Hi ASIA 327,
Popular culture often encapsulates and reflects the values and ideals of a society. In the context of K-pop and Korean society, K-pop demonstrates and magnifies some of the social issues present in modern-day Korea. In particular, K-pop puts on display the issue of gender inequality in Korea and then perpetuates the very values that contribute to gender inequality. Thus, K-pop acts as both a tool to view gender inequality, as well as a vice which creates a positive feedback loop, solidifying gender inequality in Korea.
Appearance is one facet which is valued in Korean society. The focus on appearance in Korean society is shown through K-pop. K-pop idols undergo regiments of dieting and exercise to maintain the “perfect” figure in Korean standards. Debuting idols often undergo plastic surgery as well to ensure their appearance is acceptable under Korean beauty standards. (Lin and Rudolf, 2017: 29) As we discussed in our argument video, this creates an unrealistic standard of beauty and girls and young women growing up absorb this information from popular culture they consume. Their views of what is attractive and desirable are shaped by K-pop and that leads to self-esteem issues and the equating of beauty with success. Sexual objectification in K-pop shows the patriarchal nature of Korean society. Men are the ones “in power” in management agencies. Management agencies dictate everything for the performer, including deciding how music videos are shot. (Saeji, 2013: 330) The presence of male gaze in K-pop is clear. K-pop music videos are rife with panning shots of female bodies and fragmentation, highlighting parts of the body like the breasts or butt. Sexual innuendos are common, with phallic objects and other subtle nods in videos. This is reinforcing a “male fantasy”. Female K-pop idols are sexually objectified and transformed into objects to be manipulated by the subject, in this case the male. In this sense, women are seen by men as objects. The effect of this on gender inequality is two-fold. Female fans of female idol groups are taught that this is what women are supposed to be like - objects for a male’s sexual pleasure. Male fans are taught that women are objects.
The equating of beauty and success in Korean society is another major aspect of gender inequality that is reinforced by K-pop. Job applications can demand a photo of the applicant, meaning in many cases, appearance gives you a benefit in applying for a job. Adding onto that, attractiveness is often associated with class. This enforces the belief that attractiveness leads to a better career and better prospects of marriage. (Woo, 2004: 63) Because of K-pop demonstrating appearance leading to success and prominence, K-pop teaches girls and women that appearance will present them with success in life.
Gender inequality in Korea can be viewed through K-pop, and K-pop perpetuates these inequalities. Women as sexual objects, equating of beauty and success, and focus on appearance are all shown by K-pop. Then the ever-present nature of K-pop in Korean society teaches men and women that the worth of a woman is in her appearance and her ability to fulfill desires of the man, and that to be successful, a woman must focus on appealing to males. Women are seen as not being equal to men - they are subservient to the man’s wishes.
Lin, Xi, and Robert Rudolf. "Does K-pop Reinforce Gender Inequalities? Empirical Evidence from a New Data Set." Asian Women 33, no. 4 (2017): 27-54.
Saeji, Cedarbough T. "Juvenile Protection and Sexual Objectification: Analysis of the Performance Frame in Korean Music Television Broadcasts." Acta Koreana 16, no. 2 (2013): 329-65.
Woo, Keong Ja. “The Beauty Complex and the Cosmetic Surgery Industry.” Korea Journal 44, no. 2 (2004): 52-82.
- Yujie
Hi Yujie,
Thank you for your input on K-pop and gender inequality. I totally agree with you that K-pop solidifies gender equality behaviours in Korea especially if we are basing it off appearances and sexual objectification on females in the music industry. Beauty and success have been linked hand in hand as we discovered while working on our argumentative video on plastic surgery. Specifically, beauty, care of self, and cosmetic surgery have all been tied on being an “appropriate” subject of society (Elfving and Hwang 2013, 1). In Korea, appearance is a matter of social etiquette where they must have the “right” look for a specific occupation or position such as those in the media (Ibid., 3). I was on…
Hi Yujie,
Thank you for sharing the thought about the social issues related to K-pop. I strongly agree that the gender inequality in Korean society do have some affect on the K-pop, and truly for some traditional culture, as we explained in our argument video, the K-pop is more like a small society that reveals the problem of Korea, but the appearance-oriented preference is also differentiated by gender. What you mentioned in the article that the dieting and exercise seem to be essential to be a ideal idol. However, I guess the standard for girls and boys group do have differences. For example, ShinDong신동 from super junior, and he is way more fat than normal male idols, but he still…
Hi Yujie,
Thank you for sharing your ideas on how gender inequality is reinforced in K-pop culture. I absolutely agree with you that K-pop makes an immense effect on solidifying the gender inequality in Korean society by objectifying women for the pleasure of males in their perspective as the subjects. I think that because K-pop artists’ popularity and fame rely so heavily on their appearance, their talents and quality of their music is getting less attention from the public and the media as it’s supposed to. This tendency is more severe to the case of female K-pop artists, especially idol girl groups, because it has been shown through Korean music industry’s many examples on how less attractive male artists could…
Hi Yujie,
Thank you for your thoughts on K-pop as a tool of viewing gender equality, despite the perpetrating factors and ideas in k-pop that continue to contribute to ideas of gender inequality. Relating to the idea of equating beauty to success, I believe social norms revolved around beauty, perpetuate one to believe that if you are beautiful, you have the power to achieve anything you want in a patriarchal society through your looks and sexually objectifying ones self to appeal to others. This idea stems from the many ideals of k-pop videos from female k- pop groups who appear as powerful “icons” to many girls, despite just being praised for their good looks, perfect bodies and sexual dance moves.…
Hi Yujie,
Thank you for sharing your insights regarding gender inequality within K-Pop and Korea as a whole. It seems as though women are held to unrealistic beauty standards perpetuated by men which marginalizes the power that female K-pop idols possess. Due to the K-Pop industry being run by males, female idols are forced to conform to an idealize version of a woman that is far from natural. As a result, female K-Pop fans are taught to become fixated on their appearance in order to become successful.
In addition, because Korea is an appearance-oriented society, there is a significant amount of importance placed on external beauty. The idea that a woman can only become successful if she is beautiful according…