ABSTRACT
The literature on South Korean democratization is copious, providing us analytic, historical narratives on zigzagged democratization processes or the ordered systematic evaluation of uneven democratic achievements of this polity. 2 Among others, Adesnik and Kim (2013), Chu and Im (2013), and Im (2010) represent a subset of the most recent notable contributions to the edited collections that have a wide audience in the field. This chapter attempts to appraise the evolution of South Korea’s democracy, departing from these noble scholarly traditions not because their works are irrelevant, but because such a departure can complement their work.
