South Korean science fiction writer Choyeop Kim is a key figure in Korean Anthropocene thinking. Her 2021 novel The Greenhouse at the End of the Earth foregrounds the importance of care, empathy, and interconnectedness in addressing environmental crises, in ways that can be read as resonating with principles of “woori-ism” (“we-ness”). This emphasis suggests that traditional Korean conceptions of kinship embody profound ecological and ethical significance and continue to offer guidance for contemporary environmental thinking. “Korean Kinship Traditions and the Global Anthropocene” will give a brief history of “woori-ism,” examine its contemporary manifestations in Korean society, and argue for its relevance in confronting escalating climate crises. While a sense of connectedness and “we-ness” is common across East Asia, I argue that the form it takes in Korea is unique and can play a critical role in shaping ethical responses to the Anthropocene—an argument that is clear in Choyeop Kim’s The Greenhouse at the End of the Earth.

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Korean Kinship Traditions and the Global Anthropocene: “Woori-ism” in Choyeop Kim’s The Greenhouse at the End of the Earth

  • Narie Jung

摘要

South Korean science fiction writer Choyeop Kim is a key figure in Korean Anthropocene thinking. Her 2021 novel The Greenhouse at the End of the Earth foregrounds the importance of care, empathy, and interconnectedness in addressing environmental crises, in ways that can be read as resonating with principles of “woori-ism” (“we-ness”). This emphasis suggests that traditional Korean conceptions of kinship embody profound ecological and ethical significance and continue to offer guidance for contemporary environmental thinking. “Korean Kinship Traditions and the Global Anthropocene” will give a brief history of “woori-ism,” examine its contemporary manifestations in Korean society, and argue for its relevance in confronting escalating climate crises. While a sense of connectedness and “we-ness” is common across East Asia, I argue that the form it takes in Korea is unique and can play a critical role in shaping ethical responses to the Anthropocene—an argument that is clear in Choyeop Kim’s The Greenhouse at the End of the Earth.