영어로 옥스포드 편집부에 항의 편지쓰기, 그리고 받은 피드백

최근 영어 리딩을 위해 도서관에서 oxford bookworms 시리즈를 즐겨 읽고 있습니다. oxford bookworms 시리즈는 유명한 동화들을 영어 실력에 맞게 제공하고 있어 영어공부에 도움을 줍니다. 최근 Hachico라는 책을 읽다가 책에 포함되어있는 아시아 지도에 동해가 일본해로 표기되어있는 것을 발견했습니다. 평소 같았으면 기분 나빠하며 지나갔을 텐데, 아이엘츠 시험을 준비하며 편지 쓰기를 연습했던 터라 옥스포드 편집부에 편지를 써보기로 결심했습니다.
 

옥스포드에 쓴 편지

Letter to Oxford university press
Inquire to modify the name of ‘Sea of Japan’ to ‘East sea’

 
Dear sir or madam,
I am writing this letter to inquire to modify the name of ‘Sea of Japan’ to ‘East sea’ in one of your Oxford bookworms series books named “Hachiko”. 
Before starting this letter I would like to thank you for editing the ‘Oxford bookworms’ series. I really enjoy this series, and it is helpful to learn english for me. I started reading this series’ books last month. As you know, these books are classified with their language levels. I finished reading the starter level last week, therefore now I am reading stage 1. Recently, I read “Hachiko”, and I found the name of a sea in this book is wrong. 
As you might know, the name of a sea is determined by its historical, universal, geographical  reason and justification at international organizations, such as IHO(International Hydrographic Organization). In this sight, the ‘Sea of Japan’ is definitely wrong. 
 
1. Historical reason
 “East sea” has been used since 59 B.C. However, “Sea of Japan” started around 700 years afterwards. “East sea” is used in history over 2000 years ago and  has been used on the peninsula ever since.
 
2. Universal reason
Not only in Korea, but also China and other countries use the term “East sea”. China used the term, East sea, during the Liao Dynasty(947-1125). Godhino de Eredia who published the world map in 1615 wrote East sea as “Mar Coria(Sea of Korea)”. 
 
3. Geographic reason
“East sea” is surrounded by South korea, North Korea, Japan and Russia. Therefore, it is not just Japan’s sea. Many countries shared this sea.
 
4. Justification at international organization
The IHO suggests that in the hard case of the agreement of a name for a landmark shared by 2 countries, it is an ordinary principle to use each working name. Therefore, we have to use both “East sea” and “Sea of Japan” together in accordance with international law, instead of using just one name.
 
Moreover, “Sea of Japan” is a reminder of Japanese imperialism. That’s why Korean and Japanese argue every time. 
For this reason, I hope to modify this term in your book. I wish to receive  feedback about it. 
 
Thank you
Yours faithfully,
Stella Kim

 
답변을 받을 수 있을지는 모르겠지만, 배운 영어를 이렇게 동해를 알리는 데 쓰니 기분이 좋았습니다. 그리고 막상 편지를 쓰려고 보니 왜 일본해는 틀리고 동해가 맞는지 설명해야 하는데, 그 근거를 잘 모르겠더라고요. 동해가 맞는 이유를 검색해가면서 동해에 대해서도 공부할 수 있는 기회가 됐습니다. 그러다 발견한 영어 사이트가 도움이 많이 되었어요. 관심 있는 분들은 한 번 들어가 보세요.
 
Why East Sea? – Why is the East Sea not the Sea of Japan? (prkorea.com)

Why East Sea? – Why is the East Sea not the Sea of Japan?

편지를 쓰고 일주일 정도 후에 옥스포드 측에서 답변을 받았습니다. 
 

옥스포드에서의 답변

Dear Stella Kim,

Thank you for your feedback. Please see below the response from our Bookworms Managing Editor:

"Many thanks for getting in touch about our Oxford Bookworms Library series. We’re really pleased you’re enjoying the books and delighted that they are proving helpful in improving your English. 

With reference to your query about ‘Hachiko’ in particular, when the first impression was published we received complaints about the map illustration from Korean and Japanese customers. Both sets of customers wanted the map to be changed in different ways, and this obviously shows how divisive it can be when there are disputed geographical borders or names. As you say in your email, 'that's why Koreans and Japanese argue every time’!

As a result of this, in reprints of the title, we decided to delete all names of seas (including ‘Pacific Ocean’) on the illustration. The case you make for calling it the ‘East Sea’ is very persuasive, but Oxford University Press doesn't wish to take sides in what has been a long-running and contentious debate.

Thank you once again for your kind words about the series and we hope you will discover many more titles as your reading continues."

I hope this helps clarify the situation. Should you need further help or have other queries, please do not hesitate to write back. 

  
Kind regards,

Valeria L.
Customer Service
Oxford University Press
 

결론은, 앞으로 모든 바다의 명칭을 지우겠다는 것이었습니다. 한국인으로서 동해로 표기되기를 원했지만, 옥스포드 측에서도 더 이상의 항의를 받는 게 귀찮았나 봅니다. 원하는 결과는 아니었지만 그래도 제 주장을 영어로 펼쳐볼 수 있어 좋은 경험이었어요. 외국인들과 영어로 대화하는 것도 힘든 코로나 시국에 이렇게 외국 기업에 편지를 쓰는 것도 실전 영어 공부에 많은 도움이 될 것 같아요.