Lee Da Som's Debate Essay

Nowadays, nationalism prevails in Korea and the world. So there are many resulting problems. I think nationalism is a mere obsession, stubbornness in our unconsciousness.

Of course, nationalism advocates say that nationalism can strengthen solidarity. They also say nationalism brings big power and enthusiasm in the World Cup or other big games, which make us unite and feel patriotism. Also, advocates insist that they feel comfortable and glad when meeting the same family (race, tribe) in other country. Eventually, they think nationalism is good for people's emotions and for unification.

In my opinion, however, these are only special cases (World Cup, Olympics, meeting same family...). In everyday life, we still discriminate foreign workers due to our 'single-unity' nationalism. And similarly, people are locked in limited point of view, which can lead to intolerance of others as we can see in Jaebum's case. Also, in an extreme case, Nazis and Hitler killed millions of Jewish people cruelly, only because he thought his race is superior to Jewish people.

For these reasons, I think nationalism is never good for us. We have to break this stereotype. It is better to be a world citizen instead of locked in nationalism.

Lee Da Som's Opinion Essay

Schooling for Teen Mothers

Nowadays, many teen girls become mothers. Usually they are 15~19 years old. Although they aren't kids, they are not adults. So their job ability, maturity and sense of economy are considerably less than adult mothers.

But our government and school authorities try to kick teen mothers out instead of developing their ability, mental maturity and childcare methods.

I think it comes from Korean's conventional shamefulness and avoidance of sex or premarital pregnancy which derives from deep-rooted Confucianism.

But a school's essential goal is to educate students so that they can become mature human beings and do well in the larger society. So it's a violation of education's goal to kick teen mothers out of school. Because every student's essential rights and life are most important, school authorities have to break conventional stereotypes. We need to accept some changes in social perception in a positive way.

So, practically, we need to establish schools for teen mothers which teachers job ability and nurturing. Or it's also good to make nurseries in high school like other developed countries. Of course, childcare allowance for teen mothers should be increased. Most of all, teachers have to try to not to discriminate against teen mothers in school.

Now it's time for Korea to become a socially-developed country. Social welfare can be improved with a change of perception. I don't want to see tears on teen mothers any more.

Lee Da Som's Narrative Essay

I want to talk about my most shameful but lesson-learning story. It's about my cheating story.

It was 2 months ago, I think. I was memorizing words for a paper test. Terribly, I was so lazy that I opened the word list for the first time at that moment. But it was so difficult to memorize in a short time. I screamed, and my classmates also grumbled and groaned. Eventually, everyone in the classroom felt sympathy. So, we united for the first time. Since out homeroom teacher wasn’t there, we freely discussed our plan. After that, we started a combined operation. All of the classroom students started to write down the English words on the desk, and piled many books and calenders around to shield.

The classroom was silent. All of the student's senses were on the strain. But on the other hand, we felt somewhat... a sense of relief. We thought that we could get a good grade. While writing the words on the desk or little paper, I said "What if.... if teacher L comes in instead of our homeroom teacher?" (Teacher L is very strict and thorough. If she comes here to supervise us, we can't cheat at all.) Suddenly, my friends squealed and blamed me. They said "Shut up!!" or "Don't jinx things!!". We laughed, cause we knew that scenario was almost impossible. And after 30 minutes, we all finished. Our plan was excellent. The bell rang at 4:30. It was silent. We heard someone walk toward our classroom. We could see the silhouette. But.... it wasn't our H.R teacher. Door was opened.

"Hey students! Let's start! Put away your books and come apart!"

The other students and I were shocked. All hope was gone. She was teacher L .

I was vacant. We just looked each others faces. "What are you doing?" teacher L shouted. It was unavoidable. We put away everything, and the paper test was started. I took the exam in a state of ignorance.

The result was terrible. I got only 60. I said to my friends "I had least expected that things would come to such a pass. I think we got heaven's justice."

