Inside the Students’ Center building on SNU’s Gwanak campus is a branch of Kyobo Bookstore, the largest book dealer in Korea. One brief tour around the store can reveal an aspect of the students’ reading habits: that reading has become a pragmatic activity. The fiction section of the bookstore is rather small, whereas the economics/business section and self-improvement guides section are taking up more than their share of space. To understand what is causing this, we looked into the list of books that sold most at Kyobo’s SNU branch. Kyobo SNU provided us with a list of the 34 books that sold best between January and March this year. This list excludes classroom textbooks, for the purpose of analysis. And analysis of this list indicates that the “uncertainties of life” may be the main reason underlying the students’ pragmatic reading style. Whereas reading used to be more of a sentimental activity, it now seems to have become a way of dealing with an ever-changing and uncertain world. Life has never been so unpredictable for university students before. A few decades ago, a normal university student would casually plan his future, expecting to get a job right after graduation, get married a few years later, and earn at least a middle class income afterwards. Over the past decade, this has changed drastically. Well-paying, secure jobs are hard to come by. The world itself is getting more and more complex; the financial market crashed worldwide in 2008, but nobody seems to know exactly why. This increase in uncertainties seemingly changed the reading habits of SNU students. The list shows that students are choosing reading as a means of achieving success. Although not taking first place as a single title, the best-selling category of books was clearly books for English learners. Taking 6 spots out of the top 10 best-selling titles, and 14 out of the top 34, English listening workbooks, English comprehension workbooks, and vocabulary books, mostly written for those preparing for TEPS (a standardized English proficiency test developed by SNU) or TOEIC were the hottest books on the shelves. With global transactions becoming everyday business, and with the job market becoming more and more competitive, English fluency is becoming essential for a decent resume, or so students think. In order to get high scores on standardized English proficiency tests, students spend a lot of money purchasing English drill books. In fact, quite a large proportion of the students even spend their summer and winter vacations studying in English teaching institutes.
Another immensely popular category of books relating to professional success was that of self-improvement, including such titles as “Outliers: the Story of Success”, by Malcolm Gladwell, which ranked 25th on the list. This shows how eager SNU students are to have successful careers. A few decades ago, a mere diploma and hard work were enough for survival in the market. It seems that there is more to it now.
The anxiety caused by an uncertain future can be overwhelming for young adults. Often the struggle for a more secure future can rob them of experiencing the happiness of life. The list shows that students are seeking refuge through reading, with “It Hurts Because You’re Young” by Rando Kim taking 1st place. Mr. Kim, who is in fact a professor at SNU, writes a soothing message for struggling young souls, appealing not just to SNU students, but to young people all over the country. It was also the best-selling book in March in all Kyobo stores combined. Students are not only seeking soothing words, but also trying to help themselves by reading about ways to keep a peaceful state of mind. “Practice Not Thinking”, by Koike Ryunosuke, a Japanese monk, explains how to get rid of the obsessions that take root in one’s mind. “What I Wish I Knew When I Was 20,” by Tina Seelig, was also popular with the students, ranking 14th on the list. These books show that, even while participating in the race for survival in the market, students are still pursuing genuine happiness. They are trying to maintain a healthy state of mind, and search for a meaningful life as well.
SNU students are not merely passively adjusting to uncertainties. They are also actively inquiring about them. The income gap between the rich and the poor is growing, getting a job is so much harder, and while the world seems to get richer and richer, somehow people are not getting that much happier. But provided that these are actually problems at all, the world has become so complicated that it is hard to understand what is causing this. Perhaps this is what is leading the students back to asking the most basic questions about the system in which we live, such as “What is justice?” or “How does capitalism work?”. “Justice,” by Michael Sandel, a professor at Harvard Law School, ranked 3rd on the most read list, and “23 Things They Don’t Tell You about Capitalism,” by Professor Ha-joon Chang of Cambridge University, who is also an SNU graduate, took 4th place. It is evident that students are trying to get a clearer picture of the world through the fog of unpredictability.
Although many people accuse students these days of being shallow readers, with the burden they are carrying on their shoulders, it seems unfair to blame them. Rather, such reading habits should be seen as a reflection of students’ perception of the world. In general, whether it is by pragmatic ways or intellectual ones, it appears that students are trying their best to deal with the obscure world in which they live. While they work hard to prepare themselves for the job market, they also try to understand the world better. Let’s hope they all find a path through the unforeseeable.
Written by KIM Jaeseung, SNU English Editor, brainophone@naver.com ?
Reviewed by Eli Park Sorensen, SNU Professor of Liberal Studies
Proofread by Brett Johnson, SNU English Editor