I watched Squid Game Season 2 over the holidays and decided to record some brief thoughts on it. You can find an abridged version in the newspaper here: https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/opinion/2025/01/782_389692.html 

I am back in the studio next week with a new guest and a new topic before flying to the UK to spend a month with my family.

Happy 2025 everyone. 

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 a social-cultural commentator, and musician who has lived in Korea for nearly two decades. He can be reached at [email protected].

Subscribe to the channel: @DavidTizzard/videos

Thanks to Patreon members: Hee Ji Jacobs, Bhavya, Roxanne Murrell

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

Connect with us:

▶ Get in touch: [email protected]

▶ David's Insta: https://www.instagram.com/datizzard/

▶ KD Insta: https://www.instagram.com/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

#koreadeconstructed #davidtizzard

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 a social-cultural commentator, and musician who has lived in Korea for nearly two decades. He can be reached at [email protected].

Sanko Lewis (PhD) is a professor, philosopher, martial arts researcher, and artist living in Seoul, South Korea.

Find him and his work: https://linktr.ee/sankolewis

Subscribe to the channel: @DavidTizzard/videos

Thanks to Patreon members: Hee Ji Jacobs, Bhavya, Roxanne Murrell

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

Discussion Outline 

0:00 Taekwondo as Korean Wave

4:03 Explaining 천지 (Heaven and Earth)

6:02 The Birth of Taekwondo

12:55 North Korea and Taekwondo

15:12 Olympics Taekwondo

20:00 Martial Arts Deconstructed

32:40 Early Western Interactions with Martial Arts

39:20 Taoism as Asian Philosophy

55:00 The Japanese Origins of Taekwondo

1:04:22 Choi Hong-hi

1:14:50 Taekwondo in Modern Korea

1:20:20 Ethnographic Research

1:26:00 Korean Body Culture

1:32:20 곡선미 (The Beauty of Curved Lines)

1:43:31 단전 호흡 (Korean Breathing)

1:47:48 Korean Aesthetics in Modern K-Pop

1:56:55 Recommendations

Connect with us: 

▶ Get in touch: [email protected]

▶ David's Insta: https://www.instagram.com/datizzard/

 ▶ KD Insta: https://www.instagram.com/koreadeconstructed/

#koreadeconstructed #davidtizzard

Korea Deconstructed by David Tizzard

▶ 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 

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

Watch this video next: https://youtu.be/L9azQpXZ2Rc

Subscribe to the channel: @DavidTizzard/videos

Thanks to Patreon members: Hee Ji Jacobs, Bhavya

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

Connect with us: 

▶ David's Insta: https://www.instagram.com/datizzard/

▶ KD Insta: https://www.instagram.com/koreadeconstructed/

#koreadeconstructed #davidtizzard

Korea Deconstructed by David Tizzard 

▶ 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 

Korean gender, feminism, fairness and equality are discussed here at length. We also cover transgender representation in media, male mandatory military service, magic days for women, and the world's lowest birthrate.

Watch this video next: https://youtu.be/L9azQpXZ2Rc?si=u-xsXr1c2atGH-ri

Subscribe to the channel: @DavidTizzard/videos

Connect with us:

▶ Email: [email protected]

▶ David's Insta: https://www.instagram.com/datizzard/

▶ KD Insta: https://www.instagram.com/koreadeconstructed/

▶ Jeon Yunseo: https://www.instagram.com/y_jeon_s/

▶ Jongmin: https://www.instagram.com/dunchonerd/

Guest Ms. Samantha Afflick-Smith is an associate professor at Hanyang University’s Seoul campus. She works for the Centre for Creative Convergence Education’s College of English Education Committee (CCCE:CEEC), where she teaches courses from conversation skills, critical analysis, academic writing to professional presentations. She also teaches a vibrant PBL discussion course on South Korean society and its evolving cultural diversity. Samantha is known as an educator, peer and mentor who regularly encourages people to be their best and persevere through challenges with her positive attitude and tireless energy. In her free time, Samantha enjoys reading, writing short stories for her blog – Cacophony of Cerebral Consciousness @c3griot.wordpress.com and learning new skills, such as drawing, and audio editing.

Discussion Outline

0:00 What is (Korean) Feminism?

12:05 Radical Feminism and the Internet

17:25 The Silencing of Men

23:40 Are Women and Men the Same or Different?

33:00 Can Men and Women be Friends?

42:50 Monthly Menstrual Leave

55:20 Transgenderism and Poongja

58:15 Should Women do Mandatory Military Service?

1:17:10 The World's Lowest Birthrate

1:38:40 How to Make the World a Better Place?

1:47:50 Recommendations

#koreadeconstructed #davidtizzard

Korea Deconstructed by David Tizzard

▶ 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 

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

This week I sat down with a group of BTS fans from around the world and spent two hours listening to their stories. As a lot of the media hype and attention around them has either focused on their solo efforts or been replaced by the next generation of idols, I thought it would provide some nice distance from the unprecedented levels of success they were achieving as a group a few years back.

