Issues
of Tradition and Modernity in Korean-American Literature
I view Korea's diasporic experience, which began at the end of the nineteenth century, as an important part of the modernization of Korea; and the poetic space of literature as the site of fictionalizing Korean tradition for the displaced writer.
History, in particular, serves as the general point of departure for comparing the experiences of Koreans with the diasporic experiences of Koreans in American, Russia, China, Japan, and elsewhere. At the end of the nineteenth century, a time of powerful Western imperialistic advances towards Asia, Koreans were forcibly or voluntarily emigrated. They attempted to maintain strong ties to Korea politically and culturally. The currents of Korea's historical circumstances, therefore, explain the migration patterns of the Korean diaspora, which in turn became novelized within the poetic space of literature.
The large number of laborers who left Korea to work in the sugarcane fields of Hawaii, for example, reflect the history of Korea's political and economic debilitations at the time. Once established in Hawaii, however, most of the laborers opted to continue their Korean heritage outside of Korea by bringing in much younger picture brides directly from their homeland. The roots of Korean-American culture as well as the beginnings of Korean-American history often lie in these unions between the young picture bride and the middle-age laborer. Like her husband who crossed over to start a new life in an environment, the picture bride also crossed over countries and age barriers to build upon the fate handed to her.
