http://factinformationtruth.blogspot.com/2012/07/artis-korea-cantik-tampan-karena.html, http://factinformationtruth.blogspot.com/2012/09/artis-korea-operasi-plastik-before-after.html
see these videos : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCKShGLyeK0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0caS8OPnS4
Jong-hyuk Lee · 연세 대학교, 서울 (Yonsei University, Seoul)
I'm korean too.
It's also true that there are many clinics specialized in plastic surgery in Korea(nice one not naughty one).
and many women do plastic surgery like it's some make up or clothes. it can't be deniable.
it's all because we koreans are too much lookisist especially GUYS.
we always evaluate people's look even when we talk about the athletes.
i'm sick of it.
Eliezer Daniel Sie
I know Korean characteristic (non disclaimer). Most of them (not all) are not as good as their outside look.
Doing business with them has always been tricky, at one point they say something to your face, they do something contradict in the back. As much opportunity they could profit from you, they'll do it without consideration of yours. Watch yourselves.
The girls, are very unstable at young age. Be aware of Korean playgirls.
(I can say this based on my own experience).
Gary Lee · Top Commenter · BCA Academy, Singapore
Ok fuck you guys. Firstly fuck the kpop lovers. Stop saying that SNSD has no plastic surgery. Oh I'm sure that all beautiful people are talented in korea, surely NOT. As some people mentioned the companies want them to go under the knife because they think they're not pretty enough. Some artistes don't even want to do it but sometimes they are forced to. And secondly fuck those who say almost all koreans have plastic surgery. Stereotype much? Maybe I should say all people with tattoos are gangsters, and steal money. But most of all fuck the Kpop fans believing that all of their idols are all natural. If you guys cant accept the fact that they aren't natural all the time, why not go crazy after a robot instead, true fans love the music and not the fucking looks.
Ely Sian · 돼북대학교
Yeah, I'm also born in korea and ashamed of fucking Koreans. That is to say I really hate Koreans too. Everyone around me is fucking koreans!(except for my girl friend. she's blessed Japanese).
As you know, Koreans are so rude, short-tempered and very selfish. Thus, Korean guys suck. but Korean girls are the worst. I even think They've got 'whore' gene or mutation. I really want to leave this goddamn country.
영 윤 1 hari yang lalu
i'm korean and it's true
NananananaLove 2 jam yang lalu
Those Korean surgeons really know how to do their job. Honestly though, it makes me sad that its such a huge part of their modern culture and how many women(and men) feel they have to do it to be accepted by society:/ (I heard that's its actually a common birthday present given from mothers to their daughters)
Barack O 1 hari yang lalu
It's sad to se this... in South Korea they all feel like they need to change their face to get the pretty look.. so sad and scary.
Angel 8:55 AM
Hello : )
I'm a korean girl going to a korean school.
and for my assignment I have to research and write about the plastic surgery boom in korea.
Umm : ) Just wanted to say thank you for the post! I liked your post- and its going to be a help for me : D!
Hahahah Although I do doubt that the statistics are true xDDD that half the women population have undergoed plastic surgery. but i do agree that the plastic surgery subject is taken way too freely here. Sadly our society is this way :( and it often hurts me that everytime I meet someone new, they ask me if I had plastic surgery- saying that even 10 year old gets plastic surgery if theyre korean. (which is absolutely false lol)
Debbie 3:01 AM
I am an ESL teacher in Korea. I live about 4 hours south of Seoul. I teach middle and high school kids. The middle school girls asked me if I had ever had plastic surgery. This surprised me. Then the college intern I was working with told me if I wanted plastic surgery I should go to Mokpo because there was a really good surgeon there. Plastic surgery is the number one winter break activity for middle and high school girls in Korea, according to the Korea Times. Eyelid surgery is frequently performed on middle school girls. I have seen it. Also boob jobs are big. No pun intended, but yeah, looks are really important and having that double eyelid is key. I don't know about mother's recommending surgery to their daughters, but I wouldn't doubt it. Whatever it takes to get ahead.
Catherine 12:44 AM
Amen, I agree with everything the Korean said, I called it the national obsession but I think he says it better calling it a “disgusting national disease.” I would like to add one word – disgraceful. I think that Koreans are smart and creative in general, but when it comes to this one topic, plastic surgery, I think they are beyond retarded. All these Korean women who had the surgery are so well practiced at lying that they will look you straight in the face without blinking a surgically scarred eye, and tell you that it is all natural. I got so tired of these women lying to me that I started to say that I don’t believe them unless they show me proof with a picture of themselves at age five or seven. Try it and see what happens. There is no better way to shout out to the world that you hate your race than surgically changing your eyes and nose. Imagine if millions of non-Asian people were going to plastic surgeons to erase their double eyelids. I read somewhere a Korean woman saying she is ashamed of her race because of the plastic surgery madness. I can fully understand. I think it is quite accurate that only about 24 percent of Korean women are really hot and the rest are so-so, but that goes for all races not just Asians.
