Footnotes/Digressions for “Long Live the Lurid and Loud Elder Hiker of Korea”
Some asides for this article:
1 Throughout its history, the big rocky mass in question has had no lack of monikers, resulting in some minor controversy that lingers to this day. Some persistent purists insist it ought to be referred to as Samgaksan, which could mean either “Triangle Mountain” or “Three-horned Mountain,” depending on who you ask. (Though, its three focal peaks do seem to point in favour of the dinosaur-like option.) The opposition to the name Bukhansan largely has to do with it being a totum pro parte: Bukhansan traditionally refers to a sub-range of mountains in and near Seoul, one of which is Samgaksan (now widely referred to as Bukhansan). From a prescriptive perspective, Bukhansan is a misnomer. Objections to the name could also have something to do with the enclaved homonym found within it: bukhan = “north Korea.” ’Nuff said.
2 (If etymology’s not your thing, I suggest skipping out on this footnote.) There’s a common misinterpretation (misinterpreted by yours truly until the writing of this very footnote) that Bukhansan translates to “mountain(s) north of the Han (River)” [i]. It’s convincing. See, the buk and the san are the easy parts: “north” and “mountain,” respectively. It’s the han that gets knotty. Han is the first syllable of Hanguk, the Korean word for the land of Korea (lit. “country of the Han [people (aka Koreans, not the Han Chinese people)]”). Even so, the han in Bukhansan stems from Hanseong, the Joseon Dynasty–era capital, now known as Seoul. (The Han in Hanseong and Hanguk comes from the Han in Han River [ii].) So, the handle Bukhansan should be literally understood as “North Hanseong Mountain(s).”
i A falsehood disseminated thanks in part to Bukhansan’s English Wikipedia page.
ii The Han in Han River is borrowed from Samhan, the Three Kingdoms of Korea [ii.i]. Sam = three, han (archaic Korean word) = big, king, or great.
ii.i Not to be confused with the Proto-Three Kingdoms or the Later Three Kingdoms.
3 Prominent traits of Korean culture do indeed have apparent roles in K-pop and K-dramas. E.g., in K-pop, contemporary manifestations of collectivism reign supreme: Airbrushed musical ensembles in (typically) uniform dress hegemonize the charts while selflessness, modest public demeanours, and unwavering work ethic [i] are violently demanded of the groups’ superstar idols by their draconian entertainment companies and platoons of superfans [ii].
i More on Korean work ethic in footnote 4.
ii Who are manifold and have a penchant for rabidly blitzing anyone who dare speak ill of them or, god forbid, their multitalented monarchs and are unequivocally lovely people, of course [ii.i].
ii.i Lovely people who recently made news for a foray into Trump-trolling.
4 Overzealous hikers in the ROK have garnered international attention and national pleas to chill out. This has been attributed to pali-pali culture (the Korean duplicate term meaning “quickly” or “fast” (used similarly to its far-flung English cousin “chop chop”)). Frantic productivity, perpetual urgency, and devout work ethic are patent characteristics of this phenomenon, often cited as being a catalyst for the Miracle on the Han River (more on that later).
5 And fourth favourite sport. Curiously, soccer ranked as the most-liked sport, but placed ninth among hobbies. Ordinarily I’d dispute the classification of hiking as a sport on the grounds that it isn’t inherently competitive but the fact that the conductors of this poll (Gallup Korea) placed it in that category conveniently helps to illustrate my point: Some Korean hikers regard the peak as a finish line.
6 The Empire of Japan desired and achieved a definite level of respect from Western world powers in the early 20th century despite an initial wariness to the unprecedented practice of colonialism by a nation of the Orient. Ostensibly, one method used to assuage external fears was tourism. A few Japanese Tourist Bureau relics, written in English, support this idea. From one 1913 brochure: “Tourists, who have enjoyed their excursions in the charming ‘Land of the Rising Sun,’ should come over to Chōsen [Korea] and stay in [Keijō] to see the quaint attire and observe the peculiar customs and distinctive architecture of the ‘Land of the Morning Calm.’”
7 Imperial Japan’s predilection for neoclassicism and European sensibilities was a product of the country’s “calculated attempt to […] absorb Western culture at every possible level.” For the sake of self-preservation, their adopted slogan to trade, modernization, and (eventually) colonialism was in essence, “If You Can’t Beat ’em, Emulate ’em.”
8 There were prior, short-lived yet devastating attempts.
9 Mountains loom large in Korean history, but perhaps none more than Baekdusan, situated astride the North Korea–China border. Widely regarded as the foundational and spiritual home of Korea, it’s also the tallest point within the divided region.
