科技写作论文样稿.doc

科技写作论文样稿 From a Confucian Traditionto thePostmodern World:Korean Middle-Aged Womens TraditionalRoles andModern Expectationsin aGlobalized SocietyQi Sunand SungRan ChoUniversity ofWyoming,Wyoming,USA Email:AbstractFrom aConfucian traditionto the postmodern world,informed bycritical theory,feminist perspectives,and existingliterature,this paperidentifies andexplores perceptionsof Korean married middle-aged womens traditional roles in the globalizedsociety.It concludeswith theapplication of adult educationprinciples to the empowermentof Korean women andgender equity.KeywordsConfucianism;critical theory;feminism;gender equality;Korean IntroductionDuring thelast severaldecades,Koreans havegone throughdifferent social,economic,and politicaltransitions,particularly transformationsof theeconomy andtechnologies inorder tocope with the fastpace of the worlddevelopments and to beepetitive in the globalizedworld.Globalization andinformation technologyhave enabledWestern cultureand itsvalue systemto beincreasingly introducedand adoptedby Koreans.They havestrongly influencedKorean traditional values,including Koreans lifestyles and Korean womens roles.Deeply rootedin Confucianism,the traditionalKorean femalerole is that ofserving as a wife,a daughter-in-law,and amother butit appearsto beobsolete in the emergingglobal contextsof Koreansociety.These traditionalroles nolonger suitnew situations and variousdevelopments in the postmodern world.Aordingly,the expectationsfor Koreanmarried middle-aged womenby the society,their family members,and evenwomen themselveshave beendramatically changed.This paperfirst,from aConfucian tradition,identifies anddescribes Korean traditional womens roles.Second,it examinesand analyzesperceptions andexpectations of Koreanmarriedmiddle-aged womens multipleroles in the postmodernworld,as seenby themselves,family members,and society.Finally,it applies critical theory and feminist perspectives of adult educationas apossible wayto empowerwomen andimprove genderequality in the rapidlychanging Koreansociety.Confucian Tradition and KoreanGender RolesThe Confuciantradition startedwiththethoughts ofConfucius(551B.C.E.-479B.C.E.),who was an educator,philosopher,and politicianin thehistory ofChina,and developedas ahical systemthat governedsociety,politics,and educationin ancientChina.It hadbeen enrichedand joinedby thethoughts ofMencius(372B.C.E.-289B.C.E.),Xun Zi(298B.C.E.-238B.C.E.),and otherfollowers andmerged intoConfucianism throughoutits historicalcontext(Sun,xx).Confucianism hasnot onlyinfluenced Chinaand Chineseculture,but alsomany otherAsian countriesincluding Korea.Confucianism wasintroduced toKorea in the ThreeKingdoms Period(57B.C.E-935A.D.)(Lee,xx)and wasintegrated intoKorean cultureand the ideological systemthroughout historyand hasstrongly influencedKoreantraditionalvalues androles of family members(Lee,xx;Lee,Um,&Kimxx).Confucianism hasbeen thefoundation uponwhich socio-political affairsand individualethics and values werebuilt(Sun,xx).Although Confuciantradition hashelped educateand cultivatepeople,its traditionalviews alsorequired thatall womenbe obedientand practicethe virtueof submission(Johnsrud,1995).Extending fromaConfucianfilial piety,five relationshipswere established:sovereign tosubject;parent tochild;husband towife;elder toyoung sibling;and friendto friend.These relationshipshave beenuniquely appliedto ahierarchical order offamilymembers in Korea,which hasbeen historicallyvalued.Korean mentraditionally wereseen assuperior,thus father,husband,and sonare headsofafamily.They providefinancial support,make decisions,and enforcerules.Jang andMerriam (xx)pointed out,“Korean womenwere traditionallyseen asinferior to men andwere assignedto therole ofone whoprovides supportfor father,husband,and sons”(p.273).They mustfollow whatKim termedthe“three rulesof obedience”which areobedience tofather inchildhood,to husbandafter marriage,and toson inher oldage(as citedin Soh,1993).Thus,“virtuous women”were expected to:take on the roles of wifeand motherbut haveno rightto takepart in social activities,obey herhusband andshould notget aheadof herhusband economicallyor socially,show filialpiety toparents andin-laws byproducing ason for the suessionof thefamily,and prepareherself forexcellent performancein householdactivities(Park,2000).Consequently,Korean womens roles and liveshave beendominated andlimited bythis hierarchicalorderoffamily