Dongo 2:18 AM
I'm an ethnic Korean and I feel that though this procedure may be common, not every Korean with big eyes/double eye lids went through surgery. My father's side has strong noses and big eyes without a defined crease. My mother's side has the crease, but in her case her eyes are smaller, and a more "typical" flatter nose. In both cases it is natural through their family's genetics. Full Korean.
Now what if this surgery wasn't around? There are other ways (glue, tape, contacts) that people can get this without it being permanent. Does it make it more okay? Would there be such a concern about this? I guess it wouldn't be anymore serious than hair dye or a push up bra.
It's ashame that the world is influenced greatly by western Europe and the US. However, even the caucasians will want artificial looks to resemble what is said to be beautiful.
Jericho3/18/2010 1:52 AM
Don't change what God gave you. The Chinese culture really frown on plastic/cosmetic surgery. Even though they may not be pretty, they'd never do it. Just stick to what you are born with and live with it because you are unique.
No wonder I get confuse with Korean actresses and even some actors, they look similar, pretty much the same. Whereas for the comedians, they really look ugly.
yasmin zaini 2:07 AM
so does this mean that koreans are naturally ugly and they think they need to be pretiier/hotter?
TheBittenKitten 18:11 PM
I used to work in Korea and I stayed in Kangnam. All the Kangnamyoja I saw were ultrawhite, skinny and fairly tall. Some of them had pretty big boobs, too LOL I didn't know what to expect, and I was surprised.
I guess looks were a priority, but I figure it's like that in someplace like Los Angeles? Most of the girls dieted in a very hardcore way, but I did notice that married women seemed to have more "womanly curves." LOL Korean girls try really hard it seems to get married by a certain age, and they have to attract a guy, I guess.
To me the fashion was really girly. High heels, skirts...ruffles. I had to alter my normal style a little to try to fit in. I saw girls in a lot of mini skirts and form-fitting skirts. I don't think that's conservative.
Girls also whitened their skin big-time. But tons of African and Caribbean girls do the same thing, so I can't point a finger. I did notice almost all girls had pimples or a little rash on their cheeks. Someone told me it was a side-effect of the whitening cream.
One of my coworkers told me that girls have clubs to save money to get dbl eyelid surgery. I would say almost all girls got the surgery. That sucks for the girls who have natural double eyelids. It would p*ss me off if someone asked me if I had surgery like one of the other girls commented.
Anyway to me they all looked beautiful. Ppl did keep telling me how pretty I was although I have very black skin. That was strange.
Anyway, I wanted to comment about guys. Some of the guys seemed more concerned about their appearance, too. One of our guys had naturally nappy (not curly, nappy) hair, and he relaxed it. LOL I had some classes many years ago with a Japanese guy who also had nappy hair. I thought he was mixed, but he told me some Japanese people ppl have naturally kinky hair. oO He wore his hair in braids.
One of the really HOT guys didn't like his square chin. I doubt he got surgery, though. He was doing "dating" or whatever it is you do to find a marriage partner. He also obviously had a good job and a smoking hot bod, so I doubt his wife cared about his chin.
But yeah, Koreans are like a lot of other cultures, I guess. Weird complexes: small eyes, big heads, square jaw, tanned skin, short legs, small mouth, thick ankles LOL Nobody else really would care as much.
Unknown2 3:58 AM
99% of korean celebrities had plastic surgery. Koreans celebrities of yesterday did get plastic surgery too, but they didn't over do it like today. Many korean female celebrities have the same faces due to korean plastic surgeons run out of ideas. The typical faces of plastic surgery korean women are like Park min young's face, Park si Yeon, Goh or go arah, Harisu, and too many to list here. Koreans just don't naturally look like those korean celebrities of today. It is too obvious since South Koreans watched too much Bay Watch (american tv series) , then korean women all want to not look ethnic korean and change their faces. The general population of south korea is very plastic too. The latest statistics is 9 out of 10 korean women 35 and under had plastic surgery. Kids 10 and under had double eyelid surgery.
