‘Discourse of the Nation and the Modern’ Reflected in Korean History Textbooks
Journal Title: International Journal of Korean History - Year 2002, Vol 3, Issue 1
Abstract
What influences the formation of students’ understanding of history is not the complicated truths or events that are described in History Textbooks, but the main historical contours that are created by the diverse interpretations of basic codes.1 The meeting held in Japan to make a new History Textbook,2 in order to cope with complaints from the Japanese public, opted for a strategy3 of “conceding to provide a more objective description of history, while maintaining the basic framework of historical concepts”. This action can be seen as being nothing more than a cunning measure indicating that these individuals had a clear understanding of what historical education should be focused on. The new History Textbook recently released to the public (Tokyo: Hoososha, 2001) includes the following historical positions: ᇫ The position in which rather than recognizing the crimes and mistakes committed in the past, emphasis is placed, through a distortion of history, on the nation’s innocence and divinity. ᇫ The position in which Japan’s problems are blamed on the internal contradictions within Japanese society caused by the negative influence of other countries (especially Chosŏn, the U.S.A and Russia) or by communism.
Authors and Affiliations
Su-gol Ji
Keywords
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