September 2018

Episode 3 & 4

Episode Discussion View all 7 comments

Synopsis:

Because of Ho Cheol’s death and betrayal of his beloved Ju Yeong, O Yang Chon demoted from Senior inspector to inspector and was sent to Hong-il constabulary. Unfortunately, Jang Mi asks Yang Chon for a divorce and other police officers in Hong-il constabulary do not see him as the “legendary.” On the other hand, Sang Su and Haeri are jealous of Jung-O who gets all the attention from the other police officers. However, when Jung-O went to the homicide scene, she gets devastated and cannot forget the horrible scene. In addition, Yang Chon criticizes Sang Susaying that he doesnot show any commitment to his position from the first day of work.

Discussion:

Like Dr.Saeji has mentioned in our first lecture, Korea can be described into five concepts: collectivism, hierarchy, shame, nationalism and competition. Throughout the drama, we can easily illustrate all five concepts in different way. Not only the main characters but also the sub characters indicate different perspective of lives. When I deeply look into the drama differently than the usual, I see several problems that Korea is now facing. At first, nothing seems eccentric in the drama. However, once you think and look into the issues that we, Koreans, are having, everything will start to lookodd thinking about a question such as “why would they do such a thing?”

From the beginning of the drama, it clearly shows that Korea is one of the competitive countries where it focuses on higher education, showing that people live their lives to the fullest by studying for several years to get accomplishments that they are desired of. According to Kim and Choi, people who received 4-year college education receive 150% more than the high school graduates and also there are 160% wage differences comparing what university or college he or she has graduated from and they will be treated differently in Korean society (Kim and Choi 2015, 457-458). For example, in episode 4, the drunk members of parliament commit violence toward Han Sol without any hesitation since they know that they are in higher positions than the ordinary police officers. I believed that this scene is actually showing the tragic side of Korean society in order to criticize the effects of social stratification and how the status in reality is certainly important (Ibid., 457).

Another fact that I would like to point out is the circumstance that we talked about in our lecture that elderly poverty rate is constantly rising in Korean society. The growth rate overall population aging, from 7.2% in 2000 to 12.7% in 2014 but Korea is not well prepared for the upcoming aged society, especially in terms of serious low-income issues (Jeon 2017, 175). As we see in the episodes, we can truly tell the differences between Yang Chon’s economic status and his father’s economic status just by looking at their houses. Yang Chon lives in an apartment in an urban area whereas his father lives in a rural area by himself; the society is becoming more and more difficult for the middle-aged people to live, raising their children plus taking care of their aging parents as well. Elderly parents do not want their middle-aged children’s help, knowing that they are having a hard time as well. Therefore, the single elderly in poverty is ranked as the highest in the OECD (lecture).

In conclusion, the problems in Korean society can be easily found. Overall, however, I believe that the drama itself magnifies the problems more seriously than the actual problems.

Largely, we can think about the questions such as:

  1. Do you think we can see the social stratification in our daily lives? Or is it exaggerated in the dramas?
  2. As a UBC student, do you think that receiving higher education really effects not only in Korea but also in Canadian society?

Bibliographies:

  1. Doohwan Kim, and Yool Choi. “The Irony of the Unchecked Growth of Higher Education in South Korea: Crystallization of Class Cleavages and Intensifying Status Competition.” Development and Society44, no. 3 (2015): 435-63. Accessed September 27, 2018. doi:10.21588/dns.2015.44.3.004.
  1. Jeon, Boyoung, Haruko Noguchi, Soonman Kwon, Tomoko Ito, and Nanako Tamiya. “Disability, Poverty, and Role of the Basic Livelihood Security System on Health Services Utilization among the Elderly in South Korea.” Social Science & Medicine178 (February 14, 2017): 175-83. Accessed September 27, 2018. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2017.02.013.

 

Episode 1 & 2

Episode Discussion View all 9 comments

Author: Sophie Rock

Synopsis:

In episode 1 and 2 of the popular Korean drama series Live, viewers are introduced to the main characters and their introduction to life in the Police Academy. Introduced as short on her luck, Han Jeong-o looks for employment whilst living at home with her unstable mother. Yeom Sang-su, intern at Serai Water, convinces his family and friends to invest heavily in his soon-to-collapse company. After unsuccessful interviews and the loss of employment and savings, both Han Jeong-o and Yeom Sang-su apply to the Police Academy for hopes of a second chance.

 

Discussion:

Nearly immediately, the first episode portrays corporate life as an extremely competitive and hostile environment. We know that Korean corporate life is extremely taxing, but how do those dynamics play out when looking at gender? The gendered playing field in the Korean corporate world is one filled with competition, leaving women workers behind due to archaic notions of male power and motherly duties.

As South Korea continues its trajectory into a rapidly industrializing society, jobs are becoming more and more sporadic. The transition from school to work is becoming increasingly competitive in a once streamlined process. However, unstable employment is nearly 7% higher among women as compared to men (Byun 2018, 8). This gendered difference is highlighted in Live, as viewers watch Han Jeong-o struggle to find employment, despite attending multiple interviews and job fairs, while Yeom Sang-su struggles in his career, yet still has a job. Han Jeong-o is not alone in this struggle, either. Other women are clearly discouraged, complaining that “Korea is ranked seventh from the bottom” in terms of female employment (ep. 1, 15:44).

As we discussed in our lecture on Demographic Changes, males are often seen as more fit for employment as compared to female workers. Despite a declining birth rate and increasing marital age, women are still seen as less desirable hires due to perceived familial duties and likeliness to become future mothers (Patterson and Walcutt 2014, 22). The male perspective on this issue reflects these facts. After having been offered positions with companies Winner and Real, Han Jeong-o’s male colleague announces he’ll pay for dinner. Han Jeong-o, having interviewed with both companies, questions why her male colleague was hired over her,to which he responds, “Men are easier to order around” (ep. 1, 16:25). It is clear that the gendered differences are noticed, as Han Jeong-o later states, “What really bugs me is the fact that men who hold the power in our society only see the world from a narrow viewpoint…” sharing that the male perspective on women in the workforce is wrong, after being subjected to sexist interview remarks (ep. 1, 16:50-16:58).

Overall, Live’s representation of the gender dichotomy in the corporate world seems to accurately reflect the reality of male power and the interpretation of female domestic roles in the workplace. Following these episodes, I urge you to consider several things:

  1. Is the assumption of future familial responsibilities and maternal leave a reasonable factor in the hiring process?
  2. Han Jeong-o states that she believes the country should pay back men for their military services, rather than individual companies, in response to the fact that men make 7 times more than women in their starting salary (ep. 1, 16:04). Do you agree that men should be compensated in some way for their military services? If so, who should be responsible for this compensation?
  3. How unique is this gender discrepancy in your opinion? Without looking at factual breakdown, do you consider Korea to have more gender discrimination in the workforce than in other countries?

 

 

Bibliography:

Byun, Geumsun. “School-to-work transitions in South Korean young adults: Stratified or Individualized?” Asian Social Work and Policy Review (2018): 1-14. 10.1111/aswp.12148.

Patterson, Louise, Brandon Walcutt. “Explanations for Continued Gender Discrimination in South Korean Workplaces.” Asia Pacific Business Review 20, no. 1 (2013): 18-41. 10.1080/13602381.2013.818805.