![[Colloquium] Lee Won-keun | Masculinity in Intimacy: Love, Marriage, and Sex in Cold War South Korea (1960s-70s) > Lectures & Seminars](/eng/image/logo.gif){kind=logo}
[Colloquium] Lee Won-keun | Masculinity in Intimacy: Love, Marriage, …
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Critical Global Studies Institute (CGSI) at Sogang University is pleased to host a colloquium featuring Dr. Lee Won-keun
In Cold War-era Korea, how were men expected to date, marry, and form sexual relationships? During the 1960s and 1970s in Korean society, free love and choosing one's own spouse gradually came to be accepted as natural and modern. At the same time, however, dating was expected to be "wholesome," requiring self-control, responsibility, and an explicit path toward marriage. These norms surrounding love, marriage, and sexuality were tightly intertwined with the Cold War order. Free love and marriage were presented as indicators of life in the "Free World," contrasting sharply with North Korean society. Meanwhile, American and Western dating and sexual culture served as both a model of modern life and an example of excessive freedom and moral laxity. Within this environment, men were expected to demonstrate proper etiquette and self-control as romantic partners, possess the financial capacity to cover dating expenses and support a family, and even display sexual prowess. In particular, comparisons with American and Western men exposed anxiety and feelings of inferiority regarding the physical and sexual capabilities of Korean men, projecting Cold War international hierarchies directly into intimate life. This presentation examines how masculinity was constructed in Cold War Korea through discourses surrounding love, dating, marriage, and sexuality, and how male authority and anxiety were simultaneously produced in that process.
We cordially invite all those interested to join us for this insightful event.
◈ Date: Oct 16, 2026 (Fri), 16:00~18:00
◈ Venue: Sogang University,Teilhard Hall, Room 308 + Zoom (ID: 830 1066 0241) https://us06web.zoom.us/j/6833025456?pwd=20mUy18VAMZ1Emf2pKcvqeisye5zIN.1
In Cold War-era Korea, how were men expected to date, marry, and form sexual relationships? During the 1960s and 1970s in Korean society, free love and choosing one's own spouse gradually came to be accepted as natural and modern. At the same time, however, dating was expected to be "wholesome," requiring self-control, responsibility, and an explicit path toward marriage. These norms surrounding love, marriage, and sexuality were tightly intertwined with the Cold War order. Free love and marriage were presented as indicators of life in the "Free World," contrasting sharply with North Korean society. Meanwhile, American and Western dating and sexual culture served as both a model of modern life and an example of excessive freedom and moral laxity. Within this environment, men were expected to demonstrate proper etiquette and self-control as romantic partners, possess the financial capacity to cover dating expenses and support a family, and even display sexual prowess. In particular, comparisons with American and Western men exposed anxiety and feelings of inferiority regarding the physical and sexual capabilities of Korean men, projecting Cold War international hierarchies directly into intimate life. This presentation examines how masculinity was constructed in Cold War Korea through discourses surrounding love, dating, marriage, and sexuality, and how male authority and anxiety were simultaneously produced in that process.
We cordially invite all those interested to join us for this insightful event.
◈ Date: Oct 16, 2026 (Fri), 16:00~18:00
◈ Venue: Sogang University,Teilhard Hall, Room 308 + Zoom (ID: 830 1066 0241) https://us06web.zoom.us/j/6833025456?pwd=20mUy18VAMZ1Emf2pKcvqeisye5zIN.1
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