Dr. Alexander Douglas serves as a Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of St. Andrews. His work navigates Eastern and Western thought, focusing on the philosophy of religion, Spinoza, and early Daoism. In his latest book, Against Identity: The Wisdom of Escaping the Self, he draws a line between the Zhuangzi, Spinoza, and René Girard to argue that our obsession with a fixed self is the root of social pathology, and that liberation lies in embracing uncertainty and ambiguity.

Find Alex and his work online

Against Identity (book): https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/456203/against-identity-by-douglas-alexander/9781802063318

Alex's Substack: https://axdouglas.substack.com/

Discussion Outline

0:00 The Story of Hundum

4:52 The Zhuangzi

11:30 The Self and Identity in Modernity

21:15 Confucius and Zhuangzi

26:00 Explaining the Tao

33:30 Rejecting Identity

37:50 Are We Gods?

41:10 Rene Girard and Mimetic Desire

49:15 A Brave New World

59:35 Living without Identity A huge thanks to Patreon members: Bhavya, Roxanne Murrell, Sara B Cooper, Anne Brennels, Ell, Johnathan Filbert, Daniela Körppen, Cody Schuman, Christopher Futter, Andreas Wendtland. You are stars!! Join Our Patreon Community Here: https://www.patreon.com/c/user?u=62047873

David A. Tizzard has a PhD in Korean Studies and lectures at Seoul Women's University and Hanyang University. He writes a weekly column in the Korea Times, is a social-cultural commentator, and a musician who has lived in Korea for nearly two decades. He can be reached at [email protected].

▶ David's Insta: @datizzard

▶ KD Insta: @koreadeconstructed These podcasts are recorded live in Seoul. Big thanks to the studio owner and my friend 한정철: https://www.instagram.com/the_story_from_you/

Dr. Remco Breuker, one of the world's leading scholars of pre-modern Korea, joins us to explore the Samguk Yusa, a treasure trove of Korean myth, history, and folklore. We dive into the kingdom of Goryeo, its ruling elites, the position of women, the reality of slavery in old Korea, and why this period remains so misunderstood today. From women tigers to creation myths, from royal power struggles to the everyday lives of commoners, and court poets who drink too much, there should be something in here for everyone.

Find Remco and his work online

Vestiges of the Three Kingdoms of Ancient Korea: A Translation of the Samguk yusa : https://uhpress.hawaii.edu/title/vestiges-of-the-three-kingdoms-of-ancient-korea-a-translation-of-the-samguk-yusa/

Yi Kyubo: https://uhpress.hawaii.edu/title/not-everything-unfolds-as-anticipated-selections-from-yi-kyubos-tongguk-yi-sangguk-chip/

https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/humanities/institute-for-area-studies/korean-studies

Discussion Outline

0:00 The Samguk Yusa

5:20 The Monk Iryeon

2:20 The Language of Goryeo

18:18 Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism

31:34 The Ruling Family of Goryeo

38:30 The Position of Women

42:10 Slavery in Old Korea

46:50 Translating the Samguk Yusa

1:01:52 The Stories of Samguk Yusa

1:10:45 Yi Gyu-bo

1:15:10 Recommendations

A huge thanks to Patreon members: Bhavya, Roxanne Murrell, Sara B Cooper, Anne Brennels, Ell, Johnathan Filbert, Daniela Körppen, Cody Schuman, Christopher Futter, Andreas Wendtland. You are stars!!

Join Our Patreon Community Here: https://www.patreon.com/c/user?u=62047873

David A. Tizzard has a PhD in Korean Studies and lectures at Seoul Women's University and Hanyang University. He writes a weekly column in the Korea Times, is a social-cultural commentator, and a musician who has lived in Korea for nearly two decades. He can be reached at [email protected].

