The power of slowness: Governmentalities of Olle walking in South Korea

The idea and related practices of slowness have received global attention, as these have been viewed as reactions to and critiques of this “go-faster” world. Celebration of slowness has been especially prominent in South Korea, which experienced an accelerated transition to a post-industrial society. In line with recent power-sensitive studies of slowness, this paper develops a governmentality approach that examines how slowness shapes particular bodily behaviours. Drawing on recent work on rhythmanalysis and governmentalities, this study examines how slowness is enrolled and enacts the rhythmic governing of “Olle” walking – the South Korean countryside walking experience. It specifically relates the analysis to the site-specific experience of accelerated modernisation, where the legacy of state-led industrial development persists in the prevailing neoliberal capitalism. First, it examines the ways in which slow rhythm is involved in walking practice, deploying and reproducing a specific rhythm, body, and the mode of biopower. It then looks at several ways through which the emerging slow rhythm of Olle walking and the fast rhythm of everyday life are negotiated. This paper argues that slow walking can serve as an affirmative mode of rhythmic governing that fosters care of the self and the environment.