papers admitting her "crime". She could not conceive of what her "crime" was but after deeply pondering on her sudden change in status it dawned on her that perhaps a superior officer who had come to her office demanding more than his allotted share of yardage for making the casual jackets popularized by Kim Jong Il on official occasions and who had threatened her had turned her in as a traitor to the Party. She remembered that though she needed 100 yards of material, the received shipment had only been 80 and so to be fair, she could not allow one Party member to have more than his share especially when all the orders could not be filled.

Interrogation and torture

Her main interrogator was Hak Nam Kim, age 28 and eleven years her junior, and from him not only physical torture began but psychological torture as her position and age were both higher than his but he used demeaning, abusive and vile language to her and all language structures were to someone of the lowest status. The psychological "damage", a modern term, is what she remembers most clearly about her time with Hak Nam Kim.

As to her physical torture, Sook Ok was thrown into a room with men who kicked her into unconsciousness and when she revived sufficiently, she was trussed like an animal and not allowed to close her eyes for three days while being continuously interrogated. She was thrown in a hot brick kiln where she passed out and was revived with cold water. She was belted naked to a chair and lashed with a leather whip, she was hung by her wrists from window bars and left till her arms and legs were as fat as trees, her teeth were smashed out, she was given "frozen fish torture", an hour every night in the cold, and much more. Transferred to another interrogation center, the furor to get her to sign the "crime" papers was so great that the interrogator "jumped up and down like a tiger with a burned back."

Finally, after 14 months of interrogation she signed, and from there she was transferred to the resocialization center (Nov 23, 1987) where she became #832 and one of the tailless animals where she was to serve her 13-year sentence.

The Tailless Animals

The tailless animals were the people populating the prison, who were voiceless and powerless about controlling their own lives, and who were treated worse than animals as an animal might be allowed to growl or cry out in pain, but these actions were not to be tolerated in the humans locked against their wills in the harshest of prisons. Some of the most vilely treated "tailless animals" in the prison were the Christian prisoners, those who believed in "invisible power", those who believed in 하나님, the God of the heavens, and for this reason the Christians were not allowed to look up to the sky but forced to look forever at the dirty earth. And so their backs grew misshapen with huge humps like basketballs resting on them while their faces perpetually looked downward.

The resocialization center was filled with "criminals", 80% of which were women who were housewives and were serving for petty thievery deemed necessary to feed their families and especially their children. The prisoners were forced to work, and Soon Ok was assigned to work in the factory making clothes, sewing on buttons, whatever, under such rigorous quotas that no one could hope of achieving the quota. Often to meet quotas, prisoners sat in front of their sewing machines and slept there during the night. Soon, she was transferred to the export factory, the factory that generated foreign currency for the regime at the expense of the labor of prisoners. As a factory accountant, she was to wear clean clothes and take a shower as she had to interact with officers who didn't want to hold a handkerchief over their noses when giving orders. Also, she was allowed a bit more food over that of the other prisoners who were fed about 700 grams of food per day (60% corn, 30% beans, 10% rice) ... if the officers didn't take the beans and rice for themselves.

Examples of factory labor for generating foreign currency were (1) rolling 1000 paper roses a day per prisoner to meet the quota of a paper rose order placed by France, (2) making costumes for the International Youth Festival held in Pyongyang in November 1989 ... to make an error was seen as a discredit to Kim Il Sung's authority and therefore an anti-Communistic act, (3) making 3000 pair of shoes a day in the shoe factory, a process requiring 58 steps and all was done by hand ... the majority of these prisoners were bald from lack of sodium from excessive sweating and other malnutrition problems, and (4) in 1992 making 10,000 student uniforms and 20,000 pieces of clothing for government workers by April 15 for celebrating Kim Il Sung's 80th birthday ... not to mention that all prisoners were required to memorize word-for-word Kim Sung Il's New Year's Day speech after listening to it only nine times ... and the firing squad or some other torture was for those who didn't.

