Laidlaw Research Essay 2023
The Economy of Life: Investigating the Symbiotic Relationship between the Young Far-Right Men and Conservative Governments in South Korea and its Subsequent Impact on Values of Lives
My research report is finally finished! 7 drafts later and I am finally publishing on the network (after forcing everyone I know to proof-read). Special thanks to Dr Jieun Kim for her endless wisdom and guidance, without her help this report would be a mere fledgling of an idea.
Hi! My name is Lizzie and I am in the 2023 Laidlaw Scholar cohort.
I am an International History and Politics student at the University of Leeds. Throughout my first year of studies, I have found myself gravitating towards the field of East Asian History and Politics. In particular the politics of South Korea, especially the leadership of the 21st Century and the corruption that is rife in the government.
I have chosen to complete a self-defined project which will focus on how the actions of the South Korean government has affected the youth. I will be largely discussing the Sewol Ferry Tragedy and the Itaewon Crowd Crush disaster. I will be investigating the influence of chaebols and top-down culture and the roles they played in the aforementioned events. I shall also be analysing the roles of both Park Geun-hye and Yoon Suk-yeol in both disaster, respectively. As my project is self-defined, I have a lot of leeway in what I choose to include, therefore I may touch on other topics such as the rise of anti-Feminism, particularly in young South Korean men.
In addition to my core studies, I have a passion for language learning (especially wrongly labelled 'dead' languages) and for Islamic history, particularly the role of women in Islam.
Linked are articles and videos that are related to my research which give a general overview of both tragedies.
Documentary about the sinking of the Sewol Ferry
https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2022/11/16/seoul-crowd-crush-itaewon-victims/
Washington Post article regarding circumstances of Itaewon Crowd Crush
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/10/31/seoul-halloween-crowd-crush-young-victims/
Washington Post article which shares the names and stories of some of the victims of the Crowd Crush
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/08/world/asia/south-korea-sewol-ferry-grief.html
NYT article about the ongoing pain of the families following the Sewol sinking
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This is brilliant Lizzie. I just love the way you write - it's so accessible, but still clearly so well researched.