▶ David's Insta: @datizzard

▶ KD Insta: @koreadeconstructed

These podcasts are recorded live in Seoul. Big thanks to the studio owner and my friend 한정철: https://www.instagram.com/the_story_from_you/

South Korea's first presidents are often remembered as either heroes or villains. But history is rarely that simple. Historian Jihoon Suk joins Korea Deconstructed to explore the country's first five leaders, the social and cultural times they inhabited, and how their legacies continue to shape Korea today.

Jihoon Suk is a historian and PhD candidate at Yonsei University specializing in modern Korean history. His research focuses on Korea's colonial period, particularly how film, radio, and recorded sound shaped Korean culture and ideas of tradition. He has worked with institutions including the Korean Film Archive, the National Museum of Contemporary Korean History, the Seoul Museum of History, and the National Gugak Center.

Find Jihoon and his work online Insta: https://www.instagram.com/idea0853

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jihoon.suk.1

This is his second time on the podcast. Find the first conversation here: https://youtu.be/fjIUd-PiMQI?si=Q6cZUu4oictfmlyb

Discussion Outline

0:00 Introduction

3:27 Syngman Rhee (이승만)

16:00 Francesca Donner

25:22 Park Chung-hee (박정희)

44:30 Yun Poson (윤보선)

51:20 Government Atrocities

54:30 Sasanggye and Chang Chun-ha

1:06:44 Choi Kyu-ha (최규하)

1:12:33 Chun Doo-hwan (전두환)

1:21:00 Purification of Society (사회정화)

1:25:43 Gwangju (광주)

1:33:50 History Deconstructed

A huge thanks to Patreon members: Bhavya, Roxanne Murrell, Sara B Cooper, Anne Brennels, Ell, Johnathan Filbert, Daniela Körppen, Cody Schuman, Christopher Futter, Andreas Wendtland. You are stars!!

Join Our Patreon Community Here: https://www.patreon.com/c/user?u=62047873

David A. Tizzard has a PhD in Korean Studies and lectures at Seoul Women's University and Hanyang University. He writes a weekly column in the Korea Times, is a social-cultural commentator, and a musician who has lived in Korea for nearly two decades. He can be reached at [email protected].

▶ David's Insta: @datizzard

▶ KD Insta: @koreadeconstructed

These podcasts are recorded live in Seoul. Big thanks to the studio owner and my friend 한정철: https://www.instagram.com/the_story_from_you/

When we think of Confucianism in the West, we often box it into a category alongside world religions like Christianity or Buddhism: a neat, systematic philosophy created by a single figure. But as I've learned through my time in Korea and my own deep dives into the tradition, this is a fundamental misnomer that actually obscures the truth. In this episode, we strip away the Western labels to look at what Confucianism—or as it's known in the East, Rujia or Yugyo—actually is. It isn't a religion of divine revelation; it is a scholarly tradition, a social ethic, and a political ideology that prioritizes the lived reality of human relationships. Confucius wasn't a prophet; he was a teacher of humanity who believed that by mastering the art of being human, we don't just improve our own lives, we manifest heaven on earth.

In this episode:

- Why Confucianism doesn't fit the Western "religion" box

- The difference between Rujia, Yugyo, and "Confucianism"

- How Confucian thought shapes Korean society today

- What it means to "master the art of being human"

David A. Tizzard has a PhD in Korean Studies and lectures at Seoul Women's University and Hanyang University. He writes a weekly column in the Korea Times, is a social-cultural commentator, and a musician who has lived in Korea for nearly two decades. He can be reached at [email protected].

▶ David's Insta: @datizzard

▶ KD Insta: @koreadeconstructed

Thanks to Patreon members: Bhavya, Roxanne Murrell, Sara B Cooper, Anne Brennels, Ell, Johnathan Filbert, Daniela Körppen, Cody

Join Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/user?u=62047873

Dr. Minsoo Kang is a historian and writer. Currently, he is an associate professor of European intellectual history in the Department of History at the University of Missouri–St. Louis.

