In the rich and varied life stories in Under the Black Umbrella, elderly Koreans recall incidents that illustrate the complexities of Korea during the colonial period. Hildi Kang here reinvigorates a period of Korean history long shrouded in the silence of those who endured under the "black umbrella" of Japanese colonial rule.
Existing descriptions of the colonial period tend to focus on extremes: imperial repression and national resistance, Japanese subjugation and Korean suffering, Korean backwardness and Japanese progress. "Most people," Kang says, "have read or heard only the horror stories which, although true, tell only a small segment of colonial life." The varied accounts in Under the Black Umbrella reveal a truth that is both more ambiguous and more human--the small-scale, mundane realities of life in colonial Korea.
Accessible and attractive narratives, linked by brief historical overviews, provide a large and fully textured view of Korea under Japanese rule. Looking past racial hatred and repression, Kang reveals small acts of resistance carried out by Koreans, as well as gestures of fairness by Japanese colonizers. Impressive for the history it recovers and preserves, Under the Black Umbrella is a candid, human account of a complicated time in a contested place.
Reviews
"Hildi Kang knew imperial rule of Korea had been harsh, but her father-in-law's tales of those times were amusing. . . . Under the Black Umbrella is a series of first-hand narratives of everyday people who lived through Japanese imperialism."—Daphne Hsu, Contra Costa Times, July 2001
"In this riveting and highly informative collection of oral histories, Kang has intricately woven together these voices into an impressive history of the Japanese colonial period that tells the story of people who lived their lives under the duress of the Japanese. . . . This is an important book and sheds light on areas not often covered in other works. Most assuredly, Kang's book is a valuable addition to the growing body of works on the Japanese colonial period. The 'voices' that Kang has collected for her book present a fresh view, not to mention a clearer picture of this period of Korean history."—Jeffrey Miller, Korea Times, 3 August 2001
"It is often said that Japan's colonial ventures produced two contrasting legacies: bitterness in Korea and positive memories in Taiwan. This book argues that Koreans had in fact more mixed experiences."—Foreign Affairs, January/February 2002
"Told from the perspective of ordinary people, a new book by . . . Hildi Kang gives flesh and blood to Korean history of the 1910-45 period."—Robert Several. The Independent, 28 June 2001
"For those interested in Korea's colonial history, this is a great source book to read. . . . Kudos to the author for presenting these seldom-heard voices of Korean elders."—Bill Drucker, Korean Quarterly
"The recollections that [Kang] collected contribute an essential (but to date neglected) ingredient to our understanding of Korea's colonial history. Their contents disturb the neat package that pits the colonizing (Japanese) aggressor against the colonized (Korean) victim."—Mark Caprio, Korean Studies Review, 2002, No. 2
"Kang fills the pages with historical accounts based on the lives of 50 Korean men and women during the Imperial Japanese rule. This book isn't just another index of never ending horror stories, it's a breakdown of the political oppression of Korea and its people."—Bay Area Living, 6 July 2001
"Kang notes that oral histories are memories, and memories should not be used alone for studying history. However, Kang's honesty in presentation makes her book a trustworthy starting point for those who want to begin learning about modern Korea."—Nichi Bei Times, February 2002
"The stories presented in Under the Black Umbrella show lives that range from poverty to riches, from acceptance to resistance, and from comfort to fear. Such stories suggest that even under the black cloud of Japanese rule, life was never one dimensional, as Korean nationalist scholarship has presented. Life under colonial rule was much more complex. Under the Black Umbrella is a pioneering collection of oral histories. . . . It will be an excellent introduction to the general reader who wants to understand colonial Korea. It will also be a very valuable supplementary resource for scholarly works to be used in courses on Korean history or Japanese colonialism."—Gi-Wook Shin, Journal of Asian Studies, February 2003
"This book represents a most engaging account of the colonial period at the individual level. It helps to revise our understanding of that period and he Korean and the Japanese reaction to it, portraying it as more complex than it had earlier been represented, with a modicum of space for Korean colonial subjects to have at least a chance to get an education, land a decent job, and live a fairly normal life. "—Wayne Patterson, St. Norbert College, Korean Studies, vol. 26, no. 1
"Hildi Kang's commentary is never obtrusive, and the elderly Koreans who tell their stories draw their own conclusions about life in the colony. . . .Hildi Kang introduces her material with assurance and sensitivity. . . .With its richness of detail and anecdote, such a welcome addition to the repository of books in English on the colonial period, Under the Black Umbrella reminds us how little we know of the 'ordinary lives' of Koreans in the north, or in the central Asian and Russian diaspora. . . .Hildi Kang sets out to capture the 'complexity of life under colonial rule', and succeeds beautifully."—Ruth Barraclough, Australian National University, Japanese Studies, 2002, vol. 22, no.2
"Whereas history is usually a story of 'great men' told by its 'winners,' Hildi Kang's Under the Black Umbrella offers new insights into Korean history as it was lived every day by ordinary people. The diversity and heterogeneity of human experiences in Under the Black Umbrella challenge the oversimplified story of the Japanese colonial period in Korea that has held sway in Korean history until now."--Elaine M. Kim, University of California, Berkeley
"For its many voices and for the candor that comes from those voices, Under the Black Umbrella is a book of exceptional merit.Through the observations and reminiscences of Koreans who lived under Japanese rule, Hildi Kang shows us an interesting and mostly unknown picture of daily life in a neglected colony."--Bruce Cumings, University of Chicago
"Under the Black Umbrella is a pioneering collection of oral histories of Koreans who lived through the turbulent years of Japanese rule. It has many rich, vivid, and moving stories that reveal diversity and complexity of colonial life. No doubt this book will be a valuable addition to the growing body of works on colonial Korea in the West."--Gi-Wook Shin, University of California, Los Angeles
