It still amazes me that I was alive for some pretty interesting events in the 20th century (and even got to see a few of them fairly closely). I believe it’s inarguably the greatest century in human history, and not just because I lived nearly four-tenths of it myself. From beginning to end we see the rise of the automobile, the airplane, the computer – two world wars and a cold one among many others. The founding of nations and the dramatic changing of others. The rise and fall of communism. Landing on the moon.
I’ve mentioned before, the last emperor of China died four years after I was born. I had the good fortune to learn Chinese when I joined the Air Force many years ago, and of course that started an interest in the area for me. I must admit though that when I was told I was going to be assigned to Korea, I barely knew where it was. The one thing of which I was sure is that it wasn’t China.
But here I sit, nearly 40 years later, having spent over half of those years in Korea. I’ve read histories of the war of course, and I’ve actually witnessed a few things myself too. I’ve wandered the countryside and seen the places and learned a bit here and there, but now I’m finally getting down to it. The book Korea’s Place in the Sun by Bruce Cumings has been sitting on the shelf in my office for as long as I’ve been there and I finally took a look.
And it hasn’t been a disappointment thus far, although I’m only on the intro (which covers early Korean history in the lead up to the meat of the book which covers 1860 to present). And that’s why I picked up the book. As interesting as Korea’s older history is (and I see so much of it scattered throughout the country), the real good stuff starts with the 20th century.
And while I am not far into the book yet, I already get the feeling that the author both knows his stuff and loves Korea deeply (something about which I must be mindful to be sure). He’s certainly not shy about pointing out the possibilities that Korea may have had more to do with the origins of Japan than the other way around. Among the early pages he’s already speculated that the Japanese won’t open the tombs of some of their earliest royalty for fear of finding far too much Korean influence for their comfort.
Of course, if you read a Japanese history, you’ll find nothing of the sort. And you’ll find nothing of Korean influence on northeastern China in a Chinese history too I’m sure. But what’s most intriguing is that the whole region has been this swirling melting pot over the centuries with Korea at the center. We have an ebb and flow of conquered and conquerors; great victories and great defeats; kingdoms rising and kingdoms being crushed. And of course more recently, the rise of Korea as an ultra-modern economic power at the cutting edge of the world of the future – a future that I believe will be firmly planted in East Asia.
I grew up in Wisconsin, which has a fascinating history of its own. But you must admit, the Peshtigo fire doesn’t quite hold the same sense of adventure as a Mongol army conquering your hometown. I don’t know. Maybe fires are your thing though…
In any case, I’ve got pretty much the entire book ahead of me, so there’s much more about which I can be excited. I hope to be able to share some of that with you along the way.
Stay tuned…