Find Minsoo and his work online

Against Han: https://aeon.co/essays/against-han-or-why-koreans-are-not-defined-by-sadness

The Story of Hong Gildong: https://www.amazon.com/Story-Hong-Gildong-Penguin-Classics/dp/0143107690

The Melancholy of Untold History: https://www.amazon.com/Melancholy-Untold-History-Novel/dp/0063337509

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minsoo_Kang

This is his second time on the podcast. Find the first conversation here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=queE_0_mWeo

Discussion Outline

0:00 Introduction

2:35 The Story of Tangun

8:31 The Truth of Tangun

16:00 Important Korean Myths

19:40 The King From Elsewhere

25:08 5,000 Years of Korean Dynasty

32:00 Chinese Influence on Korea

36:19 Confucianism in East Asia

42:05 Asadal

47:30 Wi Man

52:50 Kim Bu Sik

59:16 Korea-China Relations

1:05:20 When Did Koreannes Begin?

1:16:30 Korean Ethnonationalism

1:32:56 North Korea

1:48:05 National Foundation Day and Daejonggyo

1:54:05 The King's Warden Analysis

Timeline of Korean History

Gojoseon 2333 to 108 BCE

Goguryeo 37 BCE to 668 CE

Baekje 18 BCE to 660 CE

Silla 57 BCE to 935 CE (unified the peninsula in 668)

Balhae 668 to 935 CE

Goryeo 918 to 1392 CE

Joseon 1392 to 1897 CE

Korean Empire 1897 to 1910 CE

ROK 1948 – present

Thanks to Patreon members: Bhavya, Roxanne Murrell, Sara B Cooper, Anne Brennels, Ell, Johnathan Filbert, Daniela Körppen, Cody

Join Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/user?u=62047873

David A. Tizzard has a PhD in Korean Studies and lectures at Seoul Women's University and Hanyang University. He writes a weekly column in the Korea Times, is a social-cultural commentator, and a musician who has lived in Korea for nearly two decades. He can be reached at [email protected].

▶ David's Insta: @datizzard

▶ KD Insta: @koreadeconstructed Listen to Korea Deconstructed

▶ Listen on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/kr/podcast/korea-deconstructed/id1587269128

▶Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5zdXkG0aAAHnDwOvd0jXEE

▶ Listen on podcasts: https://koreadeconstructed.libsyn.com

Who was Ahn Chang-ho, and what is the real legacy of one of Korea's most revered independence activists? In this episode of Korea Deconstructed, we sit down with his grandson, Philip Ahn Cuddy, to explore the human story, the fight against Japanese colonization, and the enduring impact of the Dosan legacy.

Philip Ahn Cuddy served as the founding director of the Korean American Museum in LA and is the administrator of the Dosan Ahn Chang-ho · Susan Ahn Cuddy Archives.

Learn more about the archives and legacy: https://www.dosan.org/

Discussion Outline

0:00 Introduction

2:25 The Lineage

6:50 Dosan Ahn Chang Ho

22:20 The Colonization of Korea

32:00 Journey to America

42:11 The Provisional Government

52:45 The Challenge of Unity

1:15:03 Park Chung Hee

1:17:50 Meeting Korean Presidents

1:20:50 North Korea

Thanks to Patreon members: Bhavya, Roxanne Murrell, Sara B Cooper, Anne Brennels, Ell, Johnathan Filbert, Daniela Körppen, Cody

Join Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/user?u=62047873

David A. Tizzard has a PhD in Korean Studies and lectures at Seoul Women's University and Hanyang University. He writes a weekly column in the Korea Times, is a social-cultural commentator, and a musician who has lived in Korea for nearly two decades. He can be reached at [email protected].

