Jung Ji-Hoon or better known as Rain captured the hearts of a lot of international fans
Korean Wave or Hallyu which is the spread of South Korean culture around the world has made a lot of impact to the Korean society, as well as to the international community. Locally, the Korean wave is responsible for achieving over one billion dollars in revenue annually for South Korea through cultural exports. Aside from this economic benefit, there are other effects too. GEO 4-4 student, Jung Su-ji, reveals what he thinks about Hallyu.
Known as Sandara back in the Philippines. Now, she is better known as Dara by her fans worldwide
Jung Su-ji shared…
I stayed in the Philippines to pursue my high school education. During my stay there, it was truly hard for me due to the differences in culture, language, among other things. But I could overcome difficulties all because of Hallyu. At that time, in the Philippines, Sandara Park, who is member of Korean singing girl group ‘2NE1’, was very popular. She lived there for about fifteen years, and she was a well known talent before she debuted here in Korea. Thanks to her activities in the Philippines, Filipinos had good impression of the Korean people, they deeply tolerated us.
Guys from all over the world likes Girl's Generation
Another interesting situation that I’d like to share is an incident that occurred in Taiwan. When my friend went to Taiwan for a trip, she enjoyed a free dinner. That restaurant owner was a fan of ‘Girl’s Generation’, he knew all their songs. Only for the simple reason that she was Korean, they offered her their restaurant’s special menu and dessert – all for free. After she came back to Korea, she said, “Thanks to Girl’s generation. I got to eat a sumptuous meal for free!”
Like what I described in the two stories above, there are lots of strong points that be attributed to Hallyu. We can get great benefit from it. However, disadvantages also exist. In any given situation, there is always the good and bad side. Hallyu is not an exception, there are side effects too.
One of the points which we have to solve is the act of being suggestive. Most Korean girl groups (not all girl singers) perform slightly exaggerated action and dance moves. Their dance moves are sometimes evocative. Furthermore, their main focus is their body; they portray sexy girls even if they are not adults yet. These actions are bringing about foreigner’s gaudy eyes. Due to this factor, there was an undesirable scene between Korean netizens and Japanese few days ago.
In addition, individuals who lived abroad naturally follow an unfamiliar culture – even their customs are opposite from ours, native Koreans. However, as singers or actors, they have to conform to the Korean way of doing things in order to be accepted and to become successful in the movie/drama/music industry. If they did not conform to the existing rules in showbiz, they will be blamed tremendously. It is too hard for some artists and they suffer a lot. As an example, in the past, one comedian was rebuked heavily here in our country when during her tour in Japan she mentioned something that belittles Koreans. Actually she meant it as a simple joke, but it was never accepted by the general public.
Indeed, Hallyu has both good and bad facets, and we should not be biased on one side. ‘Mediation’ is important. I believe that keeping the good effects, giving up the bad effects will be the best way for our Hallyu’s future.
Article written by Jung Su-ji
from GEO Class 4-4 (Prof. Nigel James Power and TA Hani Afuang)
