Lesson 3 Knowing Ourselves, Knowing Others
A Timeless Symbol of Korea
Children around the world learned a bit ____ about Korean culture when writer Tae Keller published her book When You Trap a Tiger in 2020.
Its story starts with ____ girl who meets a tiger.
Her grandmother knows the tiger as ____
____ her grandmother gets sick, the girl makes a deal with the tiger.
Keller’s inspiration for ____ award-winning book was an old folktale that her halmoni (grandmother) used to tell her.
It is called “The Sun and the Moon,”and it is about a brother, a ____ and a tiger.
____ wanted to revive the public’s interest in tigers by writing her own book.
Long ago, tigers were so abundant in Korea ____ people often called the country the “Land of Tigers.”
It is ____ that tigers lived in Korea for at least 100,000 years.
The first appearance of a ____ in Korean culture dates back to the rock art of the Bronze Age.
It depicts ____ hunting various animals, including tigers.
Since then, tigers have appeared in many aspects ____ Korean culture, from legends to art and musical instruments.
Some of you may have heard ____ folktales featuring tigers.
____ fact, approximately forty percent of Korean folktales about animals include a tiger.
Tigers in Korean folktales are sometimes shown in ____ positive light and sometimes as foolish creatures.
For example, in one story, a tiger helps a human become ____ after the human saves the tiger’s life.
In another story, a tiger hears a ____ tell her crying baby, “Don’t cry. Here’s a gotgam.”
Because the baby stops crying, the tiger mistakenly thinks the gotgam ____ a very scary creature and runs away.
It seems that people at ____ time had conflicting feelings about tigers.
They had respect for tigers’power and courage.
However, they were also scared of ____ because being injured or even killed by tigers was common in the past.
They may have made tigers into foolish characters in order to ____ less scared of them.
Tigers in Korea faced a decline in population due to hunting during the Joseon period and nearly went extinct ____ the Japanese colonial era.
With the ____ of tigers in Korea, their use as a symbol of the nation faded away.
However, their symbolism was revived in modern times through their selection as the mascot for ____ Olympics hosted by Korea.
Hodori was the mascot for the Seoul Summer Olympics ____ 1988.
It was a ____ tiger, which represents courage.
The PyeongChang Winter Olympics in 2018 created Soohorang, a white tiger, as ____ mascot.
White tigers ____ considered sacred guardians.
Tigers are also mentioned in the K-pop song “Tiger is Coming.”
One verse of the song is a reinterpreted version of “Sugungga,” which is a traditional Korean ____
The song drew worldwide attention, and its video was viewed ____ of times online.
____ days, only a few wild tigers have been reported to be living in North Korea.
However, the history, stories, and cultural meaning of tigers still have a place among modern ____ people.
Who can deny ____ the tiger is a symbol of Korea?
In 2021, the National Folk Museum of Korea published a book that collects all the stories about ____ in Korea.
____ about looking for tigers around you now?