▶ David's Insta: @datizzard

▶ KD Insta: @koreadeconstructed

Colin Marshall is a Seoul-based essayist, broadcaster, and public speaker focusing on cities, language, and culture. Through his Substack newsletter, Books on Cities, he writes long-form essay-reviews exploring those very themes. He is the author of the Korean essay collection "한국 요약 금지" (No Summarizing Korea) and "Korean Newtro: Where Youth Meets Tradition". Additionally, he recently contributed a story to the Seoul-set mystery anthology "그날, 서울에서는 무슨 일이." He currently writes a column for the Korean newspaper 동아일보.

His essays have appeared in a wide range of outlets, including The New Yorker, Guardian Cities, Open Culture, the Times Literary Supplement, and the Los Angeles Review of Books (where he authored the Korea Blog for six years).

Find Him Online

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: https://x.com/colinmarshall

Korean Newtro: https://www.amazon.com/Korean-Newtro-Where-Youth-Tradition/dp/156591533X

No Summarizing Korea: https://product.kyobobook.co.kr/detail/S000212263515

Discussion Outline

0:00 Introduction

5:30 Writing in Korean for Koreans

13:05 The Korean Language

17:25 Korean Language and Translation

24:30 Park Chan-wook and Spacelessness

34:35 Korean Newtro Book

46:00 Seeing Korean 촌스러워

56:25 The Dabang

1:05:20 Korean Social Taboos

1:19:10 Consumption of Culture

1:25:45 Advice for Korea

Thanks to Patreon members: Bhavya, Roxanne Murrell, Sara B Cooper, Anne Brennels, Ell, Johnathan Filbert, Daniela Körppen, Cody

Join Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/user?u=62047873

David A. Tizzard has a PhD in Korean Studies and lectures at Seoul Women's University and Hanyang University. He writes a weekly column in the Korea Times, is a social-cultural commentator, and a musician who has lived in Korea for nearly two decades. He can be reached at [email protected].

▶ David's Insta: @datizzard

▶ KD Insta: @koreadeconstructed

How do dragons affect Korean culture, philosophy, and cosmology? I brought my friend Professor David Mason back into the studio to explore the differences between Asian and Western dragons. The "Dragon King's" role in Buddhism, Shamanism, and Taoism. Why East Asian cosmology views the world without a concept of absolute evil. And how these ancient symbols can still offer solutions to modern life. Learn about history, pansori, Korean temples, and the hidden "Tao" behind it all.

The Guest David A. Mason recently retired as a Professor of Korean Cultural Tourism at Kyung Hee & Sejong Universities for 17 years, and is a longtime researcher on the deep religious characteristics of Korea's mountains. Prior to this, he served as a consultant for the national Ministry of Culture and Tourism for five years. Mason earned a Masters' Degree in the History of Korean Religions from Yonsei University in 1997, and was appointed the national Honorary Ambassador of the Baekdu-daegan Ranges in 2011. He has authored and edited ten books on Korean culture and tourism. He is now a tour-guide and public-speaker, based in Seoul. A native of the USA, he has been living in South Korea for 40 years now.

For tours and books, find him online:

[email protected]

sanshinseon.com

mntnwolf@facebook

Discussion Outline

0:00 Introduction

2:25 Asian Dragons & Western Dragons

8:31 Do Dragons Exist?

17:30 Dragons in Korean Culture

27:40 The Animals of the Zodiac

33:10 The Dragon King in China and Korea

38:44 Dragons in Buddhism and Shamanism

42:05 The Dragon King in Pansori

54:43 No Evil in East Asian Cosmology

57:15 Taoism

1:06:30 Dragons in the Modern World

1:10:55 Life Advice

Thanks to Patreon members: Bhavya, Roxanne Murrell, Sara B Cooper, Anne Brennels, Ell, Johnathan Filbert, Daniela Körppen, Cody

Join Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/user?u=62047873

David A. Tizzard has a PhD in Korean Studies and lectures at Seoul Women's University and Hanyang University. He writes a weekly column in the Korea Times, is a social-cultural commentator, and a musician who has lived in Korea for nearly two decades. He can be reached at [email protected].

