Understanding Korean Webtoon Culture
Transmedia Storytelling, Digital Platforms, and Genres
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Harvard University Press
Published:24th Feb '23
Should be back in stock very soon
Webtoons—a form of comic that are typically published digitally in chapter form—are the latest manifestation of the Korean Wave of popular culture that has increasingly caught on across the globe, especially among youth. Originally distributed via the Internet, they are now increasingly distributed through smartphones to ravenous readers in Korea and around the world.
The rise of webtoons has fundamentally altered the Korean cultural market due to the growth of transmedia storytelling—the flow of a story from the original text to various other media platforms, such as films, television, and digital games—and the convergence of cultural content and digital technologies. Fans can enjoy this content anytime and anywhere, either purely as webtoons or as webtoon-based big-screen culture.
Understanding Korean Webtoon Culture analyzes webtoons through the lens of emerging digital cultures and discusses relevant cultural perspectives by combining two different, yet connected approaches, political economy and cultural studies. The book demonstrates the dynamics between structural forces and textual engagement in global media flows, and it illuminates snack-culture and binge-reading as two new forms of digital culture that webtoon platforms capitalize on to capture people’s shifting media consumption.
As the first book-length study of webtoons, Jin’s monograph has a lot to offer to scholars and students interested in cultural globalization and media convergence in relation to digital technologies. The book is well-written and a joy to read. Any reader, with or without relative academic background, can benefit from it. -- Haixia Man * International Journal of Communication *
Provides a meticulously crafted and extensive exploration of this new transnational, transmedia cultural phenomenon. The book serves as a valuable resource for both undergraduate and graduate courses encompassing the topics of media, globalization, and Korean popular culture…In particular, readers will find the critical reflections on the consequences of platformization, the evolution of media technologies, and the development of cultural products…to be enlightening and thought-provoking. -- Hojin Song * Seoul Journal of Korean Studies *
Provides a much-needed account of an emergent and increasingly impactful form and industry that has yet to be sufficiently discussed. Researchers of South Korean media, history, and culture, in addition to new media scholars and comic book studies researchers more broadly, will find the book of interest. At the same time, the book’s accessibility ensures that it can reach the full range of potential readers who are invested or even curious about the topic, from undergraduate students to researchers to members of the general public. -- Se Young Kim * Pacific Affairs *
ISBN: 9780674291324
Dimensions: 229mm x 152mm x 14mm
Weight: 408g
252 pages