From this event, I learned a lesson which is very simple but I had forgotten. It is that there is nothing to achieve with tricks or without effort. I realized the importance of sincere effort and an honest attitude of mind. Of course, I can accomplish something with tricks. But now I know that it's not blessing or luck. It's just foreshadowing of retribution.

Kim Go Eun Yi's Debate Essay

Is nationalism good?

Nationalism is extreme pride in the history, culture and successes of one's nation. That means to have love for your own country and the belief that it is better than any other country. People who approve of nationalism insist that nationalism is necessary and good because it is natural. It leads people who live in your country to have the power of unity. But l think over-nationalism is too conservative in globalization. For example, 고종‘s father, 흥선대원군, insisted on the "closing-the country-policy" and failed to accept other countries cultures appropriately.

As a result, this persistence made Joseon's mordenization slow. Nationalism is extreme or fanatical patriotism. Of course, proper nationalism is sometimes fine. But over-nationalism is not good. So appropriate nationalism is important.

Lee Da Som's Self-Introduction

Self Introduction

Hello! My name is Lee Da Som. I was born in Gwangju on April 19th. I live with my mom and dad, and a brother seven years younger than me. I lived in Gwangju for 16 years until middle school. I chose to go to Naju High School, so now I live in the dormitory.

When I became a high school student, pizza and chicken became my best friends. And now they are my soul mates.

Sometimes my friends call me enfant-terrible or devil, cause I'm so mischievous and wild. I also think I'm addicted to making fun of my friends. I think I have to be more prudent, gentle and mild because I'm 19 now.

From now, let me introduce my hobby and goal. My hobby is taking pictures--especially nature scenery. It makes me feel calmed down and makes me breathe in this dreary, tight high school schedule. I also love going outside and being exposed to wind when I'm tired or bored. I feel freedom from cool wind blowing that moment. As I love nature and relief, my dream is also simple and naturalistic. I want to be a country-side school English teacher. And after class, I want to enjoy my life by taking pictures of beautiful nature scenery.

So.. what I want to say is that my ideal life style is to take a rest and find myself in peaceful nature. Thank you for reading my self introduction.

Kim Sora's Narrative Essay

The best way I can

By Sora Kim

When I was a student of middle school, I went camping with a schoolmate. On the second night, we had the opportunity to do a candlelight ceremony. A recreation instructor told us "You have your parents who always sacrifice for you. As a candle sacrifices itself. it makes light. Your parents sacrifice like candles themselves, they give you their food, clothes, love, everything. They make you happy and hope you go well. Maybe, do you think it is natural to forget to thank your parents for their work?"

The speech made me think again about my parents. My parents are farmers and work in a melon house. They go to the melon house in the early morning and come back home late night. When they come back home, their faces are full of fatigue. My older sister and I often went to help them there. Inside the house was very hot and the work was very hard. I was exhausted quickly, so I went outside to rest. After, I often repeated that behavior. However, my parents didn't work like me. They continued to work under those conditions. Probably, in that situation, I thought as the work is parent's job, I didn't have to do it.

After camping, I realized I had been stupid at that time. Parents worked for us. I was so regretful. So I realized the best way to help them is by studying hard. Right now we should do our duty. I really thank and love my precious parents who always love me and sacrifice everything for me.

Kim Sora's Debate Essay

Our debate title was "Is nationalism a good thing?" Nationalism means that people have great love for their nation. So nationalism is often associated with the belief that a particular nation is better than any other nation.

The pros insist three opinions.

First, nationalism leads people to have self-esteem about their culture, politics, and nation. Second, people who love their nation know a lot of information about their nation, so it can make nation develop easily. Third, nationalism is a good thing because it makes us come together for the Olympics and the World Cup.

On the contrary, the cons insist three opinions.

First, if nationalism exceeds appropriate levels, it can result in discrimination about culture, politics, and race. Then, it will lead to wars between many nations. Second, in globalization, nationalism leads nations to cultural and economic recession because they reject advantages of another nations. In the present, for example, North Korea does not accept America's developed science technology. So that nation is in a recession and has a lower GDP (gross domestic product) than any other nation. Third, it can lead to intolerance of others. That is why it makes outsiders.

