History of Korea

Munhwa Undong (Cultural Movement)

One of the most important examples of this cultural movement, was the National University Movement. The Koreans had long been tired of the subjects that were taught in Japanese schools, Japanese cultural values, the Japanese language, and even a Japanized Korean history which were taught to Korean students in these colonial schools. Moreover, Koreans had very few opportunities to continue their education beyond middle school level. And those that continued had to travel to Japan and enroll in Japanese universities to acquire a college education. Dismayed by such a disturbing trend the Nationalists founded a movement to establish a Korean university, which would teach Korean history and values, by the top Koream academics of the time. Furthermore, they saw an opportunity to truly groom students into future leaders of the Korean government. The Society for the Establishment of a National University chose Yi Sang-jae, an ex-Choson official, as leader of the movement in November of 1922. The goal was to acquire ten-million yen to make this ambitious project a reality. Representatives were sent to foreign nations to raise capital and fund-raising campaigns were initiated, but the movement fell through due to infighting, mismanagement of donations, and the withdrawal of support from the All Korean Youth League, which played an important role in this movement. Moreover, the Japanese announced plans to build the Keijo Imperial University at Seoul, and the movement lost all momentum as public support began to dwindle.

Colonial Period