Course Number: ALL 3586 (UMN), KORA 398G (UMD), KOR 498 (PSU)
Times: Tu/Th | 1:00PM – 2:15PM (CT) | 2:00PM – 3:15PM (ET)
Instructor: Travis Workman
Description: In this course we will analyze the Cold War not only as a geopolitical event, but also as a historical period marked by specific cultural and artistic forms. We focus on the Korean peninsula, looking closely at the literary and film cultures of both South Korea and North Korea. We discuss how the global conflict between U.S.-centered and Soviet-centered societies affected the politics, culture, and geography of Korea between 1945 and 1989, treating the division of Korea as an exemplary case extending from the origins of the Cold War to the present. We span the Cold War divide to compare the culture and politics of the South and the North through various cultural forms, including anti-communist and socialist realist films, biography and autobiography, fiction, and politcal discourse. The primary purpose is to be able to analyze post-1945 Korean cultures as both local forms and as significant parts of the global context of the Cold War era.
Hosting University: University of Minnesota
Participating Universities: University of Maryland
Academic Calendar: Unless specified by the course instructor, the course will follow the host campus’ academic calendar.
