Philosophizing About BTS

"Why BTS?" Because BTS' messages stand on philosophical ground.

This is the founding principle of Philosophizing About BTS, author Cha Min-joo's thorough exploration of BTS' messages through the lenses of 20 great names in philosophy, including Nietzsche, Hegel, Deleuze, and Adorno.

1. BTS are known as the Zarathustra of the 21st century. Their young spirits help shed light on such issues as consumption-oriented culture, the shackling of youth to the status quo, the modern dichotomy of classes (those born with a silver spoon and those without), and the system that refuses to allow young people to break out of the social system and become the owners of their own lives. This book uses the great thinkers of our time—John Rawls, Hannah Arendt, Maurizio Lazzarato, and Hans Peter Martin, among others—to illuminate the messages BTS put forth in their music.

2. Since their inception, BTS have been singing of the importance of having not only a dream, but the courage to grasp it. This book examines BTS' messages encouraging young people to examine the dreams they hold in their hearts. It draws parallels between BTS' messages and the philosophies of thinkers like Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Eric Hoffer, and Krishnamurti.

3. To young people, the world can be an unfair and disinterested place. Youth sacrifice their 'today' for a tomorrow that never seems to arrive and ignore their own innermost turmoil in pursuit of an ephemeral and impossible standard of beauty. Philosophizing About BTS takes a close, intimate look at the consolations BTS provides to dispirited and fragile young souls.



Reviews

"This book exposes the philosophical ideas of the young generation in upbeat manner, challenging the notion that philosophical talk must be serious… The author guides us toward a fresh, new angle on BTS' lyrics and away from exhausting philosophical overinterpretation. Rather than advocating vague optimistic views, this book delivers a message of hope that empowers the reader to rise from overconsumption, discrimination by differentiation and academic credentials, indifference, and social violence. Above all, it is easy and fun to read, but never light." – Lim Jin-mo, music commentator

Soon after its release, Philosophizing About BTS ranked second in weekly sales and first in daily sales on Aladin, a Korean online bookseller. Just 15 days after its release, it had already finished a third round of printing. Furthermore, Philosophizing About BTS remained in the weekly top 20 humanities best-sellers list at Korean major bookstores such as Kyobo. – Kyunghyang Shinmun, Korean daily newspaper

"Since the release of Philosophizing About BTS, bold attempts have been made to read K-pop from the perspective of its relationship to social structure. Humanistic approaches have been made, and are still being made, to understand the implications of K-pop bands' lyrics, performances, and methods of communication with their fans." – Sohn Min-kyu, merchandiser for online bookseller Yes24

"In some respects, BTS' messages may be more powerful than Hermann Hesse’s words. In consideration of that point, the author summons various thinkers and philosophers including Friedrich Nietzsche, Soren Kierkegaard, Martin Heidegger, and Eric Hoffer and compares their messages with BTS'. Finally, she guides readers to an understanding of why BTS enjoys such a great level of popularity today and why people keep listening to them." – Munhwa Ilbo, Korean daily newspaper

#1 at Aladdin
#2 at Yes24
#3 month Bestseller at Kyobo book store

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