@article{ART003232224},
author={Oh, Sung-Sook},
title={Reading “Pachinko” at the Border between Fiction and History —Historicizing and Subjectifying the Zainichi—},
journal={日本硏究},
issn={1229-6309},
year={2025},
number={63},
pages={117-136},
doi={10.20404/jscau.2025.08.63.117}
TY - JOUR
AU - Oh, Sung-Sook
TI - Reading “Pachinko” at the Border between Fiction and History —Historicizing and Subjectifying the Zainichi—
JO - 日本硏究
PY - 2025
VL - null
IS - 63
PB - The Center for Japanese Studies
SP - 117
EP - 136
SN - 1229-6309
AB - The Zainichi examined in this paper are not fully welcomed by either Korea or Japan, and the existential dilemmas they carry are colored by the dark past of the colonial era and the associated painful negative memories. The success of both the novel and the drama Pachinko played a decisive role in achieving global visibility for the Zainichi.
The Zainichi locate their identity within the common denominator between Korea and Japan, while tracing their roots to Korea. The symbolic act of third-generation Zainichi Park So-hee while in the United States of wearing a Korean map badge on one lapel of her suit and a Japanese archipelago badge on the other lapel presents a new identity model that transcends existing exclusive nationalism and statism. This can be understood as a process whereby third-generation Zainichi, represented by Park So-hee and Solomon, recognize Korea—with which they had no direct connection—as their homeland through their grandmothers, establishing their “Zainichi” identity.
This paper analyzes how patriarchal authority was dismantled under imperialist oppression and strong women were compelled to replace emasculated Korean men. Furthermore, by examining the connections between the third-generation Zainichi Solomon and Park So-hee, we are able to gauge the identity of contemporary Zainichi. Solomon and Park So-hee developed a fundamental awareness of Korea through emotional relationships with Korean culture mediated by their grandmothers, while constructing a hybrid identity that integrated their daily experiences within Japanese society. The significance of this identity formation process consists in its ability to overcome the limitations of the existing binary identity discourse and present a new identity model.
KW - Zainichi;Pachinko;Zainichi Koreans;Korean residents in Japan
DO - 10.20404/jscau.2025.08.63.117
ER -
Oh, Sung-Sook. (2025). Reading “Pachinko” at the Border between Fiction and History —Historicizing and Subjectifying the Zainichi—. 日本硏究, 63, 117-136.
Oh, Sung-Sook. 2025, "Reading “Pachinko” at the Border between Fiction and History —Historicizing and Subjectifying the Zainichi—", 日本硏究, no.63, pp.117-136. Available from: doi:10.20404/jscau.2025.08.63.117
Oh, Sung-Sook "Reading “Pachinko” at the Border between Fiction and History —Historicizing and Subjectifying the Zainichi—" 日本硏究 63 pp.117-136 (2025) : 117.
Oh, Sung-Sook. Reading “Pachinko” at the Border between Fiction and History —Historicizing and Subjectifying the Zainichi—. 2025; 63 : 117-136. Available from: doi:10.20404/jscau.2025.08.63.117
Oh, Sung-Sook. "Reading “Pachinko” at the Border between Fiction and History —Historicizing and Subjectifying the Zainichi—" 日本硏究 no.63(2025) : 117-136.doi: 10.20404/jscau.2025.08.63.117
Oh, Sung-Sook. Reading “Pachinko” at the Border between Fiction and History —Historicizing and Subjectifying the Zainichi—. 日本硏究, 63, 117-136. doi: 10.20404/jscau.2025.08.63.117
Oh, Sung-Sook. Reading “Pachinko” at the Border between Fiction and History —Historicizing and Subjectifying the Zainichi—. 日本硏究. 2025; 63 117-136. doi: 10.20404/jscau.2025.08.63.117
Oh, Sung-Sook. Reading “Pachinko” at the Border between Fiction and History —Historicizing and Subjectifying the Zainichi—. 2025; 63 : 117-136. Available from: doi:10.20404/jscau.2025.08.63.117
Oh, Sung-Sook. "Reading “Pachinko” at the Border between Fiction and History —Historicizing and Subjectifying the Zainichi—" 日本硏究 no.63(2025) : 117-136.doi: 10.20404/jscau.2025.08.63.117
