[W Forum] To Be a True Great Power in the World

More than 20 years have passed since the turn of the century. It is said that South Korea is one of the fastest-changing countries in the world. Indeed, a small country devastated by the horrific Korean War, with most of its land in ruins, has now, just over 70 years after the armistice, become one of the top ten most desired places to visit and live in worldwide, which is simply astonishing.

Personally, my subjective sense of the country has also changed a lot. When I was very young, my elementary school teacher said that we needed to eliminate the remnants of Japanese language to preserve our beautiful Korean language, so throughout elementary, middle, high school, and university, I was always carrying a Korean dictionary. The obsession with patriotism, which demanded that we stubbornly use domestic products, has not completely disappeared even now. Apart from patriotism, I often lamented why our language structure is so different from English, making it difficult to learn and pronounce, even though I wanted to be good at English. It was quite natural for even those who claimed to be educated to say things like “In advanced countries, this and that.” I think a complex inferiority was ingrained in our generation.

However, in the past two or three years, this feeling suddenly changed. The movie Parasite swept the Oscars, then our actresses won all the supporting actress awards worldwide, and the group BTS has been continuously holding the number one spot on globally famous charts by changing their songs. We all know that classical music is already thriving in the West, the home of that genre, so it seems our lively national character is now shining. It appears that the cultural powerhouse aspiration that Kim Gu once spoke of is finally being realized. But what surprised me more was that the world’s attention to South Korea is not only in the cultural field. During the global COVID-19 pandemic, South Korea has been regarded as one of the safest countries from the epidemic, making everyone want to come and live here. The fact that attaching ‘K’ to anything suddenly raises its brand value shows how tremendously South Korea’s status has risen.

I remember hearing when I was young that India’s poet laureate Tagore described South Korea as the “Lamp of the East” during the Japanese colonial period, so I wondered if he had prophetic qualities and looked it up, only to find that the poem was not actually written for South Korea. But it doesn’t really matter; whether it’s self-indulgence or not, it seems to be true that South Korea has reached a point where it is active at the center of the world in various fields. But what is this fatigue I have recently felt? It seems to be the influence of the upcoming election. The widely circulated topics are quite tiring and headache-inducing. The harsh language rampant everywhere makes me increasingly want to avoid it. Still, as a citizen of the Republic of Korea, I should not miss the opportunity to exercise my rights.

After the election, I sincerely hope the elected will achieve a politics of unity that includes the opinions of opposing citizens. I hope the days when uncomfortable language is rampant even among ordinary citizens divided into this side and that side will disappear. I hope we can build a society where, even if we think differently, we can calmly discuss things step by step. I wish South Korea to truly be a country that leads the world in every aspect.

In conclusion, be sure to vote. Think once more about who is the person you need and definitely go to the polling station.

Baek Hyun-wook, Director, Biomedical Research Center, Department of Clinical Nutrition, Bundang Jesaeng Hospital

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.