Anrielle Cyrian Lee 9:11 AM
Personally I don't like people having surgery to look pretty in front of others I mean have they ever thought of what god will think god made us different from each other we are unique yes there are things that is not to like about us but hey we all are beautiful and ugly at the same time its all on how you carry it and having a plastic surgery is a pathetic thing to do!!!
Korean Women -- Fixer-Uppers?
Dear Korean,
My father is an avid Korean drama/soap watcher. I've noticed that most of the young actors and actresses get nose jobs and double-eyelid surgery. What ever happened to keeping your unique Korean look -- the slanty eyes, flat nose, and rabbit cheeks? Did you guys lose pride in your physical characteristics? I understand the "Western"/Caucasian look has been a beauty standard for as long as they've influenced the world but still...
-- Viet Living in Korea Town (that's Garden Grove for you)
Dear Viet,
It's not just young actors and actresses -- it's everyone. The statistics about plastic surgery in Korea (particularly with respect to women) cannot be described by any other words than FUCKING ASTOUNDING. Consider the following:
- 76 percent (!) of Korean women in their 20s and 30s have undergone plastic surgery. Most of them were epicanthoplasty (i.e. the "double-eyelid surgery".) (So does this mean that 24 percent of Korean women are naturally hot? Something to think about.)
- 25 percent of Korean mothers who have daughters between the ages of 12 and 16 suggested plastic surgery to their daughters. (In the Korean's "Pantheon of Fucked-Up Statistics", this figure has to be the king -- or is it queen?-- slightly leading the figure that nearly 30 percent of South Africa is HIV-positive.)
- 27.4 percent of Korean college graduate job seekers (19 percent of men, 34.1 percent of women) thought they did not fare well in the interview because of their looks. 28.5 precent of job seekers have already undergone plastic surgery or have planned plastic surgery in order to perform better in the job market.
Personally, the Korean thinks the plastic surgery craze in Korea is a disgusting national disease. Nevertheless, the cause of this madness is fairly straightforward and understandable -- it's a blend of conformity, sexism, and a hyper-competitive society.
First, the ever-present Korean conformity. The Korean covered this topic long, long ago, back when it was only the Korean's friends sending in the questions for the blog. In the older post the Korean gave a quick-and-dirty answer, but this is really the true cause of the Korean conformist culture: that Korea went from pre-modern to post-modern, a process that took other countries about 150 years, in about 40 years.
Truth is, all pre-modern, agriculture-based socities are conformist. Such societies usually consist of tight-knit communities, whose members must all cooperate in order to earn a living. (Think of the Amish community for an American example.) Homogeneity is a natural outgrowth of such societies.
The Korean will say this point again and again until everyone understands this - ONLY 40 YEARS AGO, KOREA WAS POORER THAN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA. So although the miraculous economic growth took Korea to the forefront of modernity, Korea continues to drag its cultural baggage from the pre-modern, agricultural era.
Practically, this baggage-carrying resulting from compressed economic growth means that Korean people constantly care about what other people think about them. It doesn't help that Koreans tend to live very close to one another in massive cities, therefore never having a chance to get the hell away from everyone else.
So if a popular trend develops in Korea, Koreans follow that trend without thinking twice about it, because other people do it too. At times, this is a source of great national strength. When there is something that demands a truly national-scale cooperation, like the Olympics or the World Cup, there are no better people than Koreans to extract that cooperation. However, infuriatingly, a trend often makes many Koreans lemmings.
Unfortunately, the trend of beauty in Korea became this Westernized face, so people follow it without thinking twice about it. Once the beauty trend is established, every Korean starts demanding something that conforms that trend. What is an actor/actress to do? In order to become and stay popular, they all go through plastic surgery to conform the goddamn trend.
But this is not enough to explain the whole plastic surgery madness, especially regarding the general population. The second part of the trend is old school sexism. Simply put, Korean women get plastic surgery because they are being judged only on their looks. This is not all that different worldwide, so no further explanation would be necessary.
But what makes the sexism particularly devastating is that it operates within a hyper-competitive society. Right now, the unemployment rate among young Korean workers is around 12 percent -- and that's not counting those who are staying longer in colleges and graduate schools because the job market is too tough. And Korean resumes always have a place for you to affix your picture (something that is legally prohibited in the U.S.) Given that one's appearance is a large (often the only) factor in one's ability to find a job, what crazy person would not get plastic surgery?
Nonetheless, the Korean will maintain his stance - this plastic surgery craze, and the current standard of female beauty as a whole in Korea, are sickening. Eventually, Korea will get out of its conformist culture, and its standard of beauty will change accordingly. Until that day, enjoy the wonders of modern medical science, on display on AZN Network every night.