relationships.Today,living inthepostmodernworld,traditional cultureand values are immenselychallenged byinternationalization,rapid economic,social,and politicaldevelopments,and by the speedyexpansion ofinformation technology,western culture,and globalization.These changingcontexts generatenew rolesfor Korean women thatconflict withthe traditionallydefined rolesthey haveperformed forcenturies.Social Contextsand KoreanMarried Middle-aged Womens NewRoles andSituations Modernization,industrialization,and globalizationhave respectivelycontributed to changes in Korean Womens traditionalrolesand their opportunitiesfor education,social activities,and jobsoutside the home.The earlyperiod of the Korean womens movementunder thesocial andpolitical contextsfrom1900-1930s correspondedwith“modernization,”and enabledKorean women to receiveeducation andtraining,which wereseen asnecessary to seek nationalindependence(Johnsrud,1995).Besides,girlsschools wereestablished andwomen startedto joinmen innational concerns(Johnsrud,1995).After theKorean Warended in1953,Korea undertookindustrialization andexperienced increasedexposure toWestern culture.Between themid-1960sand the late1970s,the nationaleconomic developmentplans ledby thegovernment hadextensively promotedeconomic growthin South Korea.Higher educationbegan to be viewedasameans toeconomic developmentand thushas significantlyexpanded.Since thenmore and more Korean women havehad opportunitiesto receivehigher education.During the1980s,the continuouspursuit ofsocial economicprogress joined the currentwestern pragmaticmaterialism,which demandedthat morewomen beeemployed invarious kindsof jobs(Lee,xx).Korean womenborn afterthe1960sarenow middle-aged women(Research Groupfor Learning&Life,xx)who haveexperienced economicdevelopment,have beehighly educated,and areprepared toparticipate in activities of thesociety.In the1990s,the expressdevelopment ofinformation technologyand globalizationchallenged Koreansociety totake actionand tomove towarda knowledgesociety.Within thesecontexts,the rolesand statusof Korean women havealso progressivelychanged.Women,thus,have moreroles to play andmore opportunitiesto contribute.They havejoinedtheactivities inpolitical,democratic,and socialarenas,participated ineconomic productivity,received educationand beehighly educated.For example,from1988to1992,inthe13th NationalKorean Assembly,women madeup2%of the membership(6of299).This canpare withthe UnitedStates Senate,in whichwomen aountedfor2%in1998as well(Soh,1993).On theincrease,it hasbee5.9%fromxxtoxx,and13.4%fromxxtoxxand16.3%inxx(United NationsDevelopment Program,xx).Korean womens employmentrate has also increasedfrom41.9%in1985,48.8%in2000,to50.3%inxx(Kim,xx).The graduationrate of Korean womenfrom college/university was37.0%in1985,42.0%in1995,and48.8%inxx(Cho&Bang,xx).More importantly,professional womencan nowinteract withmale colleaguesonanequal basis in apublic formalsetting such as businessconferences(Soh,1993).However,married womenstill havetraditional gender roles thatthey mustfulfill whetherbeing housewivesor not.Thus,when havinga job,Korean womenface manychallenges ina maledominated society.Oftentimes,employers are not confidentin womens productivityand mitmentbecause married women areexpected toplete almostall of the householdtasks andchild-rearing inspite of their jobsoutside thehome.Korean womenwho havechildren haveother rolestoplayas well.For instance,in additionto jobsboth insideand outsidehome,they arealso expectedto domuch“voluntary”work attheir childrens school.Many Koreanelementary schoolsrequest studentsmothers tohelp withschool programs,including after school programs.In Korea,a childs education,particularly hisor herhigher education,is themothers toppriority andresponsibility(Johnsrud,1995;Park,2000).Mothers mustlearn tofacilitate their childrens learningto possiblyenter atop universityfor apromising future.The traditionisthatchildrens academicsuess isa measurementofthesuess ofparentslife.Consequently,Korean mothersspend muchtime,energy,and moneyon theirchildrens educationand relevantactivities besidestheir housework and jobs.Although wives work outside thehometo financiallysupport families,Korean husbandsrarely helpwith houseworkand/or theirchildrens homeworkor variousafterschoolactivities(Jang,1999).Moreover,both publicand privatedaycare facilitieshave notyet beenestablished tosupport workingmothers.Although thegovernment hasmade someefforts,they