Diseases in the resocialization center

Malnutrition was something which every prisoner suffered from. Who could survive on cabbage soup and corn for extended periods of time, or even on the beans and rice that were supposed to be in their daily allotment? Food poisoning was another major problem for cooks had to cook such huge quantities of food and shortcuts in preparing the foods were taken - not washing the cabbages and other foods before preparing them. Soon Ok related that in one bout of food poisoning over 150 prisoners died and many more, including herself, lay on the floor for days in their own pools of diarrhea, hardly consciousness. Survival was more vicious than death. In 1989 and 1992 paratyphus epidemics stuck. The illness is caused by a colon bacillus so drinking water or eating food made the problem worse causing severe twisting stomach pains and high fever. Pleurisy from malnutrition and hard labor was something else Soon Ok suffered from. These were the diseases mentioned in the book, but in an atmosphere where nutrition is given less regard than sanitation, which was vile beyond words, many more diseases were rampant.

The prison had its medical officers, but as one medical officer Shin Ok Kim who came to Soon Ok in a moment of desperation said torturedly, "I thought that studying medicine would allow me to help save people's lives. I believed that I would be so happy to save them. But look at me! I'm using my knowledge to hurt people. Doctors are called only to save people, not to kill." These things she weepingly said in dismay to Soon Ok after a friend had told people about using dead babies as medicine. Both medical officers quietly disappeared.

Release and return to society

In December 1992, Soon Ok Lee was pronounced as having faithfully served her resocialization time in prison before the 6,000 prisoners. Even the 140 Christian prisoners lifted their eyes to witness this astounding and unusual news. As she walked out the black iron gates of the prison, she looked back at the 12,000 eyes of the tailless animals who silently pleaded with her to not let their - and her - story go untold. On February 21, 1994 Sook Ok, who had lost her North Korean citizenship and Party status, and her son, who had lost his privileges and right to education after his mother had been put in political prison, defected across the frozen Tumen River to freedom.

Comments on the book and the writing

The book Eyes of the Tailless Animals was written simplistically but filled with evidence of a regimen gone mad and cannibalizing itself. When officers order factory sewers to surreptitiously make 8,000 gloves out of scraps in order to bribe other officials but still other officers come and pilfer those gloves for their own purposes, the sociopolitical system can only be said to be poisoned from within. It's interesting about Soon Ok's writing - although she writes matter-of-factly, there is always a sense that she is defending her actions, and not once does she equivocate about having an iota of blame in any of her actions throughout the book. I get the sense that this is related to her experience in North Korea where no one could admit wrong for fear of some kind of retribution. Also, if someone was thought to have done wrong, the Party demanded self-criticizing documentation. It seems that the lessons of political purity are so deeply ingrained in Soon Ok that she cannot even consider having erred ... all erring was on the part of higher political officers, but only it seems was seeing their faults possible in hindsight (or at least that's how I'm reading between the lines.)

A last comment regards the use of the prisoners being resocialized, very few of whom would ever see the other side of the great black gates of Khechen Prison. The prisoners regarded the forced labor with impossible-to-meet quotas for generating foreign currency as "earning in hell". While in her elevated status as Party member, she never considered those lesser on the status ladder than herself, but once experiencing the viciousness of prison and being exposed to the greed of the officers in the Party who disregarded humanity for satisfying their personal wants and comforts, Soon Ok speculates on the upside-down world as she has come to know it:

"I thought about the foreigners who would buy what the prisoners in North Korea had made. They would never know that the products they purchased were made in exchange for a prisoner's life. They wouldn't know that the products were made in a prison where all kinds of bacteria and viruses were rampant. And that among the prisoners, earning foreign currency was called 'earning in hell.'" (p73).

Since reading this book, looking in dollar of 1,000won stores is no longer appealing. I can't help but read labels on where products were manufactured. What goes on in China that allows simple but hand-painted  items to be sold for $1? I also know there's a huge international debate between North Korea and South Korea on the use of the label "Made in Korea". While South Korea has for years used the label, North Korea is now also using the same label ... and the international community does not support South Korea's claim to using the phrase. Both are "Korea" so how to award so it seems the label will have to made more specifically for South Korea's product if they want to make a distinction .... and yet the problem remains, will the rest of the world be knowledgeable about the difference? Most likely not.