The conclusion, I think the cons are more than the pros. Of course, nationalism is used to develop nations. But nationalism includes the decline of another nation. Accordingly, it can't accept advantages of other nations. However, the best solution is to have minds that love their nation and respect other nations. Namely, to balance between two opinions.

Lee Ji Hye's Debate Essay

"Is nationalism good thing?"

Nationalism is a political belief which thinks of race preferentially.

I think nationalism is good thing and necessary for our lives. If we think nationalism is important, we can establish order for a nation.

But if we don't think about the nation, our places will be tarnished and other countries will neglect our country.

Some people may say nationalism is bad, talking about German Nazism.

But that example is not pertinent because German Nazi's got their profit on the pretext of nationalism and that misused a sense of nationalism.

A essential sense of nationalism is thought that people are very very important in their country. Therefore, for our people and our country, nationalism is necessary and good thing.

Choo Da Ye's Debate Essay

Is Nationalism necessary?

Is nationalism a good thing? Many people might be divided into pros and cons. My opinion about Nationalism is on the 'pros' side.

I think nationalism is necessary. Because nationalism is an important source to maintain a nation. Nationalism is not to think just about race, but to know the source of the nation, to love the nation and to have pride in the nation. So, if many people don't have nationalism, their nation couldn't unite and the power of the nation could be weak. Therefore, nationalism is necessary to keep nations powerful.

The people who disagree with nationalism think nationalism as racial egoism. For example, many Jews were slaughtered by the Nazis because the Nazis only thought their race was most important. The objectors think that case occurred because of the nationalism of the Nazis. So, the objector insists that nationalism could break the order of the world. In this case, however, that incident occurred because of over-nationalism, and the Nazis used nationalism for pretext to kill Jews and despotize. The real meaning of Nationalism is not to kill the other race.

Nationalism can be an essential thing or a dangerous thing. But, it is plain truth that each person has their race and nation. We cannot ignore the relation between humans and nations. Therefore we have to think about nationalism carefully with its affirmative and negative aspects.

Lee Young Eun's Debate Essay

Nationalism is person's great love for their nation. We live in a time of globalism and many races live together. So we thought about Nationalism.

Some people think that Nationalism is necessary because Nationalism leads people to cooperate. For example, the World Cup and Olympics. When we have those events, we cheer for our team together with arms hanging on each others' shoulders. And along with people who are strangers we cheer for the same team loudly in street. And Nationalism helps maintain unique culture. In the case of Korea, Nationalism helps our unity.

But over-nationalism can bring about racial discrimination, like the pogrom of Nazis. Also, it can lead nations to cultural and economical recession. For example, historically "JoSeon dynasty's closing-the country-policy" makes the nation's development slow. And it can lead to intolerance of others. Last year, members of our nation showed intolerant to JaeBum, who just complained about Korea because of his pain in a different culture, so a young man who had a bright future became depressed and brought guilt to his idol group.

Consequently, I think over-nationalism is not good. Proper Nationalism is useful. But if it exceeds appropriate levels, our society will have many problems.

Lee Yu Hyun's Narrative Essay

One morning when I was fifteen years old, I felt too much pain in my throat so my tears fell when I was eating breakfast. The day before, it was not a big deal, but as just one day passed, the pain became so terrible. I thought 'It is just a cold. It will be fine' and then I was ready to go to school. But my father said "You had better go to hospital rather than go to school. I told your teacher that you will be late." I thought it was an overreaction, so I was convinced that it was just a cold while we were going to the hospital. But my thinking was totally wrong. The doctor said that I am very patient person because the source of pain was not a cold. It was tonsil inflammation. The pain was so terrible, but I had been enduring it. Furthermore, I had to have tonsil surgery. I felt dead and horrible. My tears fell down spontaneously. Father said to me, "Don't worry sweetheart. I am here beside you. It will be okay." Father tried to relax and relieve me.