-EDIT 10/29/2009 6:43 p.m.- According to a survey by Chosun Ilbo, 90 percent of Korean women in their 20s and 30s said they would get plastic surgery to feel better about themselves.
A South Korean woman who's had both nose and eye plastic surgery.
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see these videos : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCKShGLyeK0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0caS8OPnS4
Jong-hyuk Lee · 연세 대학교, 서울 (Yonsei University, Seoul)
I'm korean too.
It's also true that there are many clinics specialized in plastic surgery in Korea(nice one not naughty one).
and many women do plastic surgery like it's some make up or clothes. it can't be deniable.
it's all because we koreans are too much lookisist especially GUYS.
we always evaluate people's look even when we talk about the athletes.
i'm sick of it.
Eliezer Daniel Sie
I know Korean characteristic (non disclaimer). Most of them (not all) are not as good as their outside look.
Doing business with them has always been tricky, at one point they say something to your face, they do something contradict in the back. As much opportunity they could profit from you, they'll do it without consideration of yours. Watch yourselves.
The girls, are very unstable at young age. Be aware of Korean playgirls.
(I can say this based on my own experience).
Gary Lee · Top Commenter · BCA Academy, Singapore
Ok fuck you guys. Firstly fuck the kpop lovers. Stop saying that SNSD has no plastic surgery. Oh I'm sure that all beautiful people are talented in korea, surely NOT. As some people mentioned the companies want them to go under the knife because they think they're not pretty enough. Some artistes don't even want to do it but sometimes they are forced to. And secondly fuck those who say almost all koreans have plastic surgery. Stereotype much? Maybe I should say all people with tattoos are gangsters, and steal money. But most of all fuck the Kpop fans believing that all of their idols are all natural. If you guys cant accept the fact that they aren't natural all the time, why not go crazy after a robot instead, true fans love the music and not the fucking looks.
Ely Sian · 돼북대학교
Yeah, I'm also born in korea and ashamed of fucking Koreans. That is to say I really hate Koreans too. Everyone around me is fucking koreans!(except for my girl friend. she's blessed Japanese).
As you know, Koreans are so rude, short-tempered and very selfish. Thus, Korean guys suck. but Korean girls are the worst. I even think They've got 'whore' gene or mutation. I really want to leave this goddamn country.
영 윤 1 hari yang lalu
i'm korean and it's true
NananananaLove 2 jam yang lalu
Those Korean surgeons really know how to do their job. Honestly though, it makes me sad that its such a huge part of their modern culture and how many women(and men) feel they have to do it to be accepted by society:/ (I heard that's its actually a common birthday present given from mothers to their daughters)
Barack O 1 hari yang lalu
It's sad to se this... in South Korea they all feel like they need to change their face to get the pretty look.. so sad and scary.
Angel 8:55 AM
Hello : )
I'm a korean girl going to a korean school.
and for my assignment I have to research and write about the plastic surgery boom in korea.
Umm : ) Just wanted to say thank you for the post! I liked your post- and its going to be a help for me : D!
Hahahah Although I do doubt that the statistics are true xDDD that half the women population have undergoed plastic surgery. but i do agree that the plastic surgery subject is taken way too freely here. Sadly our society is this way :( and it often hurts me that everytime I meet someone new, they ask me if I had plastic surgery- saying that even 10 year old gets plastic surgery if theyre korean. (which is absolutely false lol)
Debbie 3:01 AM
I am an ESL teacher in Korea. I live about 4 hours south of Seoul. I teach middle and high school kids. The middle school girls asked me if I had ever had plastic surgery. This surprised me. Then the college intern I was working with told me if I wanted plastic surgery I should go to Mokpo because there was a really good surgeon there. Plastic surgery is the number one winter break activity for middle and high school girls in Korea, according to the Korea Times. Eyelid surgery is frequently performed on middle school girls. I have seen it. Also boob jobs are big. No pun intended, but yeah, looks are really important and having that double eyelid is key. I don't know about mother's recommending surgery to their daughters, but I wouldn't doubt it. Whatever it takes to get ahead.