arefar frommeeting thedemand.Johnsrud (1995)finds thathighly educatedprofessional womenstill haveheavy responsibilitiesfor thecare oftheir homes,theirchildren,and theirhusbands family.Park (2000)also agreesthat inSouth Korea,a marriedwoman isexpectedtoprovide excellentchildcare,child education,and goodfilial carefor herparent-in-laws.Nevertheless,Koreanwomen have jobs,yet they arenotfree fromtheir traditionalgender rolesto beperformed athome.Many womenresign fromtheir jobswhen theymarry,have tostart theirfamily late,or postponemarriage.The situationhasalsoresulted inlow marriagerates,lower birthrates,and higherdivorce ratesinKorea(Cho&Bang,xx).It isnoticeable thatmodernized Koreanmiddle-aged womenlong forindependence,desire to bee professionalsand participate insocialactivities(Kim,xx),and askfor equalrights insociety.Unfortunately,womensworkinthehome isdevalued andtaken forgranted bysociety andfamilymembers,and atthe sametime,women receivelittle supportfor theirprofessional developmentor fortheir workoutsidethehome.When employersdo hirewomen workers,these womenoften donot receiverespect,equal pay,or opportunitiesfor promotion.Hart (1995)pointed out that womenface aproblem inthe workplace,“by beingidentified withmotherhood ora greaterfamily orientation,women aredefined asinferior workers”(p.109).In short,even thoughKorean lifestylesandvaluesystems mayhave graduallybee moremodernized andwesternized,these valuesare stillquite limitedwhen ites togender roles.The above-mentioned situationsseriously contributetothefact thatmany middle-aged Koreanwomen havediagnosable levelsof depression.In fact,45%of married Koreanwomensuffer fromdepression andthis isthree timeshigher thanthe levelof depressioninKoreanmen(Lee,Um,&Kimxx).Today,more andmore Koreanmiddle-aged womenoppose andresist stricttraditionalroles.They arewilling andprepared toparticipateinpolitical,social,and economicactivities,and otherpublic sectors.They dreamof equality,power,and socialidentity,and theydesire tolive anautonomous lifewith humandignity(Cho andBang,xx).However,they donot seeit asa largersocial problem.Mezirow (1991)expresses itwell whenhe pointsoutthat“women eto recognizethat whatthey thoughtwas theirpersonal problemisinfact awidely sharedproblem ofsex stereotyping”(p.209).Adult Educationfor Empowermentand GenderEquality ofKorean Middle-aged WomeninthePostmodern WorldFreire (1970)led ustheoretically tosee thatmiddle-aged Koreanwomen arethe“oppressed”group in their society.They needto learn to raise consciousness,tobeempowered,and beeemancipated.Critical theory“provides peoplewith knowledgeand understandingintended tofree themfrom oppression”(Brookfield,xx,p.25).Geuss (1981)describes thisasareflective theory,a criticaltheory thatgives agentsa kindof knowledgethat isinherently productivein termsof enlightenmentand emancipation(as citedin Brookfield,xx,p.26).Statistics showthat amongthemembersof Organizationfor EconomicCooperation andDevelopment(OECD),SouthKorearanked64th out of93countries whenmeasuring GenderEmpowerment Measures(GEM)inxx(UNDP,xx/xx).Feminist perspectivesalso enableus tospecifically understandgender inequalityand provideapplicable toolsfor middle-aged Koreanwomen to learn andunderstand theircurrent situations and beepetent tomake changesin theirlives andworld.Horton andFreire (1990)consciously remindedus thatwe madethe roadby walking.The applicationsof criticaltheory inthe fieldof adult education have been stronglyinfluenced bythe FrankfurtSchool,and byHabermaswork(Brookfield,xx;Welton,xx).The FrankfurtSchool ofCritical SocialTheory viewsthe centrallearning taskof adulthoodtobeideology critique(Brookfield,xx),which isa veryuseful toolavailable tomiddle-aged,married Koreanwomen.Brookfield (xx)also providesa setof criticalquestions thathelp lead to answerssuch ashow peoplecan learnto challengebeliefs andstructures thatserve theinterest ofthe fewinstead ofthe well-being ofthe many(p.31).These explorationshelp“identify and then opposetheideologicalforces and social processthat oppressthem”(p.30).The approachesare extremelymeaningful andpractical toKoreanwomen,as theywill learnto recognizehow uncriticallyaepted andunjust dominantideologies influencetheir everydaysituationsandpractices.Habermasconcepts oflifeworld andsystem arealso usefulhere.Welton (1995)discusses thenotion ofthe interactionbetween thetwo conceptsinamore detailedway.Simply,the lifeworldis theinformal everydayconnections