Two days later, I had tonsil surgery. Before the surgery, I took six injections. It was like chaos. Six injections... It was an unforgettable experience. Maybe, it was my most painful moment in my life.

During the surgery, the pain was so terrible, so I cried continuously. At the end of the surgery, I had a double nose bleed and couldn't say any words for 2 weeks.

I vomited blood mass. I could not even sleep because of the blood. After 5 hours, I went back home. I could eat only cold liquid food. I was starving during those days. But my father also had a tough life. He did not go to work because of me. Everyday, he always care for me. I was very sorry and grateful.

When my father was sick, I ignored him and just did my work. What a bad attitude!

I thought at that time, I was so stupid. My tonsil surgery experience gave me lots of lessons and I will mend my past posture.

Park Min Ji: Nationalism Debate

Is Nationalism A Good Thing?


Nationalism is the desire for political independence of people who feel they are historically or culturally a separate group within a country. It is often associated with the belief that a particular nation is better than any other nation. And it is often used to show disapproval. Then, is nationalism a good thing?

If we don't have any mind to we love our nation, we might lose our own culture. When countries develop, nationalism is helpful. For example, our country, Korea, accomplished rapid economic growth. This is because we all had patriotism that encouraged us to cooperate.

I'm worried about over-nationalism! Appropriate control, such as for cultural assets, is important. Nationalism also includes tendencies that drive out other cultures. In globalization, nationalism leads nations to cultural and economic recession.

If nationalism exceeds appropriate levels, It can result in racial discrimination. For example, Nazis cruelly killed millions of Jewish people because Hitler thought his race was superior to the Jews.

Consequently, I think over-nationalism is not good. If it exceeds an adequate level, many problems will happen in our society. We have to properly use this idea only for good thing. We should be in harmony. We need to have self-esteem and also have acceptance.

Yang Bora's Essay

Schooling for Teen Mothers

Yang Bora

I saw a TV program in which teen mothers appeared and told their stories. They said that they had thought of sending their babies to a poorhouse, but finally they decided to bring up their babies on their own with courage.

They made a brave decision because living as a teen mother is very hard in Korea. Unfortunately, most of them dropped out of school. Why can't they help dropping out of school? That's because this social perception is not desirable.

Of course, teen pregnancy is also not desirable. We should refrain from that. However, violating teen mothers' rights to be educated (I think) is the most undesirable action. Not learning will be an obstacle to teens' futures today when intellectual worth is so high. We must not allow teen mothers to live incorrectly and we must teach them the way of living correctly not only for themselves but also their babies.

So, we should enforce the education, establish facilities for teen mothers, and encourage them to study hard.

Kim Soon Young's Debate Essay

Is Nationalism a Good Thing ?

Soon Young Kim


Nowadays in this age of globalization, no matter how far, people share each different culture and follow it. As we now have a big market in the world, we have to live under a common rule beyond nation, race, and religion. Because of this situation, we are losing ethnic identity and don't know what nationalism is exactly, So I will talk about what nationalism is and it's pros and cons.
First, what is nationalism? According to the dictionary, "It is a feeling of loyalty to a country on the part of its people and leaders, the desire for political independence of people who feel they are historically of culturally a separate group within a country."

Pros insist nationalism is necessary, because if there is none, people won't think about their race and nation, so people would accept other nation's policies and cultures without thinking. And nations can be confused about their own identity. I go along with that idea. Nationalism helps a country's people unify their goal and keep their nation powerful.

Cons insist nationalism is not necessary, because in globalization nationalism leads a nation to cultural and economic recession. And if nationalism exceeds appropriate levels, it can bring about racial discrimination. For example, sometimes Koreans think our nation is single unit too much, so we overacted about Jaebum, who just complained about Korea because of his pain of being in a different culture.
But I think this analysis of the situation is too superficial. Essentially his unconsciousness about that lead to this problem. If he thought that Korea's nationalism was important, it wouldn't have occurred.