Catherine 12:44 AM
Amen, I agree with everything the Korean said, I called it the national obsession but I think he says it better calling it a “disgusting national disease.” I would like to add one word – disgraceful. I think that Koreans are smart and creative in general, but when it comes to this one topic, plastic surgery, I think they are beyond retarded. All these Korean women who had the surgery are so well practiced at lying that they will look you straight in the face without blinking a surgically scarred eye, and tell you that it is all natural. I got so tired of these women lying to me that I started to say that I don’t believe them unless they show me proof with a picture of themselves at age five or seven. Try it and see what happens. There is no better way to shout out to the world that you hate your race than surgically changing your eyes and nose. Imagine if millions of non-Asian people were going to plastic surgeons to erase their double eyelids. I read somewhere a Korean woman saying she is ashamed of her race because of the plastic surgery madness. I can fully understand. I think it is quite accurate that only about 24 percent of Korean women are really hot and the rest are so-so, but that goes for all races not just Asians.
Dongo 2:18 AM
I'm an ethnic Korean and I feel that though this procedure may be common, not every Korean with big eyes/double eye lids went through surgery. My father's side has strong noses and big eyes without a defined crease. My mother's side has the crease, but in her case her eyes are smaller, and a more "typical" flatter nose. In both cases it is natural through their family's genetics. Full Korean.
Now what if this surgery wasn't around? There are other ways (glue, tape, contacts) that people can get this without it being permanent. Does it make it more okay? Would there be such a concern about this? I guess it wouldn't be anymore serious than hair dye or a push up bra.
It's ashame that the world is influenced greatly by western Europe and the US. However, even the caucasians will want artificial looks to resemble what is said to be beautiful.
Jericho3/18/2010 1:52 AM
Don't change what God gave you. The Chinese culture really frown on plastic/cosmetic surgery. Even though they may not be pretty, they'd never do it. Just stick to what you are born with and live with it because you are unique.
No wonder I get confuse with Korean actresses and even some actors, they look similar, pretty much the same. Whereas for the comedians, they really look ugly.
yasmin zaini 2:07 AM
so does this mean that koreans are naturally ugly and they think they need to be pretiier/hotter?
TheBittenKitten 18:11 PM
I used to work in Korea and I stayed in Kangnam. All the Kangnamyoja I saw were ultrawhite, skinny and fairly tall. Some of them had pretty big boobs, too LOL I didn't know what to expect, and I was surprised.
I guess looks were a priority, but I figure it's like that in someplace like Los Angeles? Most of the girls dieted in a very hardcore way, but I did notice that married women seemed to have more "womanly curves." LOL Korean girls try really hard it seems to get married by a certain age, and they have to attract a guy, I guess.
To me the fashion was really girly. High heels, skirts...ruffles. I had to alter my normal style a little to try to fit in. I saw girls in a lot of mini skirts and form-fitting skirts. I don't think that's conservative.
Girls also whitened their skin big-time. But tons of African and Caribbean girls do the same thing, so I can't point a finger. I did notice almost all girls had pimples or a little rash on their cheeks. Someone told me it was a side-effect of the whitening cream.
One of my coworkers told me that girls have clubs to save money to get dbl eyelid surgery. I would say almost all girls got the surgery. That sucks for the girls who have natural double eyelids. It would p*ss me off if someone asked me if I had surgery like one of the other girls commented.
Anyway to me they all looked beautiful. Ppl did keep telling me how pretty I was although I have very black skin. That was strange.
Anyway, I wanted to comment about guys. Some of the guys seemed more concerned about their appearance, too. One of our guys had naturally nappy (not curly, nappy) hair, and he relaxed it. LOL I had some classes many years ago with a Japanese guy who also had nappy hair. I thought he was mixed, but he told me some Japanese people ppl have naturally kinky hair. oO He wore his hair in braids.
One of the really HOT guys didn't like his square chin. I doubt he got surgery, though. He was doing "dating" or whatever it is you do to find a marriage partner. He also obviously had a good job and a smoking hot bod, so I doubt his wife cared about his chin.
But yeah, Koreans are like a lot of other cultures, I guess. Weird complexes: small eyes, big heads, square jaw, tanned skin, short legs, small mouth, thick ankles LOL Nobody else really would care as much.
Unknown2 3:58 AM
99% of korean celebrities had plastic surgery. Koreans celebrities of yesterday did get plastic surgery too, but they didn't over do it like today. Many korean female celebrities have the same faces due to korean plastic surgeons run out of ideas. The typical faces of plastic surgery korean women are like Park min young's face, Park si Yeon, Goh or go arah, Harisu, and too many to list here. Koreans just don't naturally look like those korean celebrities of today. It is too obvious since South Koreans watched too much Bay Watch (american tv series) , then korean women all want to not look ethnic korean and change their faces. The general population of south korea is very plastic too. The latest statistics is 9 out of 10 korean women 35 and under had plastic surgery. Kids 10 and under had double eyelid surgery.
