1937 皇國臣民ノ誓詞 (Kōkoku Shinmin No Seishi), The Oath of Imperial Subjects, 2024

By 1937, Japan’s colonial regime had deeply embedded itself within Korea’s education system. The Oath of Imperial Subjects, recited daily by students, served as more than a call for loyalty—it was a tool for ideological conditioning, reshaping the identities of Korean youth to align with imperial values while systematically erasing Korean national consciousness. This daily ritual, combined with broader cultural assimilation efforts, exemplifies how Japan aimed to reforge Korean identity within the framework of colonial subjugation.

The imposition of the Japanese language as the "national language" was a deliberate strategy to sever cultural ties and enforce control. Language was wielded not only as a means of communication but as a vehicle for cultural domination, distancing Koreans from their heritage and reshaping their identities to fit the imperial narrative. This linguistic imposition reflects broader colonial tactics of cultural suppression and enforced assimilation, akin to principles of linguistic imperialism used as mechanisms of control across many colonial contexts.

Japan’s colonial administration restructured Korea’s social and educational landscape to center Japanese language instruction and loyalty to the Empire. Schools became environments designed to dismantle Korean cultural identity, emphasizing assimilation and loyalty to Japan. This approach mirrored Japan's broader strategies in territories like Manchuria and China, where education was a tool for cultural subjugation and the fostering of allegiance to the Japanese state.

The absence of photographic documentation of the Oath’s recitation reflects a deliberate erasure—common among colonial powers—that controlled historical narratives by selectively omitting evidence of coercion. This project challenges that erasure by reconstructing these lost moments, creating a visual archive that reclaims erased histories and exposes the realities of colonial coercion.

The classroom environment itself was meticulously crafted to foster discipline and loyalty. Rows of desks, imperial maps, and nationalist symbols served as omnipresent reminders of Japan's dominance. The visual presence of symbols such as the Rising Sun flag, militaristic posters, and the ritual recitation of the Oath worked in tandem to instill compliance and mold students' identities from an early age, transforming classrooms into spaces where colonial power was internalized.

The use of educational institutions for ideological reformation underscores how schools functioned as instruments of colonial power—reshaping cultural narratives, dismantling existing identities, and constructing new ones aligned with imperial objectives. This systematic approach reflects the biopolitical strategies that were fundamental to Japan’s governance of its colonies, turning education into a central mechanism for control and assimilation.