Korean American Families

Asian American Literature: Foodways and Cultural Transformation(s)

SS 2001

by

Johanna Niemann

Table of Content

1. Introduction p. 2

2. Women in Korea p. 3-4

3. Korean immigrant couples in America p. 4-6

4. Korean immigrant children in America p. 7-10

5. A Step from Heaven p. 10-22

6. Conclusion P. 23

7. Bibliography P. 24

1. Introduction

“Your life can be different, Young Ju. Study and be strong. In America, women have choices.”¹ Korean people tend to define women as wives, mothers, caregivers, or just simply as girls, always with regard to their sexual behavior rather to their individuality as a person. For over five hundred years Confucianism has been the mainstream of Korean culture and tradition, setting the social role of Korean women. Koreans still strongly believe in Confucian values, behave, feel, and think in Confucian ways, despite the fact that Koreans, particularly Korean Americans and specifically Korean American women, have experienced new social realities and such social changes as modern socialization, westernisation, Christianization, industrialization, and immigration to the American socio-cultural setting.

The major premises for this paper are (1) a view on women in Korea and Confucian values in Korean society. (2) What happens when a traditional immigrant couple arrives in America and that a departure from traditional roles often results in domestic violence. (3) The role of Korean children in Korea and in America. These considerations build the theoretical background for (4) an examination of a Korean American novel of a family experiencing new social realities upon arriving in the United States.

The paper will show that the Confucian values are still dominating in Korean American families and that a departure of the traditional family setting is hard or impossible for single family members, especially for the men who see their patriarchal authority over their wife and children erode. The women begin to question the superior position of their husbands and children experience a time of confusion and frustration for their parents often disagree about new ways of raising them. This paper will also show that the problems and examples given in the novel A Step from heaven by An Na are typical for Korean American immigrants and that children are again the ones that suffer the most.

2. Women in Korea

2.1 Confucianism of Korean Society

Confucianism is one of China’s philosophies that has exercised a powerful influence over the last 2500 years. It has been a live force shaping thoughts and behaviors not only for people in China, but also for its neighbor Korea. Confucius (551-479 B.C.)² established an ethical and moral system to govern all social relations in family, community and society. It has been strongly perpetuated in all domains of Korean life as the mainstream of Korean culture, particularly since the Yi dynasty government (1392-1910) adopted it as a state religion. Among many results of its impact on Korean society are the indoctrination of strong familism and patriarchal family systems and the institutionalisation of Confucian sexism.

The Confucian political culture legitimised the male authority and institutionalised a patriarchal family structure, emphasizing values as family ties, filial piety, and family discipline through submission, obedience, sacrifice and loyalty to the patriarchal authority. Thus, members of t he family placed first priority on family interest rather than personal needs. As a woman in the Confucian family, the individual “I” has been denied by demanding of her a lifetime of submission and sacrifice. According to Confucianism, women are to follow “three obediences”: to obey father at home, husband after marriage, and sons when widowed. Additionally the “four virtues” are promoted: chastity, reticence, a pleasing manner and domestic skills.³ Also, women had no right to ask for divorce, men on the contrary had several socially sanctioned reasons for expelling their wives in traditional Korea. These reasons, the “seven deadly sins” included: (1) failure to perform filial duties to parents-in-law, (2) failure to produce a son, (3) infidelity, (4) jealousy, (5) chronic disease, (6) garrulity, and (7) a habit of theft.

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1 Na, An: A Step from heaven. New York, 2000

2 See, Kim, E.: “The Social Reality of Korean American Women: Towards Crashing with the Confucian Ideology”. In Song, Y. I. & Moon, A., eds., Korean American Women: from tradition to modern feminism. Westport, 1998, p. 24

3 See, McGoldrick, M., N. Garcia-Petro, P. N. Hine, & E. Lee. “Ethnicity and Women” In M. McGoldrick, C. Anderson, & F. Walsh, eds., Women in Families. New York, 1989, pp. 169-199