Modern-day Postcards of Kyeongju Sites

Anapji Lake, a marvel of construction and the site where a prince lived in yangban style elegance, complete with an ice house for cooling himself in the heat of the summer.

Seokbingo, Ice Storehouse

Cheonmado, or the celestial/heavenly flying horse
This painting was found in what is now known as the Flying Horse Tomb/Tumuli. The white horse painting was on one side of a birch bark saddle flap and is considered one of the finest art finds from the Shilla period. Cheonmado (Painting of the Heavenly Horse), No. 207 National Treasure

Several gold crowns were found in excavated tombs/tumuli but this one is considered to be one of the finest. The weight of the crown is actually too much to hold up the long strands of decorative gold, hence the slight drooping of the strands. The strands are interpreted to be antlers of a deer, and they are ornately decorated with 77 blue jade pieces. This is National Treasure 191; however, it is not the only royal and decorative crown excavated. Many others certainly exist and are National Treasures in their own right.

Reliefs of Buddha at Chilburam

Old Postcard Picts : Kyeongju

Bulguksa Temple, 1914
Built in the 23rd year of King Bobheung of Shilla Kingdom
Bulguksa was badly damaged during the Japanese colonial period (pictured)

Bulguksa Temple in modern times ... one of the favorite angles to take the picture. In the 1980s and 1990s Bulguksa was the honeymoon place of preference. In the late 1990s Bulguksa as a drawing card for honeymooners was displaced in number one preference for honeymoons by Cheju Island.

Central shrine of Bulguksa Temple, 1909

Stone stupa of Bunhwangsa Temple, 1915
Picture taken during the Japanese colonial period. Grass, shrubs and some trees were growing
out of the temple roof and contributing to its fast decay.

The present-day appearance after extensive restoration of Bunhwangsa, now spelled with a 'p', Punhwangsa.

Stone Buddha in the Valley of the Three Mausoleums, date unknown

The King Seongdeok Divine Bell, 1915
Pictured is the relocation scene of the bell from Bonghwangdae to Gueongju Conservation Center for Historic Landmarks.

A modern-day picture of the massive bell hung in a reinforced structure.

Seokkoram, 1913
Seokkoram is an artificially built stone cave shrine for Buddha, built in an ancient period with water flowing around it. During colonial period, the cave was renovated but in the renovations, the natural flowing water, an engineering feat that is still not understood, was plugged and the cave became to humid and began to grow mold. Cement plaster was applied to the walls to stop the mold, which only increased it. At some point in the various renovation since, Seokkoram was enclosed in a glass structure and is only opened once a year.

Buddha with his far-reaching face directed toward the rising sun sits now enclosed,
with sunlight no longer hitting his inner eye.

Arial shot of Kyeongju City, 1958
Notice that some of the tombs are shrouded in shrubs/trees, something rather surprising as in the Confucian society there are tomb-cleaning days every year, and on those days, the grass must be pulled (no clippers then) and once the grave site is clean, then ceremonial respects are given to the great personages/ancestors, who watch over the living.

Hwangnam-dong Mausoleum, date unknown

The Heavenly Horse Tomb

Cheomseongdae, 1920
The oldest astronomical observatory remaining in Asia.

Cheomseongdae, after extensive restoration
Notice the square platform symbolic of earth and the round tower symbolic of the heaven. This same kind of square-round structure is apparent in the Temple of Heaven in Beijing, China, as well as many other sites in Asia.

Kyeongju Kisaeng (like the Japanese geisha), 1914
In front of Onkogak of the Gyeongju Conservation Center for Historic Landmarks

Poseokjeong, 1910
One of the most beautiful royal villas built in the Shilla Kingdom.
This place is the story location of the fall of the Shilla Kingdom. 

Poseokjeong, where the yangban enjoyed relaxation in the garden and played drinking games
in the water that carried their liquor.

Gyeongju citizens, 1968
Pictured is a crowd watching a masquerade held in the October Shilla Festival in Kyeongju.

Gyeongju station, date unknown

Kamunsa Temple site, 1950
Great historical site. Unfortunately only one stone stupa remains.