Anrielle Cyrian Lee 9:11 AM
Personally I don't like people having surgery to look pretty in front of others I mean have they ever thought of what god will think god made us different from each other we are unique yes there are things that is not to like about us but hey we all are beautiful and ugly at the same time its all on how you carry it and having a plastic surgery is a pathetic thing to do!!!
Korean Women -- Fixer-Uppers?
Dear Korean,
My father is an avid Korean drama/soap watcher. I've noticed that most of the young actors and actresses get nose jobs and double-eyelid surgery. What ever happened to keeping your unique Korean look -- the slanty eyes, flat nose, and rabbit cheeks? Did you guys lose pride in your physical characteristics? I understand the "Western"/Caucasian look has been a beauty standard for as long as they've influenced the world but still...
-- Viet Living in Korea Town (that's Garden Grove for you)
Dear Viet,
It's not just young actors and actresses -- it's everyone. The statistics about plastic surgery in Korea (particularly with respect to women) cannot be described by any other words than FUCKING ASTOUNDING. Consider the following:
- 76 percent (!) of Korean women in their 20s and 30s have undergone plastic surgery. Most of them were epicanthoplasty (i.e. the "double-eyelid surgery".) (So does this mean that 24 percent of Korean women are naturally hot? Something to think about.)
- 25 percent of Korean mothers who have daughters between the ages of 12 and 16 suggested plastic surgery to their daughters. (In the Korean's "Pantheon of Fucked-Up Statistics", this figure has to be the king -- or is it queen?-- slightly leading the figure that nearly 30 percent of South Africa is HIV-positive.)
- 27.4 percent of Korean college graduate job seekers (19 percent of men, 34.1 percent of women) thought they did not fare well in the interview because of their looks. 28.5 precent of job seekers have already undergone plastic surgery or have planned plastic surgery in order to perform better in the job market.
Personally, the Korean thinks the plastic surgery craze in Korea is a disgusting national disease. Nevertheless, the cause of this madness is fairly straightforward and understandable -- it's a blend of conformity, sexism, and a hyper-competitive society.
First, the ever-present Korean conformity. The Korean covered this topic long, long ago, back when it was only the Korean's friends sending in the questions for the blog. In the older post the Korean gave a quick-and-dirty answer, but this is really the true cause of the Korean conformist culture: that Korea went from pre-modern to post-modern, a process that took other countries about 150 years, in about 40 years.
Truth is, all pre-modern, agriculture-based socities are conformist. Such societies usually consist of tight-knit communities, whose members must all cooperate in order to earn a living. (Think of the Amish community for an American example.) Homogeneity is a natural outgrowth of such societies.
The Korean will say this point again and again until everyone understands this - ONLY 40 YEARS AGO, KOREA WAS POORER THAN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA. So although the miraculous economic growth took Korea to the forefront of modernity, Korea continues to drag its cultural baggage from the pre-modern, agricultural era.
Practically, this baggage-carrying resulting from compressed economic growth means that Korean people constantly care about what other people think about them. It doesn't help that Koreans tend to live very close to one another in massive cities, therefore never having a chance to get the hell away from everyone else.
So if a popular trend develops in Korea, Koreans follow that trend without thinking twice about it, because other people do it too. At times, this is a source of great national strength. When there is something that demands a truly national-scale cooperation, like the Olympics or the World Cup, there are no better people than Koreans to extract that cooperation. However, infuriatingly, a trend often makes many Koreans lemmings.
Unfortunately, the trend of beauty in Korea became this Westernized face, so people follow it without thinking twice about it. Once the beauty trend is established, every Korean starts demanding something that conforms that trend. What is an actor/actress to do? In order to become and stay popular, they all go through plastic surgery to conform the goddamn trend.
But this is not enough to explain the whole plastic surgery madness, especially regarding the general population. The second part of the trend is old school sexism. Simply put, Korean women get plastic surgery because they are being judged only on their looks. This is not all that different worldwide, so no further explanation would be necessary.
But what makes the sexism particularly devastating is that it operates within a hyper-competitive society. Right now, the unemployment rate among young Korean workers is around 12 percent -- and that's not counting those who are staying longer in colleges and graduate schools because the job market is too tough. And Korean resumes always have a place for you to affix your picture (something that is legally prohibited in the U.S.) Given that one's appearance is a large (often the only) factor in one's ability to find a job, what crazy person would not get plastic surgery?
