Misogyny in South Korea

what is misogyny?

Derived from the Greek word misogynia―a combination of misein and gyne, which mean hate and woman― misogyny refers to an unreasonable hatred of women. [1] It is distinct from male chauvinism, which attempts to patronize and denigrate women in the belief that they are inferior to males. Misogyny is an emotional prejudice based on mere dislike and often even fear toward women. Misogyny is by no means a phenomenon restricted to one area or period of time. Its emergence dates back to ancient Greece and it has continued into the modern era. It appears in various forms in different societies, and the Republic of Korea (ROK) is no exception.

Tragedy brings misogyny to light

On 17 May, 2016 a 23-year-old woman was stabbed to death by a 34-year-old man at a unisex toilet near the Gangnam subway station in Seoul. What shocked the public most was that the victim was a total stranger to the assailant. It was found that his sole motivation for the crime seemed to be his professed hatred of women. He told the police that he had been humiliated by female customers at a bar where he worked as a server, and that prompted him to commit the crime. Immediately after news of the attack went public, people, particularly women, started to write messages on Post-it notes and put them on the wall near one of the exits at Gangnam Station. Soon this ad hoc memorial was covered with more than 1000 Post-its. Those memos reveal a range of emotions – anger, fear, sadness.