Korean Job Discussion Forums

[billybrobby]

So what do you guys think about the eye surgery around here? Is it an attempt to look more 'white?' Is it a result of a constant bombardment and glorification of western culture? Have they been watching too many Hollywood movies? Or is it not really a big phenomenon? Is it not related to looking white but to something else?

Some thoughts:

*Most of my Korean friends generally concede that the great majority of Korean entertainers, especially the female entertainers, have had this surgery

*I personally can't tell whether somebody has had the surgery or not, nor have I ever come across any hard statistics about it

*One girl I talked to said that 70% of her female friends have had this surgery (keep in mind, though, that this is anecdotal evidence from somebody whose friends may not represent larger Korean culture very well, and at any rate are in a demographic (young and female) who are probably more likely to get plastic surgery (than, say, people over 50, the current president not included)

*The desire to have big eyes in and of itself is not tantamount to wanting to look white. Mickey Mouse and most western cartoon characters have very big eyes. Is it because they want to appear more white? That's a pretty odd idea. I think it's because having big eyes makes somebody appear more cute, innocent, and guileless (i'm talking about perception, not reality). I have a general theory that Koreans, especially women, want to appear cute and innocent on some level. Thus we have an abundance of saccharine cartoon characters, cutsey cell phone charms, and even cute cartoons on the front of police stations.

*Koreans often compliment me about my wonderful eyes and my 'high' nose when there is nothing particularly lovely about either.

*If Koreans want to look like white people so much, why don't just gain some weight? haha.

*Surgery aside, there is a big value put on large eyes. Consider the opening line of the song ��� ����:

���� ���� �� ���� Ŀ�ٶ� �ҳฦ �þ�

Or the fact that I saw an ad on the subway for a plastic surgery clinic named something along the lines of ū�������ܰ�

Or that half the girls under thirty wear special contact lenses to make their eyes appear larger.

****

These are just some things to think about. It's all anecdotal evidence collected by one dude (me) and isn't really any subsitute for hard facts and statistics.

The fundamental question is this: do Koreans on some level want to look like white people? Or is this a total misinterpretation of the situation?



ps--I know the term 'white' is a problematic word with a lot of racist connotations, but please don't start quoting Malcolm X for me. there is no commonly-used word to refer to race that doesn't break down under some level of scrutiny. and sorry about all the typos.

[itaewonguy]

think different people do it for difference reasons!

Young woman do it to stand out and look unique in a society where it seems everyone looks the same, the trend was hot back in the mid nineties and it has of course BOOMED and now it is as everyone is doing it. Why did the president and his wife do it?
I have no idea! I do not think they wanted to be western! They will always be Koreans and nothing they do will change that!
Michael Jackson wants to be white?
Why it is white��s always-think people want to be like them?? Eyelid surgery in Korea does not mean you look white! It means similar to foreigners.. NOT WHITE!
It is done to enhance their appearance! To look more foreign for beauty reason!
Why do girls get their breasts done? To look like dolly parton?
Why do people go to the gym? To look like brad Pitt?
Why do people learn Korean? To be KOREAN?

[Big Mac]

I think it's sad that girls under 18 are putting themselves under the knife at such a young age.

This sort of thing just speaks to the over-emphasis on appearance in Korean's society.

I think the whole thing is very sad. I mean can you imagine if girls in the West started having surgery to make their eyes look Asian?

[jg]

White skin is associated with field work, thats true of a lot of countries, so its not all just about looking like a white person, but given the level of fawning over other features associated with white people - not just in Korea but in NE Asia is general - I think its mostly about looking like a white person., which seems to be their apex of beauty.

In China - not that different from Korea in terms of accepted beauty standards - the hottest teen bands, like F4, have giant, pulsating noses, and models (especially females) have ridiculously rounded eyes, almost perfect ovals in some cases. The predominant plastic surgeries - bigger noses, eyes, double eyelids - are all the very same things white foreigners are most "admired" for. Okay, they don't pulsate, but still..

