University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Korean Grocery Stores Influence on Korean American Identity

Worrasangasilpa, Brian

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/1008

Description

Title
Korean Grocery Stores Influence on Korean American Identity
Author(s)
Worrasangasilpa, Brian
Issue Date
2007-05-15
Keyword(s)
  • ANTH 499/AAS 450
  • Asian American
  • Identity
  • Food
Abstract
This project investigates whether Korean grocery stores as social spaces within the university community reflect a particular idea of a Korean American identity and influence Korean American's formation of their identity. The author seeks to answer the following questions: How do spaces such as Korean grocery stores interact with the Korean American community and help to influence Korean American identity? What do the aesthetics of each store mean and how does it apply to the Korean American community at UIUC? Do they have some deeper meaning for Koreans and Korean Americans? Why do they shop there and what do they buy? What role does the use of language (both spoken and written) in these stores play in determining who Korean Americans are or are not? What is the significance of food in Korean culture? Based on individual interviews with Korean and Korean American store owners, shoppers, and students, this study concludes that Korean grocery stores serve both as a means of reconnecting and reaffirming Korean ethnic identity among Korean Americans and as a means of separating and denying Korean identity for those whose ties to Korea may not be as strong.
Type of Resource
text
Permalink
http://hdl.handle.net/2142/1008

Owning Collections

Diversity on Campus/Equity and Access PRIMARY
This collection examines ways in which the U.S. university and the American college experience are affected by diversity, and difference. In particular, these student projects examine experiences of diversity on campus, including important contemporary social, cultural, and political debates on equity and access to university resources.
Student Communities and Culture
The university offers an extraordinary opportunity to study and document student communities, life, and culture. This collection includes research on the activities, clubs, and durable social networks that comprise sometimes the greater portion of the university experience for students.
The University and the Community
This collection of student research interrogates the relationships between the university and the local community.