Nonetheless, the Korean will maintain his stance - this plastic surgery craze, and the current standard of female beauty as a whole in Korea, are sickening. Eventually, Korea will get out of its conformist culture, and its standard of beauty will change accordingly. Until that day, enjoy the wonders of modern medical science, on display on AZN Network every night.
-EDIT 10/29/2009 6:43 p.m.- According to a survey by Chosun Ilbo, 90 percent of Korean women in their 20s and 30s said they would get plastic surgery to feel better about themselves.
A South Korean woman who's had both nose and eye plastic surgery.
As I'm sure you'll know by now, plastic surgery is a pretty big deal in South Korea. Remember last week when those photos popped up of all the South Korean beauty-pageant contestants who looked exactly the same? Everyone was all, "Hey, those guys sure do love their surgery," with a brief chuckle, before moving on to autotuned Charles Ramsey videos and forgetting about the whole thing. Then, of course, the internet lost its shit in a monsoon of moral outrage and started to scrutinize why Korean girls are trying to look more Western, saying how awful that all is.
I decided to call up my girl Sparkles (not her real name), who recently returned to live in her home city of Seoul, to find out what the reaction there was like to all this commotion. Turns out the plastic surgery trend has already become a running joke, with girls laughing about the fact that they probably all have the same doctor and teasing one another about not having their eyelids torn apart enough.
She also told me something else slightly worrying. Parents are pressuring their daughters into having cosmetic procedures. It all starts to get a little dark when weapons-grade stage moms are guilt-tripping their daughters into splicing up their faces. Anyway, here's that chat.
VICE: What's the surgery scene like nowadays?
Sparkles: We have trends, like to tear the inner corner of the eye so it's more almond-shaped. Or, for a while, it was liposuction and putting that fat into your forehead. It's hard to say if they're conforming to a Western ideal of beauty, though—no one will take a photo of a caucasian celebrity to the surgeon and ask for that. That idea may have started off only because white people generally have taller noses and larger eyes, so it's easy to describe it as a Western look, but no one in Korea will say they want to look Western. In Korea, we call doing your eyes and nose the "basics." They're the standard procedures.
Sparkles: We have trends, like to tear the inner corner of the eye so it's more almond-shaped. Or, for a while, it was liposuction and putting that fat into your forehead. It's hard to say if they're conforming to a Western ideal of beauty, though—no one will take a photo of a caucasian celebrity to the surgeon and ask for that. That idea may have started off only because white people generally have taller noses and larger eyes, so it's easy to describe it as a Western look, but no one in Korea will say they want to look Western. In Korea, we call doing your eyes and nose the "basics." They're the standard procedures.
That sounds like you're ordering a burger: "I'll just get the basics, thanks."
Yeah. Like, "Oh, you haven't even gotten plastic surgery yet? You should get the basics!" That's nothing. So many people do it that it's got to the point where people say things like, "But you only got your eyes and your nose done, it's not a big deal."
Yeah. Like, "Oh, you haven't even gotten plastic surgery yet? You should get the basics!" That's nothing. So many people do it that it's got to the point where people say things like, "But you only got your eyes and your nose done, it's not a big deal."
Do you have friends who have had plastic surgery?
I don't think I have a single friend who hasn't had some kind of procedure done. Everyone has something. Normally they pay for it themselves, but there are a lot of mothers who will pay for their daughters. Everyone is getting prettier and prettier and some parents don't want their child to be the ugly one. It's like in the 90s if you got a Discman because your parents didn't want you to be the only kid at school without one.
I don't think I have a single friend who hasn't had some kind of procedure done. Everyone has something. Normally they pay for it themselves, but there are a lot of mothers who will pay for their daughters. Everyone is getting prettier and prettier and some parents don't want their child to be the ugly one. It's like in the 90s if you got a Discman because your parents didn't want you to be the only kid at school without one.
Why did you decide to have surgery yourself?
It wasn't my idea. My mum kept saying, "It's not that big of a deal, just close your eyes, go to sleep and it's done. You wake up and it's with you for the rest of your life." She started saying that when I was in high school. She wanted me to get my nose done because she wanted that transition time before college.
It wasn't my idea. My mum kept saying, "It's not that big of a deal, just close your eyes, go to sleep and it's done. You wake up and it's with you for the rest of your life." She started saying that when I was in high school. She wanted me to get my nose done because she wanted that transition time before college.
Why did she want you to do it?
The main reason was—and this is true—that, in society, there's an idea that the prettier you are, the more benefits you get. People tend to be more inclined toward attractive people when they make decisions like with jobs. That's the standard of beauty here, so everyone wants to be that way. The culture has made it normal. A lot of people don't think too deeply about it. They're like, "Oh I wish my eyes were bigger—OK, I'll go get it done."
