Retrivied from : http://homes.chass.utoronto.ca/~cpercy/courses/eng6365-flattery.htm
English in South Korea: Function and Attitudes
English has had a variety of functions
in Korean society over the last century, and its development since the Korean
War has been mainly the result of international trade, particularly with the
US. Therefore, SE norms have been given special emphasis due to the function of
English used as a foreign or international language. However, the actual use of
English by the majority of Koreans reveals clear and regular deviations from
SE. There are many who learn English for specific purposes, such as for
business, trade, academics etc., but very few interact with native speakers,
and amongst themselves they prefer to use a uniquely South Korean variety of
English that is reinforced by the local media. This illustrates a discrepancy
between the goals of EFL teaching and the complex functions of English in
modern-day South Korean society. These complex functions are broadly divisible
along the lines of nationalist vs. internationalist, for throughout the history
of English use in Korea there have been conflicted associations with the
language revolving around this dichotomy.