▶ David's Insta: @datizzard

▶ KD Insta: @koreadeconstructed

▶ Listen on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/kr/podcast/korea-deconstructed/id1587269128

▶Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5zdXkG0aAAHnDwOvd0jXEE

▶ Listen on podcasts: https://koreadeconstructed.libsyn.com

When you live and work in Korea, it's hard to escape talk around BTS. Their comeback concert in Gwanghwamun generated a huge amount of media attention, both positive and negative. Moreover, the use of traditional elements such as Arirang and Gyeongbuk Palace generated both national pride and a sense of domestic fatigue. I got a group of young adults who have grown up with BTS to talk about their reactions to the showcase, the album, the psychological pressure the group face, and the practice of streaming and fandom in K-pop culture.

I am joined by two young Korean adults, Esha and Namu, as well as two international students living and studying here in Korea, Violet and Alina.

Discussion Outline

0:00 Reacting to the Album

13:48 No. 29 and Korean Philosophy

23:56 The Comeback Concert

46:00 The Psychological Pressure of Being an Idol

55:15 Fan Labour and Streaming

1:07:30 Korean Nationalism and Culture

Thanks to Patreon members: Bhavya, Roxanne Murrell, Sara B Cooper, Anne Brennels, Ell, Johnathan Filbert, Daniela Körppen

Join Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/user?u=62047873

David A. Tizzard has a PhD in Korean Studies and lectures at Seoul Women's University and Hanyang University. He writes a weekly column in the Korea Times, is a social-cultural commentator, and a musician who has lived in Korea for nearly two decades. He can be reached at [email protected].

▶ David's Insta: @datizzard

▶ KD Insta: @koreadeconstructed

▶ Listen on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/kr/podcast/korea-deconstructed/id1587269128

▶Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5zdXkG0aAAHnDwOvd0jXEE

▶ Listen on podcasts: https://koreadeconstructed.libsyn.com

Why do people join cults? The reality is seemingly very complex. In this episode of Korea Deconstructed, I sit down with Peter Daley, a long-term resident of Korea and someone who has spent decades observing and documenting the world of fringe religious movements and cultic groups.

Peter Daley is an Australian who has lived in Korea since 2002. He worked at Keimyung University in Daegu for eight years, teaching English for six years and spending two years working in Keimyung's Office of International Affairs. He has been teaching English at Sookmyung Women's University since 2012.

Find him online: https://peterdaley.net/strangerthings/

https://internationalculticstudies.org/ (ICSA)

Discussion Outline

0:00 Introduction to Cults

7:00 The Unification Church (통일교)

13:00 Church or Cult?

20:00 Who Do Cults Approach?

23:56 Shincheonji

29:00 Christianity

37:20 Influence in Korean Society

40:55 Aum Shinrikyo

46:50 Former Members of Cults

56:30 Scientology

1:06:00 The Necessity of Empathy

1:11:20 Getting People Out of Cults

1:17:02 Are Cults Getting Bigger or Smaller in Korea?

1:20:10 How to Spot Cults?

1:25:55 Mass Weddings

Thanks to Patreon members: Bhavya, Roxanne Murrell, Sara B Cooper, Anne Brennels, Ell, Johnathan Filbert, Daniela Körppen

Join Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/user?u=62047873

David A. Tizzard has a PhD in Korean Studies and lectures at Seoul Women's University and Hanyang University. He writes a weekly column in the Korea Times, is a social-cultural commentator, and a musician who has lived in Korea for nearly two decades. He can be reached at [email protected].

▶ David's Insta: @datizzard

▶ KD Insta: @koreadeconstructed

▶ Listen on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/kr/podcast/korea-deconstructed/id1587269128

▶Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5zdXkG0aAAHnDwOvd0jXEE

▶ Listen on podcasts: https://koreadeconstructed.libsyn.com