About Asadal Thought

The Asadal Thought Blog

 

 

Seoul at dusk

 

 

Hello to all,

My name is Seamus Walsh, and this is my blog, related to all things Korean. Korea has been a big part of my life for many years now, beginning when I was not much more than ten years old and I began learning the Korean martial art, Taekwondo. Since then my interest has grown, leading me to spend time living in Korea, and studying for a degree in Korean Studies at the University of Sheffield, in my home country of England (I’m a London lad).

I have had the honour of learning from some of the most renowned academics in the field in one of Europe’s top centres for Korean Studies, and I’m sure I’ll introduce you to some of their work at a later date. It is my aim that this blog will allow me to to present some of what I know, some of what I learn and some of what I hope to discover in a more personal way than the academic sphere allows me to. Of course, as this is a Korean Studies blog I will undoubtedly be posting about some academic issues, and not just about what life is like in Korea. That said, I love living in Korea, I find it to be exciting, fresh (no matter how much time I spend there), unique, sometimes frustrating, but generally very rewarding, and I also want to write about my experiences in Korea, and what I think about living there.

There are many brilliant blogs about Korea, some of which I’m sure you will also be aware of. I don’t plan to take anything away from them – in fact, what I really hope is that I will be able to look at some new topics and explore new themes. As a student of Korea as a whole I am also able to comment about issues relating to North Korea, and the impact that both Koreas have in the international community. This is a particular interest of mine, and one I hope to develop even further while writing this blog. I also hope to write about Korean history, society and culture, as well pop culture and the future for Korea.

While there will be academic themes that are explored in this blog, I intend to have some fun writing it, which of course means some more light-hearted posts, soju-related discussions and others of general interest! I hope that you will enjoy reading and contributing to this blog, please do contact me, comment and add your views and opinions!

Seamus