I have seen many Japanese comics/cartoons portray Japanese as white people, complete with blue eyes and blond hair and Chinese and Koreans with very Asian features, the better to set them apart I guess. I mention Japan and China again because I see Korea as having similarities with both countries, and a reference frame.

The plastic surgery clinic near my former apt in Shanghai has signage in Korean, as does another one I have seen, and supposedly Shanghai is like the Mexican border cities, i.e. a destination for cheap plastic surgery for foreigners. The huge poster near their window is of Mena Suvari, looking ultra-white, quite the entincement! Apparently Kevin Spacey wouldn't do.

They gots to have it. I think many non-white groups go through the "bluest-eye" syndrome, and deal with it in different ways. Whats interesting to me is that some societies get around to wondering about it and questioning the beauty standards they choose, and others just dig in and go it.

[pegpig]

[Hater Depot]

Everybody wants what they don't have.

[djsmnc]

If you want to notice an eyelid job, just look for a large dotted line cut on the eyelids when they blink or close their eyes.

I think a lot of the surgery they get is clownish for the most part. I saw a girl that looked like a Korean Michael Jackson recently. Eye surgery, lip surgery, whitened skin, and I think chin surgery. I wondered if she was a man in a former life, but this was not in Itaewon, mind you...

[OiGirl]

[pet lover]

I can understand if the parents of my little first grader get the surgery done on her. One eyelid has a very distinct fold while the other has not even the slightest trace. This gives her a slightly sleepy, slightly dumb look which really doesn't suit her personality at all. Her eyes are very visibly different. They are both "big" eyes, but it looks almost like she can't open one all the way (compared to the other only) because the eyelids themselves are different. Actually, I hope that her parents DO get her that surgery someday and make them match, either with a fold or without.

[peony]

a lot of koreans do have the fold naturally, my entire family apart from myself for example

i dont believe that its to look more white at all, its true that the typically white or western features are looked up to as a beauty standard and maybe thats a bit sad but in the case of eyelid surgery, there are actually several different reasons for getting it done

one of the reasons is what petlover said, some people are born with uneven eyes and want to look more symmetrical

a friend of mine had to have it done on the recommendation of her eye doctor as her eyelashes grew straight down and entered her eyes often, sometimes scratching and irritating her eyes - i've actually heard that this is quite common

some people just have small, sleepy looking eyes that they want to look bigger

personally, im happy with my asian eyes with no fold but i dont think the girls getting them done think about wanting to become white at all when they are getting it done, i think its just an aesthetic thing... boob jobs are the most common in the u.s., eyelid surgery in korea.. same same

[Hater Depot]

http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/1950/context/cover/

[Ya-ta Boy]

One of my friends has 'small' eyes and when he laughs, they appear completely closed. He says his friends shout at him, "Hey! Open your eyes!"

But yeah, there is a thing here about 'big' eyes. The Japanese seem to like big eyes, too, judging from cartoons. It's just the local preference I guess.

Personally, I think the long Asian eyes can be highly sexy. Some of those sleepy bedroom eyes just make me want to curl up in bed with the owner.

[billybrobby]

[peony]

i know girls that are jealous of girls that are born with it naturally just like some girls are jealous of naturally big breasted women

its not a trend as its been around so long, its just the same as a flat chested woman getting a boob job, a small eyed woman will want eyelid surgery, a flat nosed person wants a better nose, a pencild!ck might well want to enlarge his soondae.. and etc. etc

my point is, i dont think its racially motivated at all, yeah its an obvious answer but i think that wanting to look better than what they were born with is the only answer

i think if you went up to a girl getting the combo nosejob & eyelid and asked her if she's getting them done to look white, her answer would definitely be no

my mom told me that even in her time people wanted double eyelids so its not new, people just like bigger eyes

[yesnoyesyesno]