 

Crusader for Korea: Homer B. Hulbert

Homer B. Hulbert (1863-1949)

·         Born in New Haven, Vermont in 1863

·         Attended Middlebury High School, St Johnsbury Academy, Dartmouth (1884) and Union Theological Seminary (2 years) before leaving for Korea in 1886

·         Parents:

o   Father – Protestant Minister, President of Middlebury College

o   Mother – Great grand-daughter of the founder of Dartmouth

·         Family spirit – Christianity/Puritanism

·         Family precept: “Character is more fundamental than victory”

·         Character: adventurous; passionate; liked reading, music, tennis

Korea – U.S. Encounter in the 19^th Century (background information)

·         1866 (Jun) – The U.S. ship ‘Surprise’ wrecked and landed at SeonCheonPo, PyongAnNamDo, and returned safely

·         1866 (Aug) – The U.S. ship ‘General Sherman’ anchored at DaeDongGang, PyongYang, and demanded the opening of Korea. The ship was burned and sunk; all on board were killed

·         1866 (Dec) - Adminiral Shufeldt dispatched to investigate the ‘General Sherman’ case

·         1875 (Jun) - U.S. navy warship anchored off GangHwaDo to retaliate, and again demanded the opening of Korea. Hundreds of Koreans were killed vs. 1 U.S. soldier

·         1880 - U.S. dispatched Admiral Shufeldt to negotiate with the Korean gov’t for diplomatic ties

·         1882 (May 22) - ‘Treaty between U.S. and Korea’ signed at JeMulPo (Incheon), credited to Admiral Shufeldt, Chester Arthur and 21^st U.S. President

·         1883 (May)-  Lucius Foote, U.S. Minister to legation in Seoul, arrived in Korea

·         1884 - The delegation returned and recommended modern schools/education; King GoJong approved

·         1885 - First protestant missionaries arrived (Underwood, Appenzeller)

YukYoungGongWon (Royal College) was opened

·         1^st Korea  - U.S. enlightenment project was conceptualized, and so 3 teachers were to be brought from the U.S. for creating the American style school

·         U.S. education commissioner contacted Hulbert’s father, and Hulbert volunteered to go to Korea, but he had to wait for 2 years

·         Hulbert arrived at JeMulPo (Incheon) on July 4, 1886

·         The YukYoungGongWon (Royal College) was established in Sept 1886 with 35 elite students

Hulbert’s first 5 years (1886-1891) in Korea

·         Devoted to teaching and studying Korean/Korea

·         Fascinated by Korean history/cultural heritage

·         Mastered Korean (could write and read in 4 days)

·         Published ‘SaMinPilJi’ (Knowledge Necessary to All), first textbook in Korean in 1890, which is currently being registered as a Korean National Treasure

·         Laid the foundation for western-style school under GoJong’s strong patronage

·         Built trust with GoJong

 

Speaker Mr. DongJin Kim, holding a copy of Hulbert's 사민필지 (Knowledge Necessary to All),
which is now being registered as one of Korea's National Treasures  

Returned to America, then back to Korea

·         1891 – Contract terminated

·         1892 – Back to America via Europe

·         1892 Principal of Putnam Military School, Zanesville, Ohio

·         1893 – Returned to Korea as a Methodist Missionary to take charge of the ‘Trilingual Press’ and Baldwin (DongDaeNum) Church

Pioneer of Modern Education

·         1897-1900 – Principal, HanSeong Teacher’s College and Educational Advisor to the Korean Gov’t

·         1900-1905 – Instructor, National Middle School (currently GyeongGi High School)

·         Introduction of American-style education system

·         Establishment of textbook system with his own self-created textbook series ‘ChoHakJiJi”

·         Instilled Koreans with the importance of education “Education is only means for civilization and to win against Japan”

·         Mrs. Hulbert, principal of foreign school and taught at Ehwa

·         His 5 Children – all born in Seoul:  Helen (1891), Madeleine (1894), Sheldon (1895), William (1897), and Leonard (1901)

Hulbert, the Advocate of Korean Alphabet

·         He made the first Korean textbook

·         He wrote the first thesis on HanGeul (Korean Alphabet), Jan 1892

·         He was the first founder of the excellence of HanGeul as the most scientific language with its simplicity and phonetic power. Compared with 200 letters [sic] and concluded to be “certainly one of the finest alphabets in existence.” Contributed numerous theses on the excellence of Hangeul to international papers.

