China Seminar | 9 May 2013

Korea and China: Unities and Diversities

Edward J. Shultz

Korea and China have shared a common border and history for over 2000 years. They have enjoyed a relationship that has been marked by stellar successes yet marred by war and tragedy. This talk will look at the myriad of themes behind this long relationship in an attempt to understand the dynamics of the Korea-China tie. It will focus initially on the cultural links and then assess the political challenges that confronted each country as they sought to deal with the other. It will conclude with a brief discussion of China’s role in the challenges of North and South Korea confronting each other.

Professor Edward J. Shultz is currently Dean of the School of Pacific and Asian Studies and Assistant Vice Chancellor for International and Exchange Programs at the UHM. He received his AB at Union College in New York and his MA and PhD from UHM. He served as a Peace Corps Volunteer to Korea and was an East-West Center grantee as well as a Fulbright pre-doctoral scholar. He has lived in Korea and Japan for extended times, has traveled in China, and has experienced extensive international exchanges. Prof. Shultz’s research focus is Koryo history with a special interest in social, institutional and political history. He is the former director of the Center for Korean Studies. His recent publications include Generals and Scholars in Medieval Korea, Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2000, the Koguryo Annals of the Samguk Sagi Seongnam: Academy of Korea Studies, 2011 and the Silla Annals of the Samguk sagi, Seongnam: Academy of Korean Studies, 2012 which he translated and edited with Hugh Kang and others.