Competing Memories of Mega-Dam Development in Colonial Korea: From Science to Disaster

The debate around the “Four Asian dragons” in the 1980s focused on the colonial origins of post-colonial Korean modernization without reference to subalterns, instead focusing on economic growth using statistical indicators and records written by elites. In contrast, the notion of a colonial gray zone underscores the limitations of such a colonial modernity approach. This debate has brought the experiences of modern elites to the fore, it has neglected those of lowerclass workers. This article re-examines colonial development by juxtaposing elite mainstream memory with subaltern counter-memory in relation to the construction of the Pujŏn River power plant. While mainstream memories emphasize cutting-edge technologies and economic accomplishments, subaltern memories reference disasters, vengeful spirits, human offerings, trauma, and ghostly pictures. This study aims to offer a new understanding of the narratives that developed between colonial and post-colonial Korea and Japan. It suggests that the scientific achievement of the mega-dam in colonial Korea was very closely associated with colonial tourism. It also examines how capitalism, embodied in such structural facilities and the tourist industry, excluded the modern experiences of subalterns during the Japanese occupation and how these experiences, excluded the records of Japanese colonial rule, came to the fore in the post-colonial era due to Minamata disease.