Myungji Yang | University of Hawaii at Manoa (original) (raw)

Papers by Myungji Yang

Urban Studies, 2018

Focusing on the case of urban development in Gangnam, this article explores how middle-class iden... more Focusing on the case of urban development in Gangnam, this article explores how middle-class identity based on residence in apartment complexes was created in South Korea beginning in the late 1970s. I argue that state policy, speculation, and exclusion were key ingredients in the making of the middle class in Gangnam. Many white-collar families became apartment owners through a government-subsidised apartment lottery programme, and subsequently climbed the economic ladder more rapidly than others because of skyrocketing housing prices. Their rise to middle-class status, facilitated by chance and furthered by their willingness to engage in real estate speculation, was seen by many as illegitimate. In the face of scepticism about their status, Gangnam residents strived to cultivate cultured, modernised, and Westernised middle-class lifestyles so as to distinguish themselves from non-Gangnam residents and justify their economic success. This paper emphasises the dialectical process – ...

Political Science Quarterly, 2020

Korean Studies, 2018

and knowledge to write their own future and destiny as a nation” (p. 217). Baek informs readers t... more and knowledge to write their own future and destiny as a nation” (p. 217). Baek informs readers that they too can become involved with organizations that send information into North Korea, which may include “researching best practices from comparative situations, finding and/or creating technologies for dissemination purposes, creating and editing original digital content, fundraising, and more” (p. 225). Readers may ponder whether foreign media has actually created a “hidden revolution” in North Korea, as Baek’s title states. Baek could have unpacked the notion of a revolution more explicitly. Indeed, illegal, hidden, and outside information may very well be sowing the seeds for a revolution. These are issues that Baek and her readers should continue to explore, both intellectually and pragmatically. Baek’s North Korea’s Hidden Revolution is a valuable examination of the transformative power of media and information. The text makes a vital contribution to our understanding of North...

Through the case of anti-impeachment rallies held in South Korea in 2016-2017, this article exami... more Through the case of anti-impeachment rallies held in South Korea in 2016-2017, this article examines why the large-scale, rightwing mobilization emerged in the midst of democratic and peaceful demonstrations. Analyzing the widespread emotions and narratives shared by protesters, I argue that rightwing elites and intellectuals mobilized civil society by evoking specific historical experiences that arouse intense fear and outrage among older citizens. Capitalizing on positive and successful historical experiences of anticommunist nation building and national modernization, the South Korean right has tried to rebuild its political legitimacy and symbolic power during the postauthoritarian period (1987-present). Drawing from ethnographic observations and in-depth interviews undertaken in Seoul, I emphasize the prominence of Cold War geopolitics and authoritarian legacies in shaping the discourse and mobilization strategies of the South Korean right. This article enhances a critical unde...

The Korean Journal of Humanities and the Social Sciences

Politics & Society, 2021

Through the case of the New Right movement in South Korea in the early 2000s, this article explor... more Through the case of the New Right movement in South Korea in the early 2000s, this article explores how history has become a battleground on which the Right tried to regain its political legitimacy in the postauthoritarian context. Analyzing disputes over historiography in recent decades, this article argues that conservative intellectuals—academics, journalists, and writers—play a pivotal role in constructing conservative historical narratives and building an identity for right-wing movements. By contesting what they viewed as “distorted” leftist views and promoting national pride, New Right intellectuals positioned themselves as the guardians of “liberal democracy” in the Republic of Korea. Existing studies of the Far Right pay little attention to intellectual circles and their engagement in civil society. By examining how right-wing intellectuals appropriated the past and shaped triumphalist national imagery, this study aims to better understand the dynamics of ideational contest...

Korea Observer, 2017

This article examines the self-employed population as a precarious and insecure social class in K... more This article examines the self-employed population as a precarious and insecure social class in Korea since the economic crisis in the late 1990s. Most self-employed workers experience economic hardship characterized by low incomes and high turnover rates despite long work hours and family help. These precarious conditions are often explained as the result of neoliberal economic restructuring that laid off salaried employees on a massive scale, pushed displaced workers into self-employment, and heightened intense competition among the self-employed. While this economic perspective explains intense competition and low incomes of the self-employed , I argue that particular state policies also accelerated the "unmaking" of the self-employed by not providing any effective protection. By looking at the experiences of understudied self-employed workers in Korea, this article engages in a critical understanding of globalization, labor, and social inequality.

Sociological Inquiry, 2012

The Journal of Asian Studies, 2013

This article examines the process through which the state nurtured urban middle-class formation d... more This article examines the process through which the state nurtured urban middle-class formation during the Park Chung Hee regime in South Korea. While existing studies have focused on the size and characteristics of the middle class, few studies explore the political process or mechanisms through which the middle class was on the rise as a mainstream force. This article argues that urban middle-class formation was a political–ideological project of the authoritarian state to reconstruct the nation and strengthen the regime's political legitimacy. In particular, this article explores the two concurrent processes of urban middle-class formation in Korea: one is the growth of the middle class in an objective sense, as a result of state-directed economic development ; and the other is the production of urban middle-class norms. Drawing on the discourses of the Korean government and the media disseminated during from 1961 to 1979, I trace how the formation of the middle class in Korea was intertwined with modernity and nationalism in order to consolidate state power.

Books by Myungji Yang

Cornell University Press , 2018

Myungji Yang’s From Miracle to Mirage is a critical account of the trajectory of state-sponsored ... more Myungji Yang’s From Miracle to Mirage is a critical account of the trajectory of state-sponsored middle-class formation in Korea in the second half of the twentieth century. Yang’s book offers a compelling story of the reality behind the myth of middle-class formation. Capturing the emergence, reproduction, and fragmentation of the Korean middle class, From Miracle to Mirage traces the historical process through which the seemingly successful state project of building a middle-class society resulted in a mirage.