Korea is called the empire of cosmetic
surgery. Many people are willing to do cosmetic surgery for the purpose of
beauty, and it is even becoming one of the “graduation presents.” It is natural
that people want a beautiful appearance and want to overcome their appearance
complex, but the trend of cosmetic surgery is getting worse in Korea. People
are so imprudent to have the surgery without thinking why they really want to
do it. Some people even think that cosmetic surgery will change their whole
lives and dream of turning their lives around. This kind of blind faith in
cosmetic surgery may come from the appearance-oriented Korean society, the
effect of mass media, or a westernized standard of beauty. There might be other
reasons behind people’s faith in cosmetic surgery’s ability to create beauty,
but the one certain thing is cosmetic surgery is not the only option to choose.
According to the survey by Trend Monitor,
one in five women in Seoul have surgery, and we have to notice why especially
Koreans are crazy about cosmetic surgery. The first reason might be related to
the characteristics of Korea. Korea is one of the appearance-oriented
societies. That means appearance is competitive, and people cannot ignore the
importance of looks. Other countries might show this trend too, but the degree
of obsession with appearance is too much in Korea. Many Koreans suffer from an
inferiority complex and feel compelled to be beautiful. This obsession with
cosmetic surgery is sometimes seen as an indicator of poor-esteem. Koreans’
view of cosmetic surgery, such as “it’s not such a big deal anymore,” can be
very dangerous.
Since the opening of the twentieth
century, as mass media started to develop, media naturally started to affect
people’s lives in various ways. We can say that the effect of mass media is the
second reason for Korean’s craze of cosmetic surgery. The media shows many
celebrities who have good appearances, and people naturally think that their
appearance is the standard of beauty. This makes people follow them and have
the surgery. Psychologists say that media can affect people’s body esteem “by
becoming a reference point against which unfavourable body shape comparisons
are made.” This shows that people might use images projected by the media as
standards for comparison. It is so natural that people who are exposed to media’s
standard form a stereotype of beauty. That is to say, media makes people form
an ideal of standardized beauty and makes them think that it is the only
beauty, so they can justify themselves to have the surgery.
This bad influence of mass media might
form a westernized standard of beauty because celebrities who have the western
look appear in the media and make people think that their look is the standard
of beauty. This is the third reason of Koreans’ cosmetic surgery trend. Now,
many Koreans consider big eyes, a prominent nose, white skin and a small face as
components of beauty, and the combination of these components clearly show the western
look. It is totally different from Korean traditional beauty. In Korea, the
most common type of surgery is double-eyelid surgery, which creates an upper
eyelid with a crease from an eyelid that is naturally without a crease. Not
only does this surgery explain the inferiority complex of traditional Asians’
eyes, but also proves the desires to have big eyes like western people. The
selection criteria of Miss Korea is another example of a westernized standard
of beauty. There is no definite criteria for Miss Korea’s appearance, but the
elected Miss Korea shows that big eyes, a prominent nose and white skin is the
standard of beauty. It is a clear contradiction that Miss Korea, who represents
Korean traditional beauty, has to resemble western beauty. However, every
culture has their own ways of pursuing standardized beauty like “Chinese women’s
bound lotus feet, Padaung women’s elongated necks and western women’s
constricted waists.” It implys that other cultures also have standards of
beauty and want to follow them. It is a sad reality because this shows Koreans
are not the only people who lack confidence in their appearance and their
identity.
These three factors show why Koreans are
becoming crazy about cosmetic surgery. There might be other various reasons
other than the characteristics of appearance-oriented Korean society, effect of
mass media, or westernized standard of beauty. However, whatever the reason is,
having surgery without a clear reason is definitely a wrong choice and will
result in a lifetime of regret. Some might still argue that they have surgery
to overcome their appearance complex and gain confidence, but that is just an
excuse because it is quite clear that surgery is not the only way to get over
the complex. Cosmetic surgery cannot change the person by itself; it just gives
a little bit of change in a person’s appearance. That means inner change is the
only way to overcome one’s complex and way more important than outward appearance
change. It is not just a truism, but it is true. People just deny this truth
because they don’t have that much confidence to change their inner self.
However, the real and right way to get over the complex is the change of one’s own
mind, and this way will be the first step to change Korean society.
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