·         Strong campaign for usage of HanGeul in Korea. “HanGeul must bring emancipation from illiteracy in Korea.”

·         Linguist who studied spoken Korea. Contributed to Annual Report of Smithsonian Institution in 1903 with conclusion of “Korean surpasses English as a medium for public speaking.”

 True Missionary

·         Mediator between Methodists and Presbyterians as a friend of Underwood and Appenzeller

·         Assisted with the baptismal service for first converts to Protestantism (1887)

·         Established NoRyungJin Church (1906)

·         Chairman of and on the Founding Committee of the YMCA (1903)

·         Supported the poor and sufferers and spoke about true Christianity, “If missionaries wished to remain in Korea to teach Christianity, what then was Christianity to teach.”

Musician / Journalist / Writer

·         Made up musical notes of Arirang in 1896, the first paper-written music of Korean music, because as he put it, “Arirang equals rice to Koreans.”

·         Co-editor of Korean Repository

·         Founder and editor of Korea Review

·         Editor of English version of “The Independent”, the first newspaper in Korean

·         Writer of “Search for Siberian Klondike” (1903), “Sign of the Jumna” (1903). “The Face in the Mist” (1926), “Omjee the Wizard” (1927), and “The Mummy Bride”

Historian

·         Wrote “The History of Korea” (1905), the first comprehensive Korean history book

·         Wrote “The Passing of Korea” (1906), which is supposedly about all things related to Korea

·         Introduced Korean history, traditions, cultural heritage, etc via international media

·         Challenged on his distortion of Korean history in William Griffis (1843-1928) book “Hermit Nation”

·         Thought the translation of 朝鮮 should have been ‘morning radiance’ or ‘radiant morning’ instead of the rather incorrect but commonly accepted translation of ‘morning calm’

·         Believed that DaeMaDo (to the Japanese, Tsushima) was Korean soil and had been a dependency of Silla

Hidden Hero of Korean Independence

·         Was part of the foreigner night watch for King GoJong in 1895 after assassination of Queen Min

·         Denunciated Japan for colonization attempts via the Korea Review and international papers

·         Was a special envoy of the King KoJong to Theodore Roosevelt in 1905, and gave strong criticism concerning the U.S. policy in the Far East

·         Received a telegram from GoJong who said, “I did not sign the protectorate treaty with Japan.”

·         Special envoy to 9 treaty countries for Hague peace conference in 1907. Addressed in Peace Club in Hague, criticizing Japan

·         Ousted from Korea by Japan … so arrived back in New York in 1907

Rise for Justice

·         Hulbert could not stand the Japanese distortion and oppression. He resisted the Japanese almost to death to help the Japanese (1904-1907) [sic]

·         Koreans sold their property to Hulbert for a penny in order to keep property from being taken by the Japanese. Hulbert returned the property on request.

·         Japanese minister took a stone pagoda, one of Korea’s national treasures, to Japan (1907) and Hulbert demanded the return of the pagoda

Unwavering Fight for Korean Sovereignty

·         Settled in Springfield and fought for Korea via the media

·         Lectured on Korea in U.S. like Chautauqua Circuit [sic], calling for Korean independence

·         Supported Korean delegation for peace conference in Paris in 1919

·         Filed a statement on brutality with the U.S. Senate in 1919

·         Continued working for Korean independence together with Syngman Rhee and Phillip Jaisohn until 1945

Emperor’s Deposit Stolen

·         Emperor KoJong deposited $200,000 at Deutsche Asiatic Bank in 1903

·         Delegated Hulbert to withdraw the money from Deutsche in 1909. Dreamed of assisting independent patriots and Korean slaves in Ukatan, Mexico

·         Deutsche returned money to Japan via German legation in Seoul in 1908without Emperor Kojong knowing

·         U.S. Ambassador to Germany confirmed Deutsche gave money to Japan (1923)