In conclusion, I think nationalism is necessary. But excessive national is harmful. Although I can't control nationalism, I am convinced we have to take a neutral attitude about this.

Lee Yu Hyun: Compare and Contrast Essay

Comparison Essay

Lee Yu Hyun

My comparison subjects are South Korea and North Korea. Originally, they were one country but they divided into two countries, because of the 6.25 war. As a result, they began having many different and diverse cultures.

First, South Korea's dominant ideology is free-democracy. In South Korea, everybody is free and respects others' rights. But in North Korea, the country's chief is the center of power. Everyone in the nation obeys him, so they have little freedom. Second, South Korea's president or lawmakers are voted for by the nation. Everybody has his/her own right to vote. But in North Korea, their high position is heredity. The present president's son will become the next president.

There are many differences but there are some similarities. First, South Korea and North Korea were both started from democracy. In North Korea, democracy was changed. So now they have Socialism and Absolutism. Second, both spend too much on the military. South Korea is economically better than North Korea, but neither country is rich. And finally, they have family separation pain. It is the most lamentable and doleful pain.

Between South Korea and North Korea, there are some distinctive differences. But, we have to unify at all costs for everyone because we are the same race. And our peninsula is the only divided country in the world. It is very shameful. So, we have to unify in haste.

Kim Sora's Compare and Contrast Essay

Similarities and Differences between Korean and American Dramas

By Sora Kim


There are a lot of people interested in dramas in modern society. By watching dramas, we can receive enjoy and pleasure which relieves our lives' stress from work or study. I found some distinctive differences in the dramas both Korean and American.

First, there is a difference of when a drama ends. Most of the Korean dramas usually finish between sixteen episodes and twenty four (except for historical dramas). And there are definite ends of dramas. In American dramas, however, series have no limits. If a drama has public interest, the drama can continue. But there is a possibility that they may be bored by making another series.

Second, there is a difference in choosing materials used in a drama. In Korean dramas, most of materials are secret of birth, revenge, amnesia, and wealth and poverty. In Bright Inheritance, for instance, the hero is a rich, but the heroine is in poverty. Among them, the most frequently used material in the dramas is a love story. Surely, every drama may have a love story. But it appears too many times in Korean dramas. Korean authors think that everything must go to the love story. It is so commonplace. Conversely, American dramas have more various and abundant materials than Korean dramas. For example, Prison Break is a famous escape-from-prison drama. Dark Angel is a gene manipulation drama.

Third, there is a difference of the scale in dramas. American dramas invest a lot of money--more than Korean dramas. It creates strong plots and high quality. It makes people feel as if they are watching a movie.

However it doesn't mean that Korean dramas are bad and American dramas are good. Korean dramas such as Dae Jang Guem give to us knowledge about Korean food, medicine and we learn about Korean culture when we watch. And The Time of the Dog and Wolf have strong plot as well as American dramas. People who make a drama will perceive weak plot and shortages of the Korean dramas to compete against another dramas. Producers and authors must find something that viewers want in a drama.

Although one step doesn't change many thing, one step will become a strong power in the future, like "Many a little makes a mickle."

Yang Bora's Compare and Contrast Essay

Compare and Contrast

Yang Bora


There are many types of people. Now, I'll introduce two types of people. One is slim people and the other is fat people. Many differences and prejudices exist between them. Let's find about them.

First, in the case of eating food, a fat person eats food until they are gone completely. Conversely, a slim person quits eating when she feels full. One day, both go to restaurant and order a large amount of food. People seeing a fat person think "What a fatty person! She looks like a pig!" and they also see a slim person and think "Wow, she looks healthy and well!"

Second, in the case of wearing clothes, while a slim person can fit into any size of clothes, it is hard for a fat person to wear various clothes. One day, both are walking down the street wearing a mini skirt. People seeing a fat person think "It is certain that she does not consider her body condition". And they also see a slim person and think "Nice body!"

