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Korea as a Collective Country
Korea has a unique ideology of collectivism that guides the perspective of people towards the state and the society. A good example of Korea as a collective country is the business culture of Inhwa. The Inhwa gives a good example of the modern day application of the Korean culture and the conventional collectivism ideology (Lee 3). Collectivism is a political ideology that highlights the importance of groups other than individuals. A collective economy focuses its productivity on the society, the communities and the nation. This forms an economic ideology where the groups in the country are more significant in controlling the economy (Shim et al, 25). As a result, the economic system is marked by collective systems of ownership of land and other factors of production.
Inhwa is a Korean cultural ideology and belief of harmony. The Inhwa practice is driven by the idea that the interests of the society supersede those of the individuals. In this manner, people pursue the better good of the society, rather than their individual self interests. The Inhwa promotes the country by enhancing the business ethics as a collective country (Lee 3). This is because Koreans view groups as the basis of harmony and as the better way to achieve the greater societal good. To avoid going against the Inhwa, Koreans will always respond with positive responses in business practices (Lee 3). This shows the practice of the Korean culture in the modern day business and economic life, that shapes the country.
Inhwa is just an example of the collective nature of the Korean society that has transited the country from the post war times to the current society. Since the Second World War, the Korean society had been divided between the south and the north (Robinson, 51). While North Korea adopted more communist ideologies, the South Koreans had the capitalist influence of the Americans who had dominated the region. During the cold war, South Korea and North Korea engaged in a foreign-powered Korean war, which created the split (Robinson 52). However, the Korean countries were able to transit past the splitting effects of the war due to the aspects of culture like the Inhwa. This is the reason why Inhwa forms the best example of the collectivist ideology in application for the country since the post war times.
Inhwa gives an example of the application of collections in the Korean society as a way of promoting social good. This is the opposite of individualism that is practiced as a political and economic ideology in the capitalist countries like the United States (Shim et al, 27). A specific difference of the application of collectivism and Inhwa is the use of words like “our” instead of capitalistic words like “my.” For the Korean societies, the pursuit of the country’s good is more important than the pursuit of the individual interest (Shim et al, 37). Therefore, the country portrays the distinct practices of a collective society through the concern for the groups and the common good.
Korea is a country whose citizens value groups and the progress of the society more than the individual interests. This is because of the collectivism ideology that is exemplified in the collectivist practice of the Inhwa. The Inhwa is an element of Korean culture to view and apply harmony in the day to day life. This shows the integration of the Korean culture into the business and economic life as a modern way of applying collectivism. By practicing ideas that promote harmony and societal good, Korea portrays itself as a collective country.
Works Cited
Lee, Choong. Korean Culture And Its Influence on Business Practice in South Korea The Journal of International Management Studies, 2012 Vol. 7 (2)
Robinson, E.M. (2007). Korea’s twentieth century odyssey. Honolulu. University of Hawaii Press
Shim, T. Y., Kim, M. S., & Martin, J. N. (2008). Changing Korea. Understanding Culture and Communication, New York, New York: Peter Lang Publishing, Inc