Caning in Korea

The album containing Dezső Bozóky's travelphotos (second). Related item: A.4760.2. (album). Unknown photographer. Photograph purchased by Dezső Bozóky.The “Korean” man undressed for the caning is surrounded by warmly dressed Japanese soldiers. It adds to the humiliation that the cane is held by a young cadet: in eastern cultures, where the old command unconditional respect, it is almost inconceivable for a young man to thrash an older one. Suggestive of contempt towards the Koreans, the photo nonetheless did not capture a real scene. The man on the whipping bench must be Japanese, because his hair is cropped short, whereas Korean men at the time wore topknots and refused
to have their hair cut, as something they inherited from their parents. Also, in photographs with similar subjects the persons punished are
strongly tied to the bench, and do not look into the camera. See also http://digital.lafayette.edu/collections/eastasia/imperial-postcards/ip0452 (last retrieved 24 August, 2019)