{"product_id":"a-family-of-no-prominence-the-descendants-of-pak-tkhwa-and-the-birth-of-modern-korea-9780804788762","title":"A Family of No Prominence: The Descendants of Pak T\u0026#335;khwa and the Birth of Modern Korea","description":"\u003cp\u003eKoreans are known for their keen interest in genealogy and inherited ancestral status. Yet today's ordinary Korean would be hard pressed to explain the whereabouts of ancestors before the twentieth century. With \u003ci\u003eA Family of No Prominence\u003c\/i\u003e, Eugene Y. Park gives us a remarkable account of a nonelite family, that of Pak Tŏkhwa and his descendants (which includes the author). Spanning the early modern and modern eras over three centuries (1590-1945), this narrative of one family of the \u003ci\u003echungin\u003c\/i\u003e class of people is a landmark achievement.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWhat we do know of the \u003ci\u003echungin\u003c\/i\u003e, or middle people, of Korea largely comes from profiles of wealthy, influential men, frequently cited as collaborators with Japanese imperialists, who went on to constitute the post-1945 South Korean elite. This book highlights many rank-and-file \u003ci\u003echungin\u003c\/i\u003e who, despite being better educated than most Koreans, struggled to survive. We follow Pak Tŏkhwa's descendants as they make inroads into politics, business, and culture. Yet many members' refusal to link their family histories and surnames to royal forebears, as most other Koreans did, sets them apart, and facilitates for readers a meaningful discussion of identity, modernity, colonialism, memory, and historical agency.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Eugene Y. Park\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Stanford University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 04\/02\/2014\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 264\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.06lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.28h x 6.10w x 0.77d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780804788762\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eEugene Y. Park is the Korea Foundation Associate Professor of History and Director of the James Joo-Jin Kim Program in Korean Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of \u003ci\u003eBetween Dreams and Reality: The Military Examination in Late Chosŏn Korea, 1600-1984\u003c\/i\u003e (2007).\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThis title is not returnable\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Stanford University Press","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":40146708594803,"sku":"9.78E+12","price":75.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0555\/9255\/0515\/products\/img_280b7053-4e15-4e63-96bb-871387e98052.jpg?v=1654695834","url":"https:\/\/bookstorenmore.com\/products\/a-family-of-no-prominence-the-descendants-of-pak-tkhwa-and-the-birth-of-modern-korea-9780804788762","provider":"Bookstore N More","version":"1.0","type":"link"}