10 The four hills — Bugaksan, Naksan, Namsan, and Inwangsan — are the cornerstones of the Fortress Wall of Seoul.
11 Gaecheon, known today as Cheonggyecheon, is now without bifurcating streamlets. The history of this stream is turbulent in that it was once banished from view beneath a highway where it dried to a dribble before its eventual resurrection.
12 Though, this wasn’t the area’s first time being cast as administrative hub: Wiryeseong (modern-day Seoul) was twice [i] the ancient capital of Baekje, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, from 18 BCE to 475 CE.
i Once north of the Han River (Habuk Wiryeseong) and once south (Hanam Wiryeseong).
13 The keyword here being “recreational,” which should be noted for the sake of clarity. This does not include the ascension of mountains for matters spiritual, religious, ceremonial, transcendental, sacramental, superstitious, or any other interrelated -al or -ious terms that come to mind.
14 I read somewhere of seonbi — the virtuous scholars of dynastic Korea — being carried up mountains in gamas by monks. The purpose was (according to my notes) “to discipline mind and body and understand the nature of things.” Some of the, quote unquote, disciplined practices that took place on the mountainside: “They’d write poetry, eat food, [and] drink liquor alongside musicians and gisaeng [female entertainers].”
15 There is an irony embedded in the origins of hiking. As many European thinkers promoted the acquisition of knowledge by way of reason, empiricism, and the scientific method, they were countered by Romantic philosophers who frequently argued that, “in their supposedly exclusive reliance on reason, the thinkers of the Enlightenment had disregarded the bonds of history, myth, and tradition that held societies together.” These Romantics embraced truth found in the experience of the individual, particularly emotions conjured by nature’s beauty. Hiking, mountaineering, and exploration were held up as activities expressing the ideals of Romanticism [i]. When the Age of Enlightenment set the gears in spin for the Industrial Revolution and the working class was packed like sardines in artificial urban environments, an increased standard of living among the middle class coincided with a desire to break free from filthy, monotone cities and trek back to pastoral roots. The way I see it, the irony (in case it’s not as obvious as I’d like to think) is found in layers: Firstly, without the Industrial Revolution and, thus, rampant abuse of the Earth, the notion of hiking may never have come to be so widely viewed as enticing. Secondly, the economic development courtesy of the Age of Enlightenment–spawned Industrial Revolution afforded the middle class the leisure necessary to enjoy a capital-R Romantic walk in the countryside. All the while, the working class endured gruelling 60-hour, 6-day workweeks.
i Ideals perhaps best captured by German Romantic artist Caspar David Friedrich in his 1818 masterpiece Wanderer above the Sea of Fog [i.i].
i.i The German word wanderer can be translated as either its English twin, or “hiker” (among other synonymous terms).
16 The National Mountain Museum in Sokcho, South Korea apparently credits a group of British and Japanese as being the country’s first modern climbers in 1929. Meanwhile, the Encyclopedia of Korean Culture noncommittally cites two Brits as the groundbreakers, though their 1926 ascent is described as having been accomplished by way of rock climbing.
17 From Oxford:
decimate | ˈdɛsɪmeɪt | verb [with object]
2 historical kill one in every ten [i] of (a group of people, originally a mutinous Roman legion) as a punishment for the whole group[…]
i “Decimate” isn’t sufficient. Air Force Gen. Curtis LeMay, head of the Strategic Air Command during the Korean War: “Over a period of three years or so, we killed off — what — 20 percent of the [North Korean] population…” Seems the mot juste would be “quintate” (kill one in every five). What does it say when there isn’t an extant word brutal enough to describe a massacre?
18 Civilians were caught in the crossfire — nay, were often intended targets — of the Korean War more than the Second World War or the Vietnam War, representing seventy percent of all casualties.
19 Not to be confused with either han mentioned in footnote 2, nor with the Korean word meaning “one.” While all three are the same Korean morpheme 한, they each have entirely unrelated meanings and distinct Chinese characters. The translingual breakdown of the Chinese character for the han linked to the concept Pak Kyongni speaks of (恨) can be found here.
20 However, several have argued that this is not a strictly Korean affect. In her essay Korean Han and the Postcolonial Afterlives of “The Beauty of Sorrow”, Dr. Sandra Kim mentions that a parallel uniting Koreans and African Americans has been addressed in previously published articles and explores it herself through rap lyrics. She concludes that the song in question “illustrates how ‘racial wounds’ can be inherited across time and even across racial groups.” (The entire essay is invaluable and fascinating, but for those especially interested in the Tablo–Joey Bada$$ collab analysis, check out pages 271–273 in the above link.)
