Research Interests Outline

 

Topic: current news between South, North, and the United States and potential fashion business in/throughout the Korean Peninsula

 

1. History of the Korean Peninsula
   • Period – from the early 1900s
   • Historical incidents
     1. Japanese annexation of Korea (8/29/1910 – 8/15/1945)
     2. The Korean War (6/25/1950 – ?)
     3. The ceasefire agreement (7/27/1953)

2. The changes in South Korea
   • Modernization – South Korea has rapidly modernized itself in the last 50 years.
     1. Benefits of rapid modernization
     2. Side effects of rapid modernization
     3. The changes in fashion based on modernization
   • Industrialization
     1. Lifestyle changes due to industrialization
     2. Fashion style changes due to industrialization
     3. Environmental issue
        • Yellow dust pollution is severe
        • Can a new fashion style suggest a solution to yellow dust pollution?
   • Urbanization
     1. Social problems occur
     2. Developed infrastructure
     3. How does it affect fashion style changes?
   • Ideology
     1. Becoming a democratic country
     2. Becoming a capitalistic country

3. The changes in North Korea compare/contrast to South Korea
   • Modernization
     1. Is fashion changed by modernization as much as South Korea?
   • Industrialization
     1. The military is possibly more developed than other industries
   • Urbanization
     1. Are there many regions developed like Pyongyang?
     2. Infrastructure is not developed as much as South Korea
   • Ideology
     1. Communism
     2. Does communism disturb the developing of a country?
   • Trade
     1. It might not be developed well

** Need to deal with the lack of information

 

4. Common things between South and North Korea
   • Language
   • Fashion (basically)
   • Traditional values
   • Ancestors
     1. Especially, people South and North Korea admire the same independence activists

 

5. Diplomatic relationships between countries
   • South and North Korea
     1. Difficult
   • South and the United States
     1. Ally
   • South Korea and China
     1. Geographically close
     2. Historically close
   • South Korea and Japan
     1. Complex
   • North Korea and the United States
     1. There is a multitude of current news
     2. The matter of sanctions
   • North Korea and China
     1. Geographically close
     2. Historically close
     3. Ideologically close
   • North Korea and Japan
     1. Not good
   • North Korea and international society
     1. Abandonment of nuclear weapons or nuclear disarmament
     2. Human rights abuse

 

6. Potentials
   • Hypothesis
     1. If North Korea gives up nuclear weapons?
     2. If the UN allow North Korea does business and trade with other countries?
     3. If South and North Korea are unified?
   • Business (When North Korea opens/be opened the door to do businesses)
     1. Tourism
        • Unpolluted environments (example: Mt. Geumgang)
        • Casino
        • Resort
        • Geographical advantage
     2. Secondary industry
        • Fashion manufacturing
        • High quality /low-cost labor
        • Geographical advantage
        • Land
     3. Consumption in North Korea
        • As developing of various fields of industries, North Korea people themselves can be great consumers (example: Chinese people)
     4. Expert investors’ positive forecast of business in North Korea

 

7. Finding solutions
   • How can we overcome the complicated democratic relationships?
   • How can nuclear weapons be abandoned?
   • How can recover trusts between countries?
   • How can overcome the conflicts between countries and the different parties in South Korea?