ofdaily lifeand the system consistsof thesestructures basedon moneyand powerthat havean impactonthe lifeworld(Merriam,Caffarella&Baumgartner,xx).From thisperspective,middle-aged Koreanwomen needtolearnhow todefend themselvesfrom both thelifeworldand thesystem,for middle-aged Koreanwomenhavelost theiridentity in both worlds.Their motherworkandsocial roles aredevalued(Hart,1995)and theyhavebeenexperiencing gender inequality.Therefore,theyarepowerless inboth worlds.Although criticaltheory providessome usefultools,it doesnot attemptto developan inquiryof feministissues,suchas,gender inequality(Fleming,1997;Fraser,1995).In fact,critical feministschallenge andcritique criticaltheory bypointing out the uniquenessof womens perspectivesand experiences(Gouthro,xx;Merriam,Caffarella andBaumgartner,xx).Feminist scholarspay specialattention togender inequality.As hisfeminist criticshave noted,Habermas leavesouttherole ofthe nurturerin hisexplanation ofsocial roles(Gouthro,xx).Fraser arguedthat thisoversight neglectedto considerthat mostof womens activitiescontain dual-aspects.Raising children,for instance,involves physicaland emotionalcare,educational nurturing,and socialization.Understanding allthat goesinto raisingchildren isimportant fordeveloping thenext generationof laborers,therefore itentails bothsymbolic andmaterial reproduction(Gouthro,xx).Thus,applying feministperspectives helpmiddle-aged Koreanwomentorecognize inmore depththe unequaltreatment and the subordinationtomeninboththesystemandthelifeworld.Implications andConclusion Throughthe examinationofthesocialrolesof middle-aged marriedKoreanwomenwe seethat Confuciantraditionalvaluesand femaleroles inboththefamily andsociety havebeen challengedbythepostmodernworld.Applying criticaltheoryandfeministperspectivesenables ustoseeevidence notonly ofthe currentsituations thatKorean Womenare placedunder,but alsonew opportunitiesfor themtochangethrough adult learning and education.Critical theory,in particular,offers ideologycritique.More specifically,the sevenlearning tasksembedded incritical learningtheory foradult learnersshould serveas strategiclearning plansand goalsfor thesewomen:1.Challenging ideology2.Contesting hegemony3.Unmasking power4.Overing alienation5.Learning liberation6.Reclaiming reason7.Practicing democracy(Merriam,Caffarella,&Baumgartner,xx,p.257)Feminist perspectivesallow acloser lookat womens uniqueposition andtheir experienceswith andinthesociety,their valuableresponsibilities inand outsidefamily,and invaluableroles playedfor society.This helpsraiseconsciousnessfor transformationsandtogain equalityand rightsinthesociety.We believethat adulteducation willplay animportant rolein empoweringand emancipatingmiddleaged Koreanwomen.We wouldlike tosummarize ourpaper byciting thisinsightful quotation:“A criticaltheory of adultlearningshould haveat itscore anunderstanding ofhow adultslearntorecognize thepredominance ofideology intheir everydaythoughts andactions andintheinstitutions ofcivil society”(Merriam,Caffarella,&Baumgartner,xx,p.257).Understanding andrecognizing thiswill lead to greaterconsciousness,which willleadtomore criticalreflection andaction.Although thesetheoretical frameworksare westernin origin,it ishoped thatvia adultlearning andlifelong education,middle-aged,marriedKoreanwomen willbee moreconscious andgain adeeper understandingoftheircurrent oppression,which inturn mayleadtotheir empowermentandmoregender equityintheirlives.References Brookfield,S.D. (xx).The powerof criticaltheory:Liberating adultlearning andteaching.San Francisco:Jossey-Bass.Cho,H.J.,&Bang,H.J. (xx).A reasonofKoreanwomens avoidancetendency ofmarriage andchild-bearing:genderrolestereotype.The KoreanJournal ofWoman Psychology,10 (1),95-112.Fleming,M. (1997).Emancipation andillusion:Rationality andgenderinHabermastheory ofmodernity.University Park,PA:Pennsylvania State University Press.Fraser,N. (1995).Whatscriticalabout criticaltheory?In J.Meehan(Ed.),Feminists readHabermas:Gendering thesubject ofdiscourse.New York:Routledge.Freire,P. (1970).Pedagogy ofthe oppressed.New York:Herder andHerder.Gouthro,P. (xx).Feminist perspectiveson Habermasiantheory:Implications forthe developmentof criticalfeminist theoreticaldiscourses inadulteducation.In D.Flowers,M.Lee,A.Jalipa,E.Lopez,A.Schelstrate,&V.Sheared(Eds.),The44thannual adulteducation researchconference proceedings(pp.145-150).San FranciscoState University.Hart,M. (1995).Motherwork:A radic