A record of the "aspirations and small rebellions of daily life" of women in the liberated space.

This book is a record of 'Women's Aspirations and Small Rebellions in Daily Life in the Liberation Space' by historian Lee Im-ha, who has been deeply interested in the lives of women in modern Korean history, commemorating the 70th anniversary of liberation.
Although much research has been conducted on the liberation period, it has mainly focused on political history from a male perspective.
There has been little research on liberation spaces from a female perspective and with women as the subject.
Because the liberated space was viewed only from a male perspective, there were limitations in understanding the diverse lives of the people in the liberated space in a three-dimensional way.
The main topics of the liberation period were ‘elimination of the remnants of Japanese imperialism’ and ‘nation-building.’
The author wrote this book with the question in mind: How might women of the time have practiced this in their daily lives?
It covers the history of women, which was not given much attention during the US military government period after liberation, through various topics such as women as "female citizens," women as workers, women who took to the streets as political actors, and the creation of the Women's Bureau and Women's Police Stations in state institutions.
After liberation, women were in a dualistic and two-faced position.
The demands to "come out of the kitchen and start building a new country" and the limits of women's actions and activities were clearly defined, such as "you must not engage in excessive activities that go beyond your role as a woman."
However, women in the liberated space tried to change their daily lives by making small cracks in the demands of this society.
Today's Korean women have not been properly informed of the life experiences of women in the past.
Now it is difficult to find even a trace of it.
The lives of women who dreamed of a new life in the liberated space, defying discipline and regulations, are richly illustrated in this book, providing a glimpse into the lives of the people of the liberated space and providing a starting point for a more detailed look into the history of the liberated space.

Chapter 1.
Seocheon Flower Garden, Haebang Space

Seoul in the post-liberation period was no different from any other city in terms of the stench it gave off.
However, the liberated Seoul was filled with people who dreamed of building a new nation and jumped into making that dream come true.
Those dreams were enough to sweep away the stench of Seoul.
That is also the meaning of liberated space.
This is why we must once again sing of the power of the liberated space of Seoul, not the stench of the city, and of the splendid and beautiful times of the liberated space.
So, I would like to talk about the liberated space where brilliant and beautiful dreams bloomed within the framework of everyday life, disconnection and continuity, and female subjectivity.

Chapter 2.
The birth of the Republic of Korea, the first son of the UN

In both 1945 and 1946, nation-building came first, and women were asked to step out of the kitchen for the sake of the nation and the people. They responded to this demand with words like sacrifice and patriotism.
However, in 1947 and 1948, criticism was leveled at women's social activities, with people asking, "How can women who don't even know how to cook participate in politics?"
As mentioned above, women who advocate for gender equality but neglect housework, that is, women who neglect their roles, actually undermine women's status.

Chapter 3.
Daily life and labor in the workplace

In 1945, a strike in the workplace shook the regulations and discipline of Japanese capital.
We must examine what aspects of daily life were changed by the strikes in the liberated workplaces that attempted to change the discipline imposed by Japanese capital.
And a large part of this movement was in workplaces where the majority of workers were women.

Chapter 4.
Sexuality and the 'Female Nation'

On March 16, 1946, 800 gisaengs belonging to the four major districts in Seoul received a notice from the Gyeonggi Provincial Government Quarantine Department that they would be conducting regular physical examinations once a month. They resolved that “this is an insult to Korean gisaengs, and we will never comply with the authorities’ notice, even if it means closing down all 800 gisaengs.”

Chapter 5.
Women taking to the streets

"Hye-ran's Diary" describes the joy of liberation that came suddenly.
Female workers also shed “tears of joy for liberation on August 15th… thousands of them marched through the streets under the guidance of the factory, shouting ‘Long Live the Independence of Korea.’”
For women, too, the street of liberation was a street of politics, a street of excitement, and a place where they were reborn as subjects of action.
Women joined street politics by organizing various groups.

--- From the text