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Mapping Korea's Young Generation

  • The Journal of General Education
  • 2016, (3), pp.7~44
  • DOI : 10.24173/jge.2016.06.3.7
  • Publisher : Da Vinci Mirae Institute of General Education
  • Research Area : Social Science > Education > Field of Education > General Education
  • Published : June 30, 2016

Kyoungwoo Kwon 1

1(사)문화사회연구소

ABSTRACT

This  study  exposes  the  problems  of  Koreaʹs  young  generation.  By  exploring the history of young generations and university culture, the author  also  aims  to  examine  the  evolving  discourse  on  young  generation  in Korea. Todayʹs  youth  in  Korea  experiences  economic  hardship,  due  to  employment anxieties, as well as despair about future. According to a survey,  when  asked  for  a  word  one  associates  with  youth,  most  frequent  answers were ‘employment’ and ‘unemployment’; emotions that young people  experienced  most  often  in  the  past  month  were  powerlessness,  numbness, and despair. On  the  other  hand,  change  in  university  entrance  rates  in  Korea  calls  for a new perspective on the issue of young generation. From 33.2% in  1990,  the  rates  peaked  in  2008  at  83.8%.  As  of  2015,  as  many  as  70.8%  of young people in Korea still enter university. The  university  culture  of  the  1960s  was  one  of  passion,  excitement,  chaos and escapism. The high feelings of the 19 April Revolution in 1960 were  soon  crushed  by  the  16  May  Coup  in  the  following  year;  the  dreams  of a new age were shattered. And yet, the development of mass media such  as  TV,  radio,  cinema  and  magazine  showed  a  university  culture  more proactive than any other era. The  1970s  then  blossomed  ‘youth  culture.’  Although  an  influx  of  Western culture created new dynamism, repressive state regime imposed various  censorship  and  controls  on  the  individual  and  the  cultural.  Keywords which characterize the youth culture of the 1970s include ‘beer,’ ‘jeans,’  and  ‘guitar.’ The  1980s  was  a  decade  of  student  movement.  Universities  most  boldly  manifested their social position during this period, and as a result the 1980s  marked  a  time  when  university  culture  had  most  distinctive  identity.  Thus the 1970s saw university culture blossoming from within the context of  developing  youth  culture  at  large,  whereas  the  1980s  established  university culture as a representative form of general youth culture. During  the  1990s,  with  the  rise  of  pop  band  Seotaeji  and  Boys,  university  culture moved its focus from ideology to culture. Along with globalization discourse  and  changes  in  education  policy,  youth  culture  also  changed. After  the  so‐called  IMF  crisis  in  1997,  a  wave  of  neo‐liberalism  redefined  the Korean society with the values of riches and success. For the young generation,  however,  this  was  a  period  of  rising  tuition  fees,  pressure  to build specification and youth unemployment. Various  generation  labels  have  been  coined  throughout  this  history:  386 generation: New Generation or X‐generation: N‐generation or Y‐generation  (millennials)  to  name  a  few.  Recently,  the  expression  ‘surplus generation’  has  found  currency.  (The  ironically‐termed  dalgwan  (philosophical) generation, a translation of satori generation in Japan, is also  used.) These  generational  classifications  are  based  on  birth  cohort  as  well  as economic, social and cultural shifts. They act to make the values of youth  culture  weak  or  subservient. Korean  youth  have  not  found  their  voice  in  the  Korean  society.  They  exist, but their existence remains unseen: they are invisible. What is now required  to  revive  Korean  youth  goes  beyond  cooperatives,  social  enterprises and youth grants; they need desires and creativity. A policy approach  is  called  for  in  addressing  various  issues  of  youth  generation,  such as housing, jobs, entertainment and their place in society.

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