This thesis examines the role of Tokto/Dokdo in the creation and maintenance of South Korean nationalism, and the way in which Tokto narratives are created and disseminated in Korean society. It...Show moreThis thesis examines the role of Tokto/Dokdo in the creation and maintenance of South Korean nationalism, and the way in which Tokto narratives are created and disseminated in Korean society. It aims to answer the question: how is the Tokto/Takeshima conflict portrayed and communicated through South Korean Tokto-related children’s literature? Based on a critical discourse analysis of a selection of the most popular Tokto children’s literature, this thesis identifies a set pattern that characterizes Tokto children’s literature as a genre. Furthermore, this thesis challenges the modernist notion that nationalism is a top-down affair, as the analysis of Tokto children’s literature shows that nationalist sentiment stems from an interplay between governmental and civil efforts. In the case of Tokto children’s literature, that is the effort to promote and proclaim Tokto as a vital part of South Korean national identity. Lastly, this thesis argues that Tokto children’s literature reflects the agenda of Tokto activists, who seek to strengthen a particular notion of South Korean national identity that centres on the idea of Japan as continuous external threat.Show less
This essay argues that due to victimization by Japan, Korea as a community created a national identity that differentiates itself from Japan, resulting in a collective memory of anti-Japanese...Show moreThis essay argues that due to victimization by Japan, Korea as a community created a national identity that differentiates itself from Japan, resulting in a collective memory of anti-Japanese sentiment. This competitive nature towards Japan comes together in the Dokdo Museum Seoul that enhances the collective memory of anti-Japanese sentiment and hinders improvement of Korean-Japanese relations. This essay goes into this as it analyzes how the Dokdo Museum Seoul constitutes the collective memory of anti-Japanese sentiment through the main research question: What is the role of the Dokdo Museum Seoul in reproducing the collective memory of anti-Japanese sentiment, placed within the territorial dispute between Japan and Korea over Tokto?Show less
