The Scourge of Surgery

I've mentioned the Korean obsession with appearance a handful of times, and promised a blog on the topic more than once - so here goes. For starters, lest I be accused of bias, yes, I know Canada has plastic surgery too....but the sheer numbers, type, and overall sketchiness of the industry here vault it in a completely different universe.

By my count (and I haven't tried looked very hard) there are at least 5 plastic surgery shops within short walking distance of my place. Word on the street is that 3/4 of young women have had plastic surgery. The most common one by far is an eye job...and this one irks me the most. Basically they cut away the eyelid so the eye is open wider and then add a crease in the eyelid to get that caucasian look. This one is a common grad gift from Parents. The saddest thing is that kids are often made to get the surgery, just like they're made to go to our English Academies....parents gotta "help" their kids "get the edge" (read that sentence dripping with sarcasm) .

Second most popular surgery? A more caucasian looking nose. My friend showed me how to notice, and ever since its been a passtime on the subway, noticing how many women have had the surgery, and quite often (sadly) how many are the victims of botched surgery.

Does this not seem wrong to anyone else? Imagine you were an alien (or God for that matter), and you come to earth, and you notice that one group of people are cutting their eyes so as to look more like another group of people. Would it not strike you as odd/extremely misguided? Do I think the eyes look better? Well, usually yes, they look more western for sure...but that's not the point. Beauty is subjective. Since when did western eyes become the objective standard that everyone holds up as beautiful?

And when you add to that number of people that are being mutilated by shady non-certified "doctors" (and I use the term very loosely) trying to make a quick buck - it breaks your heart, thinking about cultural and emotional factors that drive people to those lengths....the needless suffering (to say nothing of expense). I think its a tragedy.

According to a doctoral dissertation published Tuesday by Um Hyun-shin of Kyung Hee University, a survey of 810 women aged 18 and over living in Seoul and Gyeonggi revealed that 69.9 percent, or 566 of the respondents, said that they suffered stress because of their appearance.

In particular, 81.5 percent of women between 25 and 29 felt the need for cosmetic surgery and 61.5 percent of that group said they have already had it, suggesting that cosmetic surgery has become commonplace for 20-something Korean women.

As to whether cosmetic surgery is necessary, 72.6 percent of respondents said it should be done if needed, while only 20.4% said it should be avoided if possible.
The most important factor in determining beauty was cited as the face (25.8 percent) and body shape (18.6 percent), which placed above personality (13.5 percent) and attitude (10 percent).

As confirmation of Korean society's emphasis on appearance, 55 percent agreed that “external factors, rather than internal factors, are more important in defining a person’s beauty.”

Sources
http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200702/200702220030.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4229995.stm
http://www.time.com/time/asia/covers/1101020805/story.html
http://www.time.com/time/asia/covers/1101020805/plastics.html