Ham Sok Hon, a Pioneer of Korean Cosmopolitanism

Song-Chong Lee

doi:10.3390/rel11060299

Abstract

This paper discusses an aspect of Ham Sok Hon’s philosophy, which the author argues would reflect, and contribute to enriching, the theory of cosmopolitanism. Ham was arguably one of the 20th century’s most influential, yet controversial, thinkers and political activists—particularly in the progressive movement of modern Korea. The author revisits his philosophy of ssial/saengmyŏng to find a more persuasive metaphysical ground to draw an enlarged and deepened sense of community than that of dominant cosmopolitan theories. To properly place his philosophy within the larger discussion of cosmopolitanism and highlight its uniqueness, the author presents a brief overview of major cosmopolitan theories first, along with their shortcomings, and then constructs Ham’s cosmopolitan vision by focusing on three specific insights: (1) ssial/saengmyŏng (씨알/生命, life) as the agent, (2) religion and politics for ipch’ejŏk in’gan (立體的人間 the multi-dimensional human), and (3) narrative and memory as the driving force of cosmopolitanism.

Highlights

As the world becomes smaller due to the great innovation of digital technology and accelerated transnational economic and social activities, both the physical and cognitive boundaries between countries are becoming blurred, and the interactions between people, whether from nearby or afar, and their moral impact, are more instant and immediate than ever
Known as the Gandhi of Korea, Ham Sok Hon was arguably one of the 20th century’s most influential, yet controversial, thinkers and political activists, in the progressive movement of modern Korea. He inspired almost every corner of Korean progressivism, including minjung theology, political activism against military regimes, and the nonviolence movement. Was his life fully dedicated to fighting the enduring problems of humanity, which we still suffer today, such as political oppression, economic injustice, hegemonic power struggles in international relations, and environmental problems, but his philosophy envisioned a larger sense of community, McCune–Reischauer Romanization was used for Korean words except for personal names such as Ham Sok Hon to reflect the way they appear in other publications
There are numerous thought-provoking themes in Ham’s life and works such as his pluralistic theology, political activism, and deep involvement in Quaker-inspired pacifism, I believe that cosmopolitanism is the most interesting and timely theme that could effectively connect his philosophy to those enduring problems of humanity and it is the best conceptual device to unravel the philosophical complexity of, and identify the fundamental objective of, the idea of ssial

Summary

Introduction

As the world becomes smaller due to the great innovation of digital technology and accelerated transnational economic and social activities, both the physical and cognitive boundaries between countries are becoming blurred, and the interactions between people, whether from nearby or afar, and their moral impact, are more instant and immediate than ever. There are numerous thought-provoking themes in Ham’s life and works such as his pluralistic theology, political activism, and deep involvement in Quaker-inspired pacifism, I believe that cosmopolitanism is the most interesting and timely theme that could effectively connect his philosophy to those enduring problems of humanity and it is the best conceptual device to unravel the philosophical complexity of, and identify the fundamental objective of, the idea of ssial To properly place his philosophy in the larger discussion of cosmopolitanism and highlight its uniqueness, I present a brief overview of major cosmopolitan theories first, along with their shortcomings, and try to construct Ham’s vision of a cosmopolitan community through the discussion of his three insights: (1) ssial/saengmyŏng (生命, life) as the agent, (2) religion and politics for ipch’ejŏk in’gan (立體的人間, the multi-dimensional human), and (3) narrative and memory as the driving force of community

Overview of Cosmopolitan Theory and Shortcomings

The Ssial

Three Insights into Cosmopolitanism

Narrative and Memory as the Driving Force

Conclusions