·         Signed with Kimberland for recovery of money … without success

·         Hulbert, providing evidence, left a statement to Syngman Rhee, first Korean president, to demand and recover the money

·         [the presenter Mr. DongJin Kim is now trying to secure that money from Japan]

Return to Korea after 40 yaers (1949)

·         Invited by President Rhee for The Liberation Day (Aug 15^th) celebrations

·         Made the statement, “I would rather be buried in Korea than in Westminster Abbey”

·         Arrival in Incheon on July 29^th, but passed away on Aug 5^th, before the liberation ceremonies but getting his burial wish. He was given a National Funeral Service (SaHoiJang) and buried in YangHwaJin Foreign Cemetery, HapJeongDong, MaPoPu, Seoul

·         Posthumously he was awarded the TaeGeukJang (Country Foundation Medal), Mar 1, 1950, the first foreign (and probably the only) to ever receive the honor

How Some Koreans Viewed Dr. Hulbert

·         “Most reliable person” – Emperor GoJong

·         “True friend of Korea with intelligence and character” – Syngman Rhee

·         “If you are a Korean, you should not forget his contribution to Korea even for a day.” – Ahn JungGeun (1909)

·         “Best icon of human character from educational standpoint.” – KiSeok Kim, Seoul National University

·         “If General MacArthur saved Korea from communism, Dr. Hulbert put JoSeon (Korea) on the list of civilized races.” – HyunBok Lee, Seoul National University

·         “The most respected preceptor of Koreans.” – Joag Taek Kim, Charman of HanGeul [Korean Alphabet] Association

The Hulbert Memorial Society

·         Established in 1999

·         Purpose

o   To research Dr. Hulbert’s footprints

o   To appreciate Dr. Hulbert for his contributions to Korea

o   To preserve and follow Dr. Hulbert’s spirits (justice, peace, humanity, right patriotism)

o   To make Dr. Hulbert’s life a role model for the youth

o   To record Dr. Hulbert’s accomplishments properly in Korean history

In Korea, Book of the Month, August 2010

MY PERSONAL COMMENTS

The presentation was a close-up of Homer Hulbert’s life and contributions in Korea. The man evidently gave a lot of himself to fight not only for education but also for personal freedom and self-advancement in his surrogate country. Mr. DongJin Kim, the presenter, has obviously done a considerable amount of research on Homer Hulbert, but then he would have to as DongJin Kim is the founder and the chairman of the Hulbert Memorial Society.

A note of criticism, however, about the portrayal of Hulbert in Korea. According to the researcher Mr. Kim, Hulbert comes across as unflawed and have an impossibly impeccable education and political career in Korea. For instance, Mr. Kim could not or did not answer the question why Hulbert had to leave Korea after his initial five years of education service was up. ‘Visa was expiring’ doesn’t jive. Many, many people stayed years and years in Korea so why would Hulbert not be extended likewise. Also, there were really flexible rules about visas at that time, especially if Hulbert had his links with the Emperor as was told. 

Korean scholars, according to a contact who had just come from a discussion in Korean on Mr. Kim’s stance on Hulbert, think Mr. DongJin Kim bases a lot of his research on the hypothetical, rather than solid research data, and that DongJin Kim is too emotionally involved in his research to realize his educational dissonance. I have to admit I was impressed with DongJin’s research until he started talking about how Koreans MUST study about Hulbert and North Koreans too MUST acknowledge that Hulbert was an important personage in the educational development of Korea. Mr. DongJin Kim spoke of a trip about 3-4 years ago when it was easier to get into North Korea. On his trip he had spoken to North Korean officials about Hulbert, provided them with data about Hulbert’s historical contributions and that he would be waiting to hear from them. North Korea closed the next year and he still hasn’t heard … but I thought, “Wow, trying to force recognition of an American on the North Koreans, who refer to Americans nonchalantly all the time as “those damned Americans” and who clearly state that they don’t want either Americans or missionaries in their country, and Hulbert was both.” I was a bit shocked at this approach … But as far as the research goes, Mr. DongJin Kim really is incredibly knowledgeable about Homer Hulbert.