The Korean Mind: Understanding Contemporary Korean Culture

by Boyé Lafayette De Mente

Koreans have a unique character and personality that sets them apart from all other Asians. And although Korean attitudes and behavior may be influenced by the modern world, the Korean mindset is still very much shaped by ancient culture and traditions. In The Korean Mind , Boye Lafayette De Mente explores the meanings and cultural context of the most important "code words" of the Korean language, terms whose significance goes well beyond their literal definitions, providing an insight into the character and personality of the Korean people.

Genres: Nonfiction, Asia, History, Society, Psychology, Travel

480 pages, Paperback

First published June 10, 2012

About the author

Boyé Lafayette De Mente was an author, journalist, and adventurer. He wrote more than 100 books, most of them about the culture and language of Japan, East Asia, and Mexico.

De Mente joined the U.S. Navy and began his career as a cryptographer based in Washington, D.C. In 1948, he joined the U.S. Army Security Agency and was a decoding technician stationed in Tokyo. While there, he he founded and edited the agency's newspaper, The ASA Star.

De Mente wrote the first English guides to the Japanese way of doing business ("Japanese Etiquette and Ethics in Business" in 1959 and "How to Do Business in Japan" in 1962). His other books run the gamut from language learning to the night-time "pink" trades in Japan, the sensual nature of Oriental cultures, male-female relations, and understanding and coping with the Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Mexican mindset in business and social situations. He has also written extensively about Mexico and his home state of Arizona.

Reviews

[Tasha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. This book was organized in a highly illogical way, it repeats itself often, apparently there are spelling mistakes in the Hangul, and although it has good information, it's mostly information that you could find out through other sources in a more enjoyable way. Instead of going from subject to subject, the author wrote short chapters based on important Korean words, and then organized the entries alphabetically. It's a glossary, not a narrative. So you might go from the word Chimsul, Needing Cosmic Power, to the word, Chingu, Cultivating Friends, in the turn of a page and since there is nothing to connect the two subjects, this makes the information hard to remember, and it made this reader lose interest rather quickly.

I was, originally, planning on turning this glossary-disguised-as-a-book into flashcards, but since I found out that there are numerous mistakes in the Hangul, I'm going to have to double check everything before I do that. All that to say, for a person who is living in Korea or planning to live in Korea, the information and everyday use of these terms would probably be really useful, but if you want just a basic overview on understanding Korea and Korean culture, I would suggest Korea: The Impossible Country by David Tudor instead.

[Yingtai]

Oh Lord. I said I didn't finish this. I COULDN'T. (1) He has yellow fever in a bad way. And he's kind of creepy like that about the whole culture. All this culture-comparing theorising and condescending apologia. (2) This book is LONG and REPETITIOUS like nobody's business. It's short essays like The Japanese Mind, but ALL OF THEM overlap with ALL OF THEM. It's unbelievable.

Having said that - his approach of identifying themes in the culture is what I go for. And he does cover things pretty comprehensively. You just stop paying attention after a while.

[Vince · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meer een naslagwerk

[Mairi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Some interesting points made, but there were too many spelling mistakes (in the hangul).

[betulerbasi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt like this book was not written to be read in the order it was published. Rather, the reader can choose any section and read it in no particular order. The reason for this is that almost all sections have similar information+ some extra info on what the particular section is about. It is very informative but also very repetitive and randomly organized if you read it in order, which is why it took me a long time to finish it.

[Maya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been picking at this book ever since I got it. The sections are arranged alphabetically and usually only a page or two in length. I've been able to zoom in on some of the concepts that have puzzled me from Korean TV as well as idly pick up and flip to a random section to learn something I haven't encountered yet. I really appreciate this unusual format.

[Léa Silhol · Rating 4 out of 5]

J'aime les livres que l'on feuillette / déguste / explore en picorant, de ci de là, en mode "dictionnaire".
Ils ont les "défauts de leurs qualités", tout autant : d'aucuns se seront plaints de la répétition de certaines données dans plusieurs notules. Je ne partage pas ce sentiment. À moins que l'intérêt pour ce thème (la Corée du Sud en général, et l'esprit coréen en particulier) ne soit que très épisodique, c'est là le genre d'opus sur lequel on est appelé à revenir de façon régulière, lorsqu'une autre lecture (ou recherche spécifique) soulève le besoin d'aller creuser un concept ou un autre. Il est, dans ce cas, plutôt pratique de ne pas avoir à "sauter d'une notule à une autre" pour préciser les aspects connexes.
Parce que ce type d'ouvrages ne se lisent que rarement dans l'ordre, ou d'un trait (ou... parce que la 'fondue de dicos ici-présente ne procède pas ainsi, en tous cas ;-) ), il est difficile de véritablement dire quand ou si on l'a terminé.
J''aurais préféré pouvoir opérer un 'double check' sur toutes les entrées avant d'attribuer une note. Mais parce que, justement, l'ouvrage est riche, la chose n'est pas aisée.
dans l'ensemble, alors, disons : certaines notules auraient sans doute mérité davantage de place (mais... n'est-ce pas très subjectif ?). Toutefois, à ce jour, je n'en ai trouvé aucune en défaut, bien que ma 'bibliothèque coréenne' grandisse de jour en jour. Cette exactitude / pertinence est évidemment un excellent point.
Petit bémol, alors ? Une certaine tendance, commune à tous les opus sur ce thème datant de quelques années, à se fixer sur une 'utilisation' utilitaire : essentiellement "pour éviter aux partenaires en affaires occidentaux d'infliger de trop sérieuses entorses au protocole". Ce côté très... businessman est un peu trop saillant parfois. Cela n'enlève rien à la qualité ou pertinence de l'ouvrage, dans un 'rayon' où les opus sur ce thème ne sont pas légion. Ne boudons pas notre plaisir, donc ! :)

