Discuss the social, political and economic impact of Japanese annexation (1910) on Korea to 1937.

The question requires that candidates offer a considered and balanced review of the social, political and economic impact of Japanese annexation (1910) on Korea to 1937. The impact may extend beyond the timeframe but it must be clearly linked to the issue raised in the question. Candidates may offer equal coverage of social, political and economic impact or they may emphasize their discussion of one or two of them. However, all aspects will be a feature of the response. A comparative approach may or may not be used. Candidates may refer to the impact of land reform, which simplified the ownership of land but also handed much if it to the Japanese, and the development of industrialization. They may discuss the impact of mandatory worship of Shinto and the influx of western ideas in Korea. Discussion of political impact may focus on the rule of the Japanese Governor-General, who clamped down severely and effectively on resistance to Japanese rule in 1931. They may also include a discussion of the setting up of a Provisional Government in Exile, based in China, which gave formidable impetus to opposition by orchestrating resistance.

Candidates were required to offer a considered and balanced review of the social, political and economic impact of Japanese annexation (1910) on Korea to 1937. A popular question that was generally answered well. Candidates addressed social, political and economic impact and most tried to find some balance. Unfortunately, some candidates went well beyond 1937 and into the war years.