The Morphology of Resistance: Korean Resistance Networks 1895-1945

Abstract

In this article, I examine the relational underpinnings that make large-scale mobilization possible under conditions of severe repression. Despite the prevalence of resistant movements throughout our history, very little is known about the relational structure of resistant movements. How do poorly equipped people with a high heterogeneity successfully sustain to resist a powerful and repressive regime? What kind of network structures foster covert mobilization? The context is Korea from 1895 to 1945. Using over 50 years of network data extracted from 1,624 biographies of activists, I explore the morphology of resistance. Based on prosopographic network analysis, this article shows a novel way to navigate and investigate historical digital archives, weaving textual data with numerics and graphs. The morphometry of resistance shows that modular network structures can be effective for a large-scale resistance. The lessons learned from the Korean case help make sense of other cases of covert collective action.