Yogong: Factory Girl

by Robert F. Spencer

After the Korean War ended in 1953, South Korea's economic level skyrocketed, with per capita income rising to roughly 18 times the level of its northern neighbor. The causes of this change are complex, but this book investigates one of the more fundamental reasons for South Korea's economic miracle: the yogong, or young female factory workers. They produce the goods that have pushed Korea into another classification, and they have developed their own communities, with unique relationships, attitudes, and perspectives on the future. (Taken from Amazon.com)

185 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1988

Reviews

[Ocean G · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew this book was out of date when I started reading it. In fact, I guess it was out of date when it was published, since the study was conducted from 1972-1978 and the book only came out in 1988. Still, I thought it would be interesting to look at it from a historical point of view. And I was surprised at how different Korea seemed as compared to when I first went there (in the late 90s). It was very much still a developing, factory-based country, while in the 90s it was already becoming knowledge-based and technology-oriented.

I thought I would end up skimming or skipping a great deal of this, but I ended up reading the entire thing (typos and all, of which there are plenty, unfortunately). I'm guessing this might be the first study done on Korean women during this time. In fact it may be the only one. Either way, the Korea from this book is a far cry from the technologically advanced K-pop country of today, but it shows how it was transitioning from the Korean war to get where it is. And, more than that, it shows the plight women were going through working in the factories during this time.