Recent Posts: The Sun Rises in the East
French Anime “Funan” Explores Family Separation Under the Khmer Rouge
I recently went to see Dennis Do’s exquisite anime “Funan”, which is a snapshot of one extended family’s struggle as the world goes crazy around them. It’s a tough subject matter, but the brutal moments are very tastefully done off-screen. The film doesn’t spend a lot of time on the context of the family prior […]
Fifth Lucky Cat Series Promo Poster
Sketch 5 of my series of posters for The Lucky Cat Series depicting master sculptor Akio Yamamoto in his workshop. I decided that I’m doing two more sketches for a total of seven instead of just six, but I will also soon be adding some film reviews to this blog to fill in the void […]
Recent Posts: The Enlightened Rabbit Scholastic Society
Sohyeon After Midnight Book Reading Videos and Character Roll-Call
I had some time this weekend to prepare a few videos for everyone to enjoy. The first video is my character roll-call, which I made for my readers who have been struggling to pronounce my characters’ names in a couple of my novels. Character Roll-Call: Then I prepared a three-part series of me reading selections […]
Sohyeon After Midnight Sketch – First in a Series
I am practicing my sketching by illustrating some characters and maybe scenes out of my bilingual novel, Sohyeon After Midnight, and this is my first installment.
Tag Archives: Confucianism
A Scandal Arises When a Wayward Slave Seduces a Young Widow – Martyr’s Country, Part 1
For this year’s first foreign language selection, I have decided on Dowon Park’s Martyr’s Country (박도원의”순교자의 나라”), which is a four volume historical epic from 2007, probably about a thousand pages total. We’ll see how far I can get through … Continue reading
Introducing the New Online Korean Studies Certification Program
As we begin a new year, I have a new project that I’m launching that I hope you’ll find as exciting as I do. I was thinking about my knowledge base and how I can expand my reach with that … Continue reading
A Kisaeng from P’yŏngyang Disrupts a School – Mujŏng (The Heartless), Part 1
For my final series of 2016, I want to cover another East Asian classic, this time Korea’s Mujŏng (The Heartless), a novella written by Kwang-su Yi. Mujŏng was serialized in 1917, and it runs about 270 pages. You can purchase … Continue reading
Taking Up Residence in the Tiger’s Lair – Zhao the Orphan, Part 2
This time in the Literati Corner, I’ll finish my review of Ji Junxiang’s Zhao the Orphan (纪君祥(元)的中国古代悲劇故事-赵氐孤儿) and cover the last four chapters. Cheng Ying tries to decide how he should proceed with his plot to save Zhao the Orphan … Continue reading
The Depraved Duke and the Virtuous Minister – Zhao the Orphan, Part 1
This time in the Literati Corner, I will be doing a short series on the well-known classical Chinese tragedy by Ji Junxiang, Zhao the Orphan (纪君祥(元)的中国古代悲劇故事-赵氐孤儿). I will be looking at this bilingual Chinese-English adaptation by Jianping Wang and Yutang … Continue reading
Book Burning and Exam Hell – The Scholars, Part 2
Starting in chapter two, The Scholars is set in the Ming Dynasty, specifically in the reign of Emperor Chenghua (1447-1487). This is over 100 years later than Mian Wang in chapter one. Even though Jingzi Wu was using the Ming … Continue reading
Book Burning and the Ideal Scholar – The Scholars, Part 1
Our next reading selection is the Rulin Waishi (儒林外史), or The Scholars, by Jingzi Wu (1701-1754). Written in 1750 during Qing Dynasty rule, the author sets it in the Ming Dynasty in order to critique his own social milieu without … Continue reading
Hangjung Mallok – Part 5: The Memoir of 1805
The fourth and final memoir of Lady Hyegyǒng was written in 1805 and details the tragic decline and death of her husband, Prince Sado. She wrote it for her grandson Sunjo mainly because she was the last witness to the … Continue reading
Hangjung Mallok – Part 4: The Memoir of 1802
The third memoir of Lady Hyegyǒng was written in 1802 and was addressed to her grandson King Sunjo in the hopes that Sunjo would fulfill her late son Jǒngjo’s wish that she and Sado be honored as his true parents. … Continue reading
Hangjung Mallok – Part 3: The Memoir of 1801
The second memoir of Lady Hyegyǒng was written primarily to protest the execution of her uncle Inhan Hong, who was accused of opposing Jǒngjo’s regency in 1776, and the execution of her brother Nagim Hong, who was accused of being … Continue reading