Last, a study announced that a fat person can more easily float above water than a slim person because fat is lighter than water. Also, a fat person sweats more than a slim person. Since fat people create more heat, they need to sweat to adjust their body temperature.

So, what type of person do you want to be? While writing this, I realized that a slim person would have more advantages although a fat person float well above water... haha!

Jung Ji Eun's Narrative Essay

Narrative Essay

Jieun Jung


On Saturday, October 24th, 2009, I went to Seoul with my friends for a university visit. At night, I had laid awake thinking of the next day's events on the train. My friends had a dream. They want to succeed in matriculating at a college in Seoul. Seoul University, Korea University, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies....

Finally, we arrived in Yongsan station. After that, we arrived in front of a subway station, thanks to my friend's uncle.

First, we went to Seoul University, Seoul's flower. Around the Seoul University station, many students were waiting for the school bus, despite it being the weekend. At last, we arrived in Seoul University. I was excited that I actually saw Seoul University's logo. In Seoul University, many middle school students came to visit. Seoul University's inside was not what I expected. I thought Seoul University would be small. Because of the large inside, we went to the place that we wanted to go.

The second place was Korea University. This university was my goal. Korea University is known for its beautiful campus. So my anticipation was large. Korea University's campus was really beautiful. It was just like Britain's school. I stood in front of building that I hope to go. I envied the students coming in and out the building.

The next place was Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. I thought there would be many foreigners because it's the university of foreign studies. But I didn't see foreigners.

After visiting in many places, we had plenty of time. So we decided to go to Kyungbok palace. We were divided into two groups. Each group saw beautiful buildings, sights, pond, and so on. All I saw was wonderful. I knew the reason why foreigners visit Kyungbok palace.

This traveling gave me many lessons. I knew korean culture, and I braced myself for my goals. Until now, I gave up my task before it was achieved. But from now on, I will never give up until I have achieved my goals. In any case, I will do my best to become Chungang University's student.

Choo Da Ye's Narrative Essay

My Height

By Choo Da Ye


I am short compared with my friends. It is hard to find a person who is shorter than me in my grade. So, I have many episodes about my height. The episode which I will never forget happened when I was 16 years old.

One day, l walked on the street alone to go to home. At that time, I didn't wear my middle school uniform because it was Sunday. Suddenly, three girls who looked like strangers approached me and asked a question.

"Hey, girl. What elementary school do you go to?"

The moment that I heard what she had said, I was very shocked, because they looked younger than me! The girls looked like a student who is only first or second grade in middle school.

I said, "I am not a elementary school student.", bluntly, and then, they were surprised and doubtful. One of them said, "That is, you're a middle school student?", but I didn't reply and walked on my way because I was displeased. While going home, I thought about my short height. At first, I really hated my height and I often wondered why I am too short. But, after some time, I realized that I could experience such a special event because of my short height. No one that is taller than me can experience events like me!

Now, I think my height as not as a physical defect but as a special strong point. Although sometimes I feel sad and discouraged because of my height, I love my short height which gives special experiences for me!

Park Min Ji's Narrative Essay

Lesson From Climbing a Mountain

Park Minji


The first day of the new year, I went to Keumsungsan with my parents. In order to watch the sunrise, we climbed the mountain. My heart beat fast in expectation. It was very cold and slippery. So I slipped and my feet fell into snow. In addition, the worst thing is what a weather forecaster said. That is, we might not watch the sunrise. But we never gave up. We went up to the end. And we arrived at the top. In the long run, we could watch the red sun in a snowy scenery. It was so beautiful that I couldn't say anything.

This story seems like our life. We set the goal, and go on step by step. While we practicing our plan, we encounter obstacles. But we know that if we cheer more than before, we can accomplish the goal, finally.

In my case, I have a dream. I have to go to a specific university. Someone might tell that I cannot accomplish it. But I have the important lesson from my climbing. And I heard something to encourage me to never give up.

Impossible is nothing.
Impossible is not a fact but only one's opinion.

I will never give up!