And so we explored different things together: When did they first discover BTS? What was the performance or the album that made them fall in love? How has their fandom affected their lives? What’s their favorite song? How many of the dances can they do? Who’s their favorite member? What makes them stand out from other groups? 

Big thanks to the guests: Kit, Aishu, Celine, and Annis

Member

Thank you again to the paid Patreon member Bhavya. 

Discussion Outline 

0:00 Introduction

1:00 Discovering BTS

5:35 The Evolution of BTS

10:48 What Makes BTS Great?

15:30 The Seven Members

36:35 BTS and Mental Health

43:05 ARMY

52:30 BTS and Politics

1:00:35 BTS and the K-Pop Industry

1:04:20 Recommendations

Korea Deconstructed by David Tizzard

▶ Get in touch: [email protected]

▶ David's Insta: https://www.instagram.com/datizzard/

▶ KD Insta: https://www.instagram.com/koreadeconstructed/

▶ Kim Soyoon: https://www.instagram.com/celinesoyoon/

▶ Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=62047873

▶ Watch us on Youtube: www.youtube.com/@UCXcdboOUCnCFnrAOF5dV1sg

▶ 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

▶ Song by Radical Gary (David): Savage Penguin

Zeljana Zmire, Ph.D. in International Studies and Korean Studies, is a lecturer at Hanyang University in Seoul. Her research interests include multiculturalism, immigration policy, comparative politics, international politics and other. She can be reached via [email protected].

You can also find her on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zeljana-zmire-2927307b/

Members

Thank you again to the paid Patreon member Bhavya. 

Discussion Outline 

0:00 Defining Multiculturalism

6:00 Korea's Homogeneity

15:35 The Effects of Media

23:11 International Marriages

31:30 Becoming Korean

39:15 Racism in Korea

48:00 Nouveau-Riche Nationalism

53:05 Stereotypes on White Women

56:05 How to Make the World Better

Korea Deconstructed by David Tizzard 

▶ Get in touch: [email protected]

▶ David's Insta: https://www.instagram.com/datizzard/

▶ KD Insta: https://www.instagram.com/koreadeconstructed/

▶ Jeon Yunseo: https://www.instagram.com/y_jeon_s/

▶ Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=62047873

▶ Watch us on Youtube: www.youtube.com/@UCXcdboOUCnCFnrAOF5dV1sg

▶ 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

▶ Song by Radical Gary (David): https://youtu.be/AAkVRbH8eyg?si=FYtMqj2YfmJcmPPI 

Carlos Gorito is many things but most in Korea would have first come across him when he appeared on the hit television show 비정상회담 in 2015. Discussing a wide-range of topics in Korean, his personality and passion saw him gain many fans and win respect from the nation. He has worked with the Brazilian Embassy in South Korea and does a fabulous job of promoting relations between the two countries. When you listen to him speak, he says "us" and "we" when talking about Korea, and is now a public relations ambassador for Jeju Island. I first met him when we were both appointed by the Ministry of Justice to help people acclimatize to life here, a position he still proudly holds.

Find him on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carlosgorito/

Thank you to Bhavya for joining the Patreon as a paid member. I try to put free stuff there for members so you can see things with or without money. Because the studio and everything else involved costs a fair bit, any contribution certainly helps, but is not required.

Discussion Outline

0:00 비정상회담

10:44 The Korean Language

18:20 Korean Culture

25:10 Our 애국심

33:40 Korean History

36:50 North Korea

43:20 Multiculturalism in Korea

51:30 Beauty Standards in Korea

54:55 Misconceptions about Korea

1:05:20 Advice for Coming to Korea

1:11:00 Korean Korea Deconstructed (한국어로...)

Korea Deconstructed by David Tizzard

▶ Get in touch: [email protected]

▶ David's Insta: https://www.instagram.com/datizzard/

▶ KD Insta: https://www.instagram.com/koreadeconstructed/

▶ Kim Soyoon: https://www.instagram.com/celinesoyoon/

▶ Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=62047873

▶ Watch us on Youtube: www.youtube.com/@UCXcdboOUCnCFnrAOF5dV1sg

▶ 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

▶ Song by Radical Gary (David): https://youtu.be/AAkVRbH8eyg?si=FYtMqj2YfmJcmPPI

Jocelyn Clark is a performer and scholar. Before becoming a professor at Pai Chai (培材) University in South Korea, she founded and directed the CrossSound new music festival in Alaska, and the new music touring ensemble IIIZ+ (guzheng, koto, gayageum, and percussion), organizations through which she commissioned and/or premiered over 30 new works for Korean gayageum. Next to her work in contemporary music she is the first foreigner without Korean heritage to become an official government disciple in the National Heritage system, in the genre gayageum sanjo and byeongchang [伽倻琴散調/竝唱].

