South Korea
Preparation
Firstly, I wanted to know more information about the countries which have the similar culture with China, and I wanted to know what's the culture difference between that country and China from interviews. Secondly, when I was the volunteer of international peer adviser of 2010 fall, I met some Koreans. So I e-mail one of the Korean girls, said that could I interview her for my English 191 class. She said that she would love to. So we decided to get the interview at Caribou which was a comfortable place and we could drink coffee during the interview. In this way, we met at Caribou at 3:00 pm October 18th.
Before interview, I printed my interview questions with two copies, one was for her one was for me. When we met, we got a small talk, and both of us were happy to meet again and get a chance to talk deeply. I past my list to her, she was really serious to this interview and asked me to wait for a while for reading the questions.
Describing of the interview
With asking when did you come to the USA, I began the interview. Hye Lim came here in August 2010. During these time, she spent her Korean Thanks Giving Day. Unlike American Thanks Giving Day, there was Korean rice cake and other Korean food to celebrate the festival instead of turkey. And she spent Korean Thanks Giving Day with her Korean friends, they met together and had dig dinner to celebrate it. Because of the to different way to celebrate the Thanks Giving Day and Hye Lim did not spend American one, so she could not compare what's difference between these two festivals. The same as a lot of country, Hye Lim said they had New year festival which was her favorite one. But it was not the same as China New Year Festival, because it was January 1st. As Christian, Hye Lim said that she usually went to church with her parent at Christmas, but there was no festival of Christmas just holiday. When talking about the food, Hye Lim said she missed Korean food, however, she liked American food too. So she adapted to the food of USA, and she usually went to Garvy enjoying the food there. Sometimes she would hang out with friends going to the restaurants, but she never cooked, just bought some instant food.
Hye Lim told me that she usually spent free time on playing piano and shopping, and she loved the life in the USA. Because there were good environment and a lot of free time which she could planed the time by herself. When talking about the friendship in the USA, what Hye Lim said was in my prediction that she the main friendship were made up by Koreans and she usually hang out with them; and then were international friends, and Americans. Although she joined one Christian organization which contained a lot of Americans, and they were very kind and friendly to her, Hye Lim said that she still had problem with them, because of language. The language was the major limited to make friends with Americans and then was different culture background, she cloud not join the talk because of the topic what Americans were talking about.
There was one thing which Hye Lim said surprised me a lot ,that she said usually when Koreans met new people, " How old are you?" was the first question. In my mind, age was an rare topic when we talking to the new friends, specially to women. However, Hye Lim said age was really important in Korea and she repeated twice. By thinking of the generation separate in Korea, I could understand why people wanted to ask the age of their people at the first time.
As what Hye Lim said, in normal Korean family, there were two children in the family, so she had one younger brother. Government encouraged people to get more children, if a couple have over three children, they could get support money from government. The low birth rate was the reason of that phenomenon. Usually Hye Lim connected with her family twice a week, though the Skype. And she thought that the family between Korea and USA were different, it was specially showing at the relationship between parents and children. She told me that in Korea children never could call parents' names, it's really not respectful. Hye Lim told me that she had a dream that she could live in the USA, and she had the thought that marry an American gay.
At last, she said that eye-contact was rude in Korea, specially when she talking with her parent, teachers and elder people; she seldom did body language in Korea. But now was different, I saw that during the interview, almost time she kept the eye-contact with me. She also told me that she learned some body language since she came to the USA. This was enjoyable interview both Hye Lim and me had a great time.
Transcribe of the interview
(q=me, h= Hye Lim)
q- when did you come to USA?
h- I came here this August.
q- During these time, what national festivals you spent in USA? What your own country festivals you spent in USA? Can you compare them?
h- I spent festival in Minnesota field, and my country's festival is thanks giving day. Because our thanks giving day is different day from here.
q- oh, so when is your thanks giving day?
h- maybe September the third week? I'm checking my schedule... wait wait... I'm going to call my friend..and make it sure..
q- hehe..
h- they are not same thing so I cloud not compare them.
(calling no answer)
q-That's fine. So how did you spend your thanks giving day?
h- em, in my country?
q- yea, did you eat turkey?
h- no, we have different Korean traditional food. It likes small sticky rice cake with yellow bean mixed with honey or sugar. Oh, and it is similar with a kind of Chinese food.
q- steam one?
h- yea..
q- oh, I know it. and do you have some performances or do your family watch the TV together during the festival?
h- no, we some relatives get together and talk and eat, it's the part as USA.
q- yea, and how about your trip in Minnesota Field? Is it similar field as Korean one?
h- I took the roller coaster and it was funny. But it isn't similar as Korea, we don't have field, we just have museum parks. So it's the difference.
q- are there a lot of festivals in Korea?
h- no, we just have the holiday, thanks giving day, new year day...
q- how about Christmas?
h- we have holiday during the Christmas, and I usually spend Christmas in the church with my family.
q- oh, that's good. So what are some religious?
h- we have Buddhist, Christ and Catholic. That, we serve Jesus, but Catholic also serve Mother Mary the mother of Jesus.
q- how about Muslim?
h- we don't have Muslim, maybe there are some but very few. We think they are very rare and strange.
q- oh, so Christ is the main religious in Korea, and there are a lot of churches..
h- yea, really a lot of churches. And more than here.
q- oh, so how about cultural customs in your country? it likes the traditional dress...
h- oh, it case by case, but usually Korean girls like to wear high heels, skirts and jeans similar like these.
