Talk:GRSJ224/Lookism in South Korea

Hello. This is exciting topic since I am also from South Korea. I believe South Korea is one of the top country that lookism takes priority over anything among the people. I really like the way you explained the impacts and consequences of lookism; that are differ depending on one's experiences, social status, gender, level of education, geographic location, income, religion, sexuality and the list continues. I am really excited to enjoy your wiki page when it's finished.

Hey! This was a super interesting topic to read and I'm so glad you chose to research lookism in South Korea. As a Korean-Canadian (and fan of the manhwa Lookism), ideals of beauty in Korean culture has always intrigued me. I'm aware of some of the differences South Korea and Canada have in terms of what is "beautiful" so, for me, reading your wiki page on the causes and associated consequences specifically in South Korea was a thought-provoking read. I think you've built a great base to your wiki page with organized content that's relevant to the subject. I actually took ASIA 327: Korean Popular Music in Context last semester with Professor Saeji and while it was mostly about the history and genres of Korean popular music we also talked a little about plastic surgery in South Korea. Professor Saeji referenced the writer Joanna Elfving-Hwang's work in which she argued we can't look at plastic surgery or standards of beauty in South Korea the same way we do in the West. Similarly, we also had to be careful not to generalize the experiences of Indigenous peoples across the globe during our week 9 and 10 lectures.

I think it'd be worthwhile looking more into the writings of Elfving-Hwang, particularly her article "Gender, Globalization and Aesthetic Surgery in South Korea" in the 2012 journal Body & Society. In it she talks about the high level of cosmetic surgery in South Korea and expands on existing explanations by drawing upon feminist and postcolonial discourse. It's super engaging and I think it would really add to your research! In particular, she mentions an original opinion which is that in South Korea plastic surgery is actually a form of taking care of oneself. Procedures are designed to make people "normal pretty" and she almost describes plastic surgery as a cultural etiquette. She also mentions something that could tie into your section about employment which is that plastic surgery becomes a tool for survival and not used for vanity (like most people assume).

Thanks for the great read! Good luck on the rest of your page!

P.S. what are your thoughts on Koreans and idealizing small heads? Haha.

P.S.S. you can download the journal by Elfving-Hwang I mentioned here: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/238043267_Gender_Globalization_and_Aesthetic_Surgery_in_South_Korea