21 Among the last living vestiges of Japanese colonialism, “comfort women” told their stories decades after the final ceasefire. Kim Hak-sun was the first survivor to utter the truth in 1991, five decades after her enslavement. Upwards (estimates vary due to the destruction of Japanese records) of two hundred thousand women — about half of whom were Korean, and thousands more from China, the Philippines, Taiwan, and other Japanese-occupied territories — were relentlessly raped, beaten, and tortured. The vitality of South Korea–Japan relations fluctuates on the regular [i] due in part to opposing views on the sufficiency of Japan’s past reparatory measures. Victims in particular claim their views have not been represented in resolutions and that Japan has only taken moral, not legal, responsibility. It doesn’t help that current Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe [ii] once expressed doubts that “comfort women” were ever forcibly coerced.
i Indeed, only one month has passed since the most recent grievances were aired. A statue in Pyeongchang was erected depicting what’s been described as Shinzō Abe’s doppelgänger on his knees and bowing before a corresponding statue of a seated comfort woman. Of course, good luck proving the statue intentionally resembles Abe, but if it does, Japan said, it is “unacceptable.” The statues are titled “Everlasting Atonement.”
ii Due to illness, Abe will relinquish his post only a handful of days following the writing of this footnote. Doubtless schadenfreude for his Korean opponents.
22 In Japan’s colonial discourse there was embedded the premise that Japan and Korea were one (see slogan, “Naisen ittai” — “Japan and Korea, One Body”), contradicting the image of Koreans as the inferior Other. This “unified oneness” (“Kōminka”) was intended to destroy Korean culture, history, and identity and assimilate its subjects into those of Japan.
23 “Miraculous” economic upturns in the wake of the World War II era were so commonplace that they seem to have been more inevitable than the result of some divine intervention [i]. Even the Miracle on the Han River derives its name from the Miracle on the Rhine, or Wirtschaftswunder. South Korea’s success was just one quarter of the emergence of the Four Asian Tigers [ii], which in addition to the ROK consists of Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore. Some factors that make South Korea’s rise particularly impressive in comparison to its fellow Tigers include 1) the initial state of devastation left by the Korean War that had to be overcome; 2) its rate of development in contrast to its northern communist adversary; 3) the size of its population relative to the other Tigers (more than double the size of the second-largest, Taiwan); and 4) its low levels of economic inequality, especially when measured against those of Hong Kong and Singapore.
i The interventions that did take place were perhaps not divine, but certainly foreign.
ii Known as “Asia’s Four Dragons” in Korean and “Asia’s Four Little Dragons” in Chinese.
24 And rightfully so. I’ll invoke one Mr. Noam Chomsky to illustrate why:
North Korea may be the craziest country in the world. It’s certainly a good competitor for that title. But it does make sense to try to figure out what’s in the minds of people when they’re acting in crazy ways. Why would they behave the way they do? Just imagine ourselves in their situation. Imagine what it meant in the Korean War years of the early 1950s for your country to be totally leveled, everything destroyed by a huge superpower, which furthermore was gloating about what it was doing. Imagine the imprint that would leave behind.
Bear in mind that the North Korean leadership is likely to have read the public military journals of this superpower at that time explaining that, since everything else in North Korea had been destroyed, the air force was sent to destroy North Korea’s dams, huge dams that controlled the water supply — a war crime, by the way, for which people were hanged in Nuremberg. And these official journals were talking excitedly about how wonderful it was to see the water pouring down, digging out the valleys, and the Asians scurrying around trying to survive. The journals were exulting in what this meant to those “Asians,” horrors beyond our imagination. It meant the destruction of their rice crop, which in turn meant starvation and death. How magnificent! It’s not in our memory, but it’s in their memory…
…They remember that past, so they’re reacting in a very aggressive, extreme way. Well, what comes to the West from all this is how crazy and how awful the North Korean leaders are. Yes, they are. But that’s hardly the whole story…
— Noam Chomsky, Who Rules the World?
25 The Korea National Park System, or KNPS, was created in the midst of 1987 nationwide protests calling for democratic reform. The first national park, Jirisan, had been designated twenty years prior.
26 There’s no denying that the juxtaposition of trot and vengeful rage would make for a stylistic film scene.
27 The final words of the Declaration of Independence (which can be read in its entirety here), as spoken by Jeong Jae-yong, read as follows (emphasis mine):
All of us, men and women, young and old, have firmly left behind the old nest of darkness and gloom and head for joyful resurrection together with the myriad living things. The spirits of thousands of generations of our ancestors protect us; the rising tide of world consciousness shall assist us. Once started, we shall surely succeed. With this hope we march forward.
