The UP Asian Center, in partnership with the UP Center for International Studies and UP Korea Research Center, successfully hosted the special lecture, “Kung Ano Ang Natutunan Ko Bilang Manunulat sa Panonood ng K-Dramas Tungkol sa Kasaysayan” (What I Learned as a Writer From Watching Historical K-Dramas) last 23 February 2024 at the GT-Toyota Asian Cultural Center Auditorium, UP Diliman.

Introduced by Dr. Schedar Jocson, Chair of the Departamento ng Filipino at Panitikan ng Pilipinas (Department of Filipino and Philippine Literature), Dr. Joi Barrios approached the discussion of K-Dramas as both a fan and a feminist writer, where she underscored the significance of engaging with K-Dramas to comprehend the culture and society of Korea.

Dr. Joi Barrios outlined her lecture into K-Dramas following romantic narrative conventions in portraying class conflict and the evasion from these conventions of romance, depicting and asserting women’s issues in K-Dramas, and dissecting pleasure while utilizing the memory from the past in analyzing the present state of the society.

According to Dr. Barrios, although we must be aware of the conventions of romance, we must also be bold in contradicting these. She also noted that these various romantic conventions are female-centric, highlighting that the main characters are trailblazers (e.g., women who fight for the freedom of the country), and emphasizing that women’s issues should be forwarded in historical narratives. Moreover, she also discussed the use of sympathetic characters, “kilig” factor, and metaphors in historical dramas as devices to bring pleasure to the audience. Finally, Dr. Barrios pointed out discussing historical narratives is important to open doors for more discourses about the past. With social issues as important themes in K-Dramas, Dr. Barrios ended her talk with a special poem she composed about the late revolutionary Jose Mari Sison and his legacy in the movement towards achieving social justice.

The discussant for the lecture was Dr. Kyung Min Bae, director of UP Korea Research Center. She provided a brief synthesis of the lecture, mentioning that women are less empowered in Korea so in the imagined space of K-Drama, women can also be empowered in the fictional stories.

The event was facilitated by Dr. Amparo Adelina C. Umali III and was formally opened by the Assistant to the Dean for Cultural Affairs of the UP Asian Center, Dr. Matthew M. Santamaria. Dr. Ramon Guillermo, Director of UP Center for International Studies, also delivered a brief opening message. Meanwhile, Dean Jimmuel C. Naval of the College of Arts and Letters formally closed the event.

MORE PHOTOS FROM THE EVENT

For inquiries, please email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The Asian Center, University of the Philippines Diliman offers M.A. degrees in Asian Studies with four fields of specialization: Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, and West Asia. The UP Asian Center also has an M.A. program in Philippine Studies that allows students to major in Philippine society and culture, Philippine foreign relations, or Philippine development studies. It also offers a Ph.D. program in Philippine Studies in conjunction with the College of Arts and Letters and the College of Social Sciences and Philosophy. For an overview of these graduate programs, click here. As an area studies institution, the Asian Center also publishes Asian Studies: Journal of Critical Perspectives on Asia, the latest issue of which can be downloaded at the journal's website. For other news and upcoming events at the Asian Center, click here.