In the spring of 1950, 17-year-old South Korean high school senior Won Moo Hurh dreamed of studying law at Seoul National University after graduation. His life changed irrevocably on June 25 when North Korean forces invaded his homeland. After less than three months of training, Hurh was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Army of the Republic of Korea and sent to the front, where the casualty rate for such junior officers could reach 60 percent.
In this exceptionally well written memoir, Hurh provides not only a descriptive chronicle of his wartime exploits, but also a social and psychological exploration of the absurdity of war in general. Hurh’s vivid remembrances bring to life the “forgotten” Korean War from the viewpoint of a Korean officer, a perspective rarely available in English until now.

The late Won Moo Hurh attended Monmouth College in Illinois after the Korean War and received a Ph.D. in sociology and ethnology at the University of Heidelberg in Germany. He was a professor emeritus of sociology and anthropology at Western Illinois University and the author of five books.

Won Moo Hurh
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 196
Bibliographic Info: 18 photos, 1 map, appendix, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2012
pISBN: 978-0-7864-6503-3
eISBN: 978-0-7864-8798-1
Imprint: McFarland

A Note on the Title      viii
Acknowledgments      ix
Abbreviations      xi
Preface      1

1. Chances of Life      3
2. My First Life-Chance      12
3. Memories from the Early Years      20
4. The War and My Shattered Life Course      35
5. Officer Candidate School      55
6. The Frontline and Fort Sill      65
7. Teaching at the ROK Artillery School      101
8. Back to the Front      114
9. Antiaircraft Artillery and Fort Bliss      145
10. Serving the Top Brass      161

Epilogue      171
Appendix: ROK Infantry and Artillery (1950–53)      179
References      181
Index      183