Calculated Nationalism in contemporary South Korea: movements for political and economic democratization in the 21st century / Gil-Soo Han

1. Introduction .-- 2. A Morphogenetic Perspective of Grassroots Nationalism: A Case of South Korea.-- 3. The Movement to Redress the Japanese Military “Comfort Women”: Grassroots’ Concerns and Responses Today.-- 4. “No Abe, Yes Japan” Movement in 2019: Bolstering National Pride and Identity.-- 5. Taking A Free Ride on the Reunification Train: Grassroots’ Cost-benefit Nationalism.-- 6. The 2016–2017 Candlelight Revolution and Grassroots Nationalism: An Analysis of Public Speeches at the Rallies.-- 7. Nostalgic Nationalists in South Korea: The Flag-Carriers’ Struggles.-- 8. Standing against Workplace Bullying (Gapjil): Case Studies.-- 9. Concluding Remarks.

Open Access Electronic Book

Nationalism in a nation-state reflects its emergent structural, cultural, and personal properties at a given time. In the politico-historical context of South Korea and the globe, the fruits of the 1968 Revolution in France could not reach Korean society under its military regime and exploitative economic structure. This continued to frustrate the grassroots and especially social actors in South Korea, which eventually brought about the June Struggle in 1987 and the 2016-2017 Candlelight Revolution. Calculated Nationalism in Contemporary South Korea sketches Korean grassroots' perception of their nation-state, national identities, and what they desire regarding the future direction of their nation-state. The grassroots have openly spoken out about their frustrations through political rallies and media. This book attempts to reflect the minds of Korean progressives regarding, in particular, the forcibly recruited Japanese military "comfort women," Abe's trade provocation against South Korea in 2019, reunification, the 2016-2017 Candlelight Revolution, National Flag-carriers' struggles, and bullying at work.