North Korean Young Adults Learning English in and Through South Korean Church

• In Event: 14.044 - Roundtable Session 2
  In Roundtable Session: 14.044-6 - Insights on Globalization, Culture, and Language Learning

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to gain deeper understanding about the links between the global spread of English, expanding neoliberal capitalism, and Christian world evangelism. For this purpose, this research examines the trajectories of young ex-communists from North Korea in pursuit of better lives in the neoliberal economy of South Korea in Korean evangelical churches, and asks why investment in English learning among other necessities for settlement becomes salient in this settlement process.

Author

• Eun-Yong Kim, University of Toronto - OISE