History As Storyteller

History, by definition, refers to events in the past. History is that which isalready out of our reach, out of our possession, and cannot be repeated orreenacted. In this sense history is the past, pure and simple. History, however, also refers to events in the past as viewed through the eyesof the present. Simply collecting facts should not be confused with assigningmeaning to their history. History is a series of events connected in a way so theymake sense in the eyes of the viewer today, and therefore assumes the form of astory. History as a form of storytelling, therefore, is not simply the past but thepast that exists within the present. The story it tells of the past reminds us of thepresent, which in turn makes us remember past events that have become part ofthe present.The significance of this cannot be stressed enough in the case of historicalbooks. The most common form of historical narration is storytelling, which hasplayed a critical part in making history-based books the most popular genre inthe humanities. The popularity of history-based books in Korea has been closelylinked to visual media such as movies or television dramas. Korean historyis a staple of Korean movies and dramas associated with the “Korean Wave”;likewise many historical films and dramas, in turn, have been published in bookform.Another genre that features history is children’s books. Historical fictionin Korea is traditionally associated with children’s books, with young readersnever failing to be captivated by historical storytelling. This issue of list_Booksfrom Korea focuses on the relationship between historical storytelling and visualmedia such as dramas and films, as well as the kind of imaginative storytellingseen in children’s history and historical fiction. We have included articles onKorean history books that we consider to have exceptionally strong content andhave been written in an accessible style.The history of any country is difficult to understand without someknowledge of the culture or language. Korean history, for example, is extremelydifficult to understand without a working knowledge of the political dynamicsin East Asia, given that Korean history is one of countless invasions by its morepowerful neighbors. The special section of this issue features a number of booksthat make Korean history accessible to foreign readers and demonstrate strengthin storytelling and content.To know a country’s history means to know that country. We hope thatthe special section of this issue will give our readers a better understanding ofKorea’s unique history and therefore, Korea itself. 

 by Kim Su-yeong