Journal Entry #1 Vivian Shon

[Vivian Shon]

For the first week of class, Rachel and I met up over Zoom and went over the syllabus together. I was very excited to have her as my new language partner since I felt like Rachel spoke more formal Korean while I was more experienced in conversational Korean. Since we have both taken Korean and have taught Korean over the past few years, we were both pretty familiar with the content and requirements of SDLC. This is my 3rd time taking Korean and for this semester, I took on a pretty heavy academic workload, so I wanted to simply use these class times to read and watch as much cultural content as possible. In Korean I and Korean II, I mostly focused on practicing and speaking Korean and having basic conversations with my language partner, but for this semester, I wanted to listen and observe more of the diction, vocabulary, storyline, and visual aspects used in Korean films and dramas. The main reason is that I’ve always been interested in videography and film my entire life. I still visibly remember when the film “괴물" first premiered in Korea back in 2006 and it was a revolutionary moment for Korean film history because of its use of CGI and digital graphics. I was only 6 years old back then and “괴물" means monster in Korean, so I was way too afraid to properly enjoy the show, but I hope to rewatch it this semester and enjoy it with a fresh perspective. Previously, Korea was not as well known for its movies, but they have truly progressed into a country known for its arts and culture. I’ve always enjoyed Korean TV shows in the past, but I never got too deep into the storyline, motifs, symbolism, e.t.c. I mostly watched it because my favorite actor was in the show, or because my sister always asked me to watch it with her. Over the past few years, I’ve noticed how much Korean filmmaking has progressed. From being a worldwide sensation to becoming internationally recognized even by the Oscars, it made me want to really study and analyze this phenomenon. Therefore, for Spring 2022, my goal is to observe as many Korean artworks (such as films, music videos, poetry) and take a deep dive into how this reflects back onto Korean culture and society as a whole. I will continue to practice my Korean speaking and reading skills with Rachel but make sure to have an emphasis on the Korean Arts when doing so. For the next few weeks, I hope to watch and unpack some famous films and dramas such as “The Uncanny Counter,” “25/21,” “Our Beloved Summer,” “Business Proposal,” and e.t.c. If I have additional time to explore, I would also like to dip my toes into Korean sports as well, more specifically, get to know more about Kim Yeon Kyung, an infamous female volleyball player in South Korea. All in all, I am very thrilled to start this semester and I’m excited to see what I learn.