q- will you wear traditional clothes during the festivals like new year?
h- no, but on the special days like I go to downtown with my friends, I will wear the traditional dress. Koreans put traditional culture in very important place. For me, I have to wear traditional clothes or formal suits to teach my students. But usually, Koreans dress casually.
q- I heard that in Korea, the elders and youngers have to be separated.
h- Yea, the same generation play with the same generation friends. You know, we have a lot of different generations in Korea.
q- So the generations are separated by age and social estate?
h- Yea, and in Korea, the age is really important.
q- So is the same as the relationship between man and woman?
h- no, maybe ten years before, elder man date with younger woman. But because of the influence of resent Korean dramas, it is popular that younger man date with elder woman. However, parents don't like it. And you know, we use a lot of difference sentences between elder people and younger people, so age is really important.
q- Is it rude to ask people how old are they?
h- no. It's common and it's the first question. Every time we meet new people, we
say 'nice to meet you' and then ' how old are you'.
q- That's interesting. What do you usually eat?
h- Garvey, I like it only if they have rice. Rice is Korean main food. We usually eat soup too.
q- How often do you go to outside restaurants? Or you cook by yourself?
h- I go to restaurants once or twice a week with friends, but I never cook, just buy the instant food.
q- How do you spend your free time? Do you like your life in the USA?
h- I love here, there are great environment and friendly people. I have a lot of free time and I can plan my time here is better than I was in Korea. And you know, I play piano so I usually spend time to play piano and I like shopping too.
q- How's your friendship in USA? like international friends or American friends?
h- I have a lot of Korean friends and I usually hang out with them. And I also have a lot of international friends like Chinese, Saudi Arabia and Africans. I have a few American friends. You know I am Christian, and I join the CRU, so I met a lot of American Christians, but we still have limited language to talk. For example, I went to eat pizza with them, after church. I always just eat when they talk, because I can't join their topic.
q- That's true, I have the same feeling too. Can I know how many child in your family?
h- I have a younger brother, so it's two.
q- Oh, that's good. So Korean family usually has two children?
h- Yea, usually two. If parents have three or four, they will think that too many. However, because Korean birth rate is too low, government will give money to the family, if they have over three children.
q- How often do you connect with your family? And how do you connect with them?
h- I usually call my parent twice a week by Sykpe. And sometime we will have face to face talk on the line.
q- Do you think there are some difference about family between Korea and USA? And what's that?
h- Yea, I think there are some differences. For example, American children sometime call their parents' names, but we never do that, it's not respect. And the relationship between parent and children are very different, like American parents can treat the children as friends, but we don't.
q- Have you ever think of living in USA or marry an American?
h- Yea, the environment of USA is really good, and I like St. Cloud. I really want live at USA and the easiest way to live here is to marry an American gay.
q- Do you have different rules of eye-contact and body language in Korea?
h- Yea, Americans like eye-contact, but it's rude in Korea, specially when you talk to parent and teachers or elder people. And in Korea, we seldom use body language, but now I use some like this(she is shrugging her shoulder). It means I don't know.
q- Yea. All right, that's my last question. Thank you so much, I really enjoy this talking.
h- Me too!
Report on country
( population, religions, languages, family values)South Korea, Republic of Korea, is a little bit larger than Indiana, it locates at south of Korean peninsula. Seoul is the capital of South Korea which has 10.5 million people, the total population reported by 2010 is 48,636,068. And the annual population growth rate is 0.258% and the birth rate is 8.72 births/1,000 population. The age structure of South Korea is as follow, 0-14 years (16.8%), 15-64 years (72.3%), 65 years and over (10.8%).(www.cia.gov) "Korea's population is one of the most ethnically and liguistically homgenous in the world"(www.state.gov),northwest, southeast, and plains south of the Seoul-Incheon area are the major population centers. Emigration rate in South Korea is really high, the first immigration country is China (2.4 million) and then the USA (2.1 million).
The main ethnic group is Korean and there is small Chinese minority about 20,000. The religions in Korea are Christianity, Buddhism, Shamanism, Confucianism, Chondogyo.In South Korea, religion is freedom, almost half of the South Koreans take part in religion activities. Christianity is most popular talking 29.2% of the population, and Buddhism (22.8%).
Korean is the main language in South Korea, and English is widely taught in Junior high and high school( which is the same as China). There are around 1,300 Chinese characters used in modern Korean and the Korean language is related to Japanese and Mogolian. So Chinses and Japanese are also widely taught at secondary schools. In South Korea, there is 97.9% total population can read and write at age 15 and over.
In South Korea, family values take a significant place in their culture and Koreans' life. Korean will think family benefits first more than individual one. And father is an important role in one family, with traditional culture, father is the home-making, he has to support food, clothes and shelter, and the marriage of family members have to be agreed by father. "Members of the family are tied to each other because the actions of one family member reflect on the rest of the family. In many cases the family register can trace a family's history, through male ancestors, for over 500 years." (webcache.googleusercontent.com)
Work Sited
"Background Note: South Korea". U.S. Department of State / Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs. 28 May. 2010. Web. 31 Oct. 2010. <http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2800.htm>
"East & Southeast Asia: Korea, South". Central Intelligence Agency/ Library/ The World Factbook. 27 Oct. 2010. Web. 31 Oct 2010. <https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ks.html>
"South Korea - Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette". Kwintessentail. Web. 31 Oct. 2010. <http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/south-korea-country-profile.html >
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