“Home” and “Hope” for a Family in Exile: Practicing Everyday Life Through Jesse’s Diary (1938-1946)

This presentation will be about Che-si-ŭi ilgi, or Jesse’s Diary, a parenting diary co-written by a Korean Provisional Government (KPG) member Yang U-jo and his wife Ch’oe Sŏn-hwa from 1938 to 1946 for their daughter Jesse. Jesse’s Diary offers a first-hand account of everyday life in China during the Second Sino-Japanese War from the perspective of Korean intellectuals doubly displaced by colonialism and war. It is also unique in that it is co-written by a married couple about raising children during the war. The case of Jesse’s Diary demonstrates how the act of co-writing a parenting diary could provide a sense of “home” as well as “hope” for the diasporic family amidst continuous displacement. This webinar will be presented by Hannah Park (History PhD candidate at the University of Chicago) and moderated by Jay Kim (GKF Senior Advisory Council Member).