{"product_id":"a-family-of-no-prominence-the-descendants-of-pak-tkhwa-and-the-birth-of-modern-korea-9780804788762","title":"A Family of No Prominence: The Descendants of Pak Tkhwa and the Birth of Modern Korea","description":"\u003cp\u003eKoreans are known for their keen interest in genealogy and inherited ancestral status. Yet todays ordinary Korean would be hard pressed to explain the whereabouts of ancestors before the twentieth century. With A Family of No Prominence  Eugene Y. Park gives us a remarkable account of a nonelite family  that of Pak Tkhwa and his descendants (which includes the author). Spanning the early modern and modern eras over three centuries (1590-1945)  this narrative of one family of the chungin class of people is a landmark achievement.  What we do know of the chungin  or \"middle people \" of Korea largely comes from profiles of wealthy  influential men  frequently cited as collaborators with Japanese imperialists  who went on to constitute the post-1945 South Korean elite. This book highlights many rank-and-file chungin who  despite being better educated than most Koreans  struggled to survive. We follow Pak Tkhwas descendants as they make inroads into politics  business  and culture. Yet many members refusal to link their family histories and surnames to royal forebears  as most other Koreans did  sets them apart  and facilitates for readers a meaningful discussion of identity  modernity  colonialism  memory  and historical agency.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45651740950581,"sku":"ByrdShop_0804788766","price":62.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780804788762.jpg?v=1781838944","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/a-family-of-no-prominence-the-descendants-of-pak-tkhwa-and-the-birth-of-modern-korea-9780804788762","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}