Unmasking the Glamour

       Growing up into not only the strict Asian household, I was brought up into the culture and all its standards that came along with it. The biggest standard: beauty. Like I mentioned in my previous post, it was difficult to simultaneously conform into two completely different cultural standards. It was like trying to ski down a playground slide, same objective but different ways of use. For the purpose of this blog I have attained sources and various data from an article, a newspaper and another article from a Korean news outlet. These sources are reliable because there was thorough investigation, research and interviews conducted for the accuracy of the topic. Also, they contain testimonies and shared experiences of those who has been affected by the unheard and hidden side of the glamour so depicted by Korean beauty.  In this blog post I will be writing about the negative impacts of the Korean beauty industry.

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  Korean beauty products being one of the hottest new trends on the rise has started to diffuse all over the world, “These beauty products are... one of Korea’s biggest exports. And they’re getting there with help from an entity you might not think would trouble itself with banana-shaped lip glosses or lace sheet masks: the Korean government.” With the realization that such could be of enormous advantage to Korea, the government has been supporting the sales of goods now more than ever, “Last year, Korea exported more beauty products ($1.067 billion, according to the Korean Pharmaceutical Traders Association) than it imported ($978 million). So far, in the first half of 2015, according to the Korea Customs Service, the total export value of Korean beauty products to the U.S. was $52 million, a 60 percent increase from last year. America is the third biggest export market for Korean cosmetics companies, after China and Hong Kong.” (1)

        The government isn’t the only one raving about the goods either, “ It has been estimated that between one-fifth and one-third of women in Seoul have gone under the knife, and one poll reported by the BBC puts the figure at fifty per cent or higher for women in their twenties. Men, by one account, make up fifteen per cent of the market, including a former President of the country, who underwent double-eyelid surgery while in office.” (2) As I wrote in my other blog posts, not only are cosmetic products extremely popular, cosmetic enhancements are as well. With all the benefits of enhanced appearance and favorable features comes the cost of individuality and uniqueness; sometimes at the cost of self-esteem too. According to Eunkook Suh, a psychology professor at Yonsei University, in Seoul explained, “One factor is that, in contrast to Western cultures, the external aspects of self (your social status, clothes, gestures, and appearance) versus the inner aspects (thoughts and feelings) matter more here.” When everyone is focusing on the outside, no one cares about the inside and that’s a very big problem we need to address.

        Beauty isn’t everything, you can’t be beautiful if you yourself don’t believe it. However, even that sort of idealism is just waved away by more beauty products and surgical procedures. “Beauty and image play a critical role in Korean society (you must include a headshot on your resume for example) and everyone – and I mean everyone I interviewed – believed the prettier you are, the more likely you are to succeed,” states Jeanette Francis of South Korea’s SBS news. Although no one is going to suddenly stop doing plastic surgery and immediately start accepting who they are and being proud of it, even though it’s sad that it’s unrealistic, the least we can do is by generation by generation start diffusing the acceptance of individuality while at the same time being proud of who you are.