As a scholar, Clark has spent over 25 years in Japan, China, and Korea studying traditional musics. She holds a Ph. D. from Harvard University in East Asian Languages and Civilizations where she wrote on the language of pansori, focusing on the tension between its oral transmission/low social standing and its tenuous relationship to Chinese classical poetic texts of the High Tang. Other research interests include music of place, aesthetics, and contemporary “national music” performance practices in Northeast Asia in the age of AI. She has published in academic journals such as The World of Music, Asian Musicology, and Perspectives on Korean Music. She writes an opinion column for the national newspaper the JoongAng Daily.

The introduction music is taken from Jocelyn playing here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAQ6u3-N0YY Discussion Outline

0:00 Starting a Korean Journey

14:05 Understanding Korean Music

22:00 Explaining Pansori

33:45 Pansori, Gender, and Change

38:36 Cultural Transmission and Education

45:15 Concepts and Social Recognition of Korean Culture

51:55 Seopyeonjae (서편제) and The Sound of a Flower (도리화가)

58:30 Korean Sounds

1:04:40 Aesthetics: More than Music

1:17:40 The Korean Language

1:22:30 3 Minutes Speaking Korean

1:25:45 Live Concerts

1:35:10 A Chinese Lesson

Korea Deconstructed by David Tizzard

▶ Get in touch: [email protected]

▶ David's Insta: https://www.instagram.com/datizzard/

▶ KD Insta: https://www.instagram.com/koreadeconstructed/

▶ Yunseo Jeon: https://www.instagram.com/y_jeon_s/

▶ Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=62047873

▶ Watch us on Youtube: www.youtube.com/@UCXcdboOUCnCFnrAOF5dV1sg

▶ 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

Jihoon Suk received his BA and MA on Korean modern history from Yonsei University and studied Korean Studies briefly at the University of Michigan. Now, a Ph.D. candidate at Yonsei University, he is doing extensive research on the colonial-era cultural history of Korea, with a special focus on the presence and popularity of modern audiovisual media (sound recordings, films, radio) during that time. He had published a number of articles and research papers in collaboration with various institutions, including the National Contemporary History Museum of Korea, Seoul City History Museum, Korean Film Archive, and the National Gugak Center. He also recently published a book (in collaboration with Nate Kornegay) on the history of Scratch Tiles, a type of brick that was popular in the U.S. and East Asia during the first half of the 20th century.

You can follow Jihoon online here: https://www.facebook.com/jihoon.suk.1/

Discussion Outline 

0:00 Korean Kisaeng (기생/妓生)

12:27 The Creation of Korean Culture and Music

23:35 Korean Male Prostitution during the Joseon Dynasty / 사당패

33:15 Outlawing Korean Buddhism during the Joseon Dynasty

40:00 Slavery during Traditional Korea

55:30 Korean Palaces and Modern Tourism

1:06:00 Anti-Communism and North Korea

1:17:35 Han, Heung, and Mut (한, 흥, 멋)

1:24:40 The Japanese Colonization of Korea

1:37:48 Listening to Early Records of Arirang

2:14:00 The Lessons of Korean History

2:17:30 Recommendations

Korea Deconstructed by David Tizzard

▶ Get in touch: [email protected]

▶ David's Insta: https://www.instagram.com/datizzard/

▶ KD Insta: https://www.instagram.com/koreadeconstructed/

▶ Yunseo Jeon: https://www.instagram.com/y_jeon_s/

▶ Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=62047873

▶ Watch us on Youtube: www.youtube.com/@UCXcdboOUCnCFnrAOF5dV1sg

▶ 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/

Peter Yoonsuk Paik is a Professor at Yonsei University in the Department of English Language and Literature.

His academic writing on a variety of subjects can be found here: https://yonsei.academia.edu/PeterPaik

Discussion Outline 

0:00 On Greatness

14:20 What Kind of World Do We Live In?

20:00 The Necessity of Spirituality

24:40 Equality and Liberty

30:00 The Modern University Classroom

40:10 On the East and West

50:00 On Korean Education

54:10 Burning (Korean Movie)

1:00:40 On Korean Society

1:09:00 The Future

1:16:45 Recommendations

Korea Deconstructed by David Tizzard

▶ Get in touch: [email protected]

▶ David's Insta: https://www.instagram.com/datizzard/

▶ KD Insta: https://www.instagram.com/koreadeconstructed/

▶ Yunseo Jeon: https://www.instagram.com/y_jeon_s/

▶ Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=62047873

▶ Watch us on Youtube: www.youtube.com/@UCXcdboOUCnCFnrAOF5dV1sg 

▶ 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/

▶ Music: Couldn't Be Your Son - by David Tizzard