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Monash University Korean Studies Research Hub presents:

Monash Korean Studies Seminar Series 2024 - Seminar #1: 

The ‘Nation of Propriety in the East’: A Naturalized History of Polite Language in Korea 

Speaker: Dr. Eunseon Kim (ANU)

Date & Time: 12th April, 2-3pm (AEST)

Venue: Room G01, LTB (Learning & Teaching Building), Clayton Campus

Register here: https://forms.gle/rBuZ3xC4rziArbCf6

Abstract: 

Korean honorifics system is one of the salient cultural categories of communication that comes to be seen as a ‘linguistic emblem’ (Harkness 2015) of Korean society and culture often known as the epithet ‘Nation of Propriety in the East’ (Tongbang yeŭi chi kuk 東方禮儀之國). Native Koreans often believe that the complex linguistic practice of politeness embodies or emanates from their culture of respecting superiors in age or status. How did a set of linguistic repertoires in Korean gain social significance as an icon of the ethno-national culture? In this talk, I explore the genealogy of representations of the saturated cultural images of signs within a network of diverse practices. Drawing on the semiotic analysis of language ideology, I analyse the ways in which images and ideas about Korean honorifics and honorification acquire social meanings and become linguistic markers of ‘Koreanness.’ I argue that the culture-specific models of modern-day Korean linguistic politeness are an ideological artifact peculiar to the history of modernising Korea. This study examines a variety of discursive social practices ranging from premodern conduct manuals to linguistic studies and popular books on ‘proper’ language use. The folk and professional meta-linguistic/-pragmatic discourses rationalise how linguistic practices of politeness should work and what they mean in Korean society and culture. 

Bio: 

Eunseon Kim is Lecturer and Convenor of the Korean Language Program in the School of Culture, History and Language at the Australian National University. Her research interests include language ideology, the history of linguistic thought, and metalinguistic discourses, with a particular emphasis on Korean linguistic etiquette. She explores how language users shape the cultural values of language in society in order to project identity, to establish group membership, and to engage with political issues. She works on a variety of issues in Korean history and culture through language-related topics, including language policy and education, linguistic nationalism, linguistic variations, and linguistic identity. 

Contact person: Sandy Nguyen (Sandy.nguyen1@monash.edu)