“That difficult society is so easy and fun!”
The shortcut to studying social studies is understanding the topics and concepts!
A living social story that you can learn about in a fun way through storytelling, including movies, novels, and daily news.

When asking middle and high school students about social studies, many say, “It’s hard to understand because the terminology is unfamiliar and difficult,” or “It’s a boring subject because there’s a lot to memorize.”
In reality, concepts covered in middle and high school social studies classes and textbooks, such as 'socialization,' 'social norms,' and 'social being,' can feel as difficult as those covered in college textbooks, and it is easy to feel that they lack a connection to real life.
To address these students' difficulties, two current social studies teachers in middle and high schools published an easy and interesting social studies book, "Social Studies Stories That Are Fun to Read All Night."


The most notable feature of this book is that it presents key concepts and content of social studies in an engaging way through familiar materials and storytelling, such as movies, novels, and news.
We select core topics and key concepts of sociology covered in middle school 'Society' subjects, high school 'Common Social Studies' subjects, and 'Society and Culture' subjects, and explain them in an easy-to-understand manner by combining them with situations or elements that students can experience directly or indirectly.
Furthermore, it helps expand and deepen learning by organizing related concepts that are good to know along with the core concepts of the text through examples.
By making social studies no longer a difficult and boring subject to memorize, but a subject of understanding and empathy, we will open the way to a familiar yet profound learning experience.

There is a natural law that states that “water (H2O) freezes when the temperature drops below 0 degrees Celsius,” and since the current temperature (-10 degrees Celsius) satisfies the conditions for water to freeze, we can explain that “the water froze today because the temperature dropped below 0 degrees Celsius.”
The natural law that “water freezes when the temperature drops below 0 degrees” is inevitable.
Unless very special conditions are added, water will inevitably begin to freeze when the temperature drops below 0 degrees Celsius.
On the other hand, it is difficult to say with certainty that “if mortgage rates are relaxed, will the demand for housing necessarily increase?” or “if demand for housing increases, will housing prices necessarily rise?”, although it is generally more likely that this will happen.
For example, even if mortgage lending is relaxed, if property and transaction taxes on housing are strengthened, demand for housing may not increase.
Or, even if the demand for housing increases, if the supply of housing also increases by the same amount due to falling construction costs, housing prices may not rise.
Because laws concerning social phenomena have less inevitability than laws concerning natural phenomena, it is more difficult to predict, "Will house prices rise in January?" than to predict, "Will the lake freeze in January?"

--- From "Which is easier to predict, the weather or real estate prices? (Exploring Social Phenomena)"

In the past, only a select few could enjoy works of art or performances.
But today, most people can enjoy it through various mass media.
In this way, popular culture can be simultaneously delivered to many people across a wide area through mass media, greatly reducing the economic burden required to enjoy culture.
The formation and development of popular culture is often cited as a representative example of democracy in the cultural realm, as it expanded the right to enjoy culture, previously enjoyed only by the upper class, to the majority of society.
--- From "Democratization in the Cultural Sphere (Popular Culture)"

Recently, the number of single-person households has also been increasing.
Statistics Korea defines a single-person household as 'a living unit that maintains a livelihood alone in an independent residence, regardless of marital status.'
The forms of single-person households are very diverse, including single-person households among young people due to the rise in the age of first marriage, and single-person households among the elderly due to the extension of average life expectancy.
If the concept of family is defined only as a household unit formed through marriage, blood relationship, or adoption, it would be difficult for a single-person household to fall into the category of family.
But just because I live alone doesn't mean I don't fulfill the roles and functions of a family.
The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) defines a family as “two or more people who consider themselves to be a family and who perform the duties, functions, and responsibilities essential to healthy family life.”
So, it's time to be more open about how we define family.
However, what remains unchanged is that the family is the most basic foundation of society.
It is necessary to think flexibly and develop policies regarding how society will share and supplement the functions of the family.
--- From "Is a single-person household also a family? (First Encounter with Society)"

Sudan, Africa, is experiencing conflict due to climate crisis and desertification, leaving many people struggling to survive.
Low-latitude, underdeveloped Pacific countries are facing environmental refugees due to rising sea levels.
Unlike developed countries, underdeveloped countries have weak economic foundations and are easily vulnerable to disasters caused by climate change.
The climate crisis is disproportionately impacting economically vulnerable populations within the same country.
People living in poor living conditions are prone to illness due to the summer heat, and workers working outdoors can even lose their lives in severe cases.
The climate crisis is causing extreme weather conditions, which is putting a huge burden on households as they have to pay more for heating and cooling.
Even across generations, children and the elderly are disproportionately affected by the climate crisis.
--- From "Climate Crisis and Social Inequality (Climate Crisis)"

The basic structure of the book is composed by selecting the main concepts of sociology covered in middle school 'Society' subjects, high school 'Common Social Studies' subjects, and 'Society and Culture' subjects, and explaining them by combining them with situations or elements that students can experience directly or indirectly.
First, we presented the core concepts and introduced related movies, novels, and lifestyle news to help readers understand the meaning of the core concepts. Then, we continued with a more detailed and systematic explanation.
Furthermore, we attempted to suggest directions for expanding and deepening learning by organizing related concepts that would be good to know along with the core concepts of the text, along with simple examples.
The basic concepts of sociology can explain many things that happen in society.
It can also help people perceive their situation in society more objectively and accurately, and make rational decisions based on this.
It might be a good idea to think of the concepts covered in this book as providing a window through which to view society.

--- From "Introduction"