[Stella Pham · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I first skimmed through the book, the content immediately caught my attention. As I continued reading, I felt certain that it could offer invaluable insights into Korean history and culture. However, when I reached the following passage, I began to question the book’s reliability:

“The United States agreed that Russian troops could occupy the northern half of Korea and disarm the Japanese troops there, while the U.S. forces would do the same thing in the southern half of the country. Both sides were to withdraw their forces from Korea as soon as the Japanese troops had been disarmed and shipped home. The United States fulfilled its commitment, but the Russians refused to withdraw from the northern half of Korea and quickly set up a Communist government under the leadership of Il Sung Kim, a dedicated Korean Communist. The Soviets then shipped most of the Japanese troops in North Korea to Siberia to be used as slave laborers rather than sending them home. (By the time these ex-Japanese soldiers who survived enslavement in Siberia were finally allowed to return to Japan in the 1950s, they had been so thoroughly brainwashed in communism that they immediately began staging strikes and sit-ins against the Japanese government and the American military forces in Japan, becoming an international embarrassment to Japan.)”

After looking into the historical accuracy of this claim, I decided to stop reading the book. My reaction has nothing to do with the fact that I am Vietnamese (and live in a communist country); rather, it stems from how overtly biased the author appears to be. Sometimes, just a few lines are enough to put a reader off. If the author cannot present such sensitive historical events with accuracy and balance, how can the rest of the book be considered trustworthy?

[Wild Waters · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super informative, like an encyclopedia explaining the context of everything from cultural concepts and philosophy, over phrases very often used and their origins, to daily life experiences. As a non-fiction book it is not just useful for people who want to do business with Koreans, but also tourists (and there are millions of people now visiting South Korea every year), who want to have done their homework before they get on the plane. Really enjoyed this, from a perspective of learning and understanding cultural differences. Even K-drama lovers will find this book useful if they ever wondered about some topics or character dynamics popping up in tv shows and movies.

[Chris Digresses Into Books · Rating 2 out of 5]

Riddled with errors (spellings and facts), but I did learn more about Korean culture. However, I can only recognize the errors that I know about. It's quite possible that there are more errors that I don't know about.

I read this book to enhance my knowledge on Korean culture, but due to seeing so many mistakes, it may have actually hindered my knowledge. I'm not sure if what I learned is actually true and it has forced me to relearn (fact check) the contents before using any of it.

[Vera · Rating 3 out of 5]

Can't believe I finally finished this. It definitely gives some good information on Korea, but it's also so incredibly repetitive and thus just gets a bit boring at some point. This is also written from an American perspective, so it doesn't really apply to everyone and as I've heard from other people/actual Koreans the things they write about are quite overexaggerated sometimes.
It's a good book overall, but I'd take everything with a grain of salt.

[Brandon Chun · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought it was an engaging read

The author has interesting insights into Korean culture. The book may be a bit biased in favor of Korean culture, but it does do a good job of going over its flaws and the difficulty that other cultures may have when interacting with Koreans.

I’ve gained a sincere admiration for Korean people from reading this book.

If you’re interested in learning about Korean culture, I highly recommend this book.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was quite extensive in introducing many different cultural aspects. However, many parts were repeating themselves, which for someone who read the book from the beginning to end meant a lot of unnecessary repetition.

[Zaya · Rating 2 out of 5]

This does not age well. It is lengthy and while some of it was interesting; I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone to pick up.

[Jac · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is definitely more on the academic side but has tons of information on the sayings and words that shape Korean culture till today.

[Marija S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative, however poorly structured and somewhat repetitive.

[Trish · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very interesting and informative book, a mixture of history and sociology. I enjoyed it thoroughly.

[Gusie Sambalido · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is an interesting book about Korean culture as well as Korean history. It is a great book if you are wanting to learn a lot about Korean Culture and history.

[Zohid · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actually I chosed this book to understand Korean culture, but I could not get what I pursued in the beginning. All 480 pages can be written in one sentence. Koreans are different, and Western business people should be aware of that.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the overview of Korean culture that the book provided. I learned about the historical background of the Korean people and their rough history of being frequently invaded by their neighbors, ancestor worship, family dynamics, etc. However, as mentioned in other reviews, the author frequently misspelled the Korean words (a close Korean friend looked over the book) and frequently repeated topics and facts that had been mentioned previously in the book. While interesting, by the end of the book, I was ready for it to be over.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't read the entire book, but the entire free preview on Amazon Kindle.
The book introduces cultural words or phrases, and then explains what they mean, what the historical roots are, and how they have effected Korean culture in the past and in the present.
I found it very insightful and helpful in understanding the Korean people, their history, and their modern culture.

[Catarina PBatista · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extremely helpful if someone wants to know more about Korean culture and mindset and is looking for a guide (of sorts) to help them understand Koreans and why they are who they are!

In my opinion I was looking for a more informal and personal book, but found something very methodical and practical. Still good, but not quite what I was expecting *

[Thomas Jung · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting perspective of Korean culture from an non-Korean scholar. Spot on in most aspects, but some exaggerated portions did exist. Overall, it was a great read and I'd highly recommend it if you're looking to dive into Korean culture. I would suggest more references though.

[Ted · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting stuff.