The main reason was—and this is true—that, in society, there's an idea that the prettier you are, the more benefits you get. People tend to be more inclined toward attractive people when they make decisions like with jobs. That's the standard of beauty here, so everyone wants to be that way. The culture has made it normal. A lot of people don't think too deeply about it. They're like, "Oh I wish my eyes were bigger—OK, I'll go get it done."
Do you notice these benefits now that your face has changed?
I personally—not only in Korea, but while traveling—have noticed that people are nicer to me. I feel that I can get away with more.
I personally—not only in Korea, but while traveling—have noticed that people are nicer to me. I feel that I can get away with more.
You're going to rob a bank, are you?
No, I'm not saying I take advantage of it, but I feel like the way people treat me is different. It makes me feel like people were right. I read somewhere that, psychologically, people trust prettier people more.
No, I'm not saying I take advantage of it, but I feel like the way people treat me is different. It makes me feel like people were right. I read somewhere that, psychologically, people trust prettier people more.
Was it weird seeing your face for the first time?
I was on pain meds and sleeping medication for a week when I had my nose done, so I literally just slept. When I first saw it, it was really weird. I thought it looked too tall, I didn't like it and I didn't think it suited my face. When I got used to seeing myself with my new nose, though, it was that feeling like when you go shopping and get the perfect outfit and you're happy that it's yours and you can't wait to wear it. It's that feeling times a million—just so amplified.
I was on pain meds and sleeping medication for a week when I had my nose done, so I literally just slept. When I first saw it, it was really weird. I thought it looked too tall, I didn't like it and I didn't think it suited my face. When I got used to seeing myself with my new nose, though, it was that feeling like when you go shopping and get the perfect outfit and you're happy that it's yours and you can't wait to wear it. It's that feeling times a million—just so amplified.
And your dad wanted you to get your ears done too, right?
Yeah, one was smaller than the other. He was very emotional about the fact that I would one day feel self-conscious at my wedding when I put my hair up. So weird.
Yeah, one was smaller than the other. He was very emotional about the fact that I would one day feel self-conscious at my wedding when I put my hair up. So weird.
Have you had anything else done?
I've had my eyes done, and that's really freaky because you have to stay awake. They use local anaesthetic on your eyelids and below your eyes. It was horrible because you can feel something going through your skin, like when they're tugging thread through it. I was covered in sweat because I was so nervous. I had it done at the same time as my nose, but it didn't heal well, so I got it done again. Initially it was my mom who wanted me to do that.
I've had my eyes done, and that's really freaky because you have to stay awake. They use local anaesthetic on your eyelids and below your eyes. It was horrible because you can feel something going through your skin, like when they're tugging thread through it. I was covered in sweat because I was so nervous. I had it done at the same time as my nose, but it didn't heal well, so I got it done again. Initially it was my mom who wanted me to do that.
Were you scared before surgery?
I was mostly worried that people would be able to tell. I kept saying to the doctor, "Please can you do my nose as natural as possible?" And he sort of got annoyed at me and was like, "Why don't you just not do it then? Why would you get surgery if you don't want anyone to know?" His consultant told me not to worry and that humans are creatures of adaptation, which is true; I can't imagine my face before. It was meant to be eyes first then nose, but since I was so scared they just put me to sleep and did my nose first.
I was mostly worried that people would be able to tell. I kept saying to the doctor, "Please can you do my nose as natural as possible?" And he sort of got annoyed at me and was like, "Why don't you just not do it then? Why would you get surgery if you don't want anyone to know?" His consultant told me not to worry and that humans are creatures of adaptation, which is true; I can't imagine my face before. It was meant to be eyes first then nose, but since I was so scared they just put me to sleep and did my nose first.
Do you ever look at old photos of yourself?
It's shit. Like I said, I can't even imagine my old face. Around the house, that's also a very lighthearted joke in our family. I'll say I have to set the photos on fire and my dad will throw me a lighter. The presurgery photos I've kept on Facebook aren't closeups or in focus. At first I didn't care, but then I started making new friends, so I thought I should delete them. If someone asks me if I've had my nose done, I won't lie, but I'm not gonna be like, "Hi, I'm Sparkles, I got my nose done," you know? It's not a very common topic socially—people are more interested in which procedures you had done and where.
It's shit. Like I said, I can't even imagine my old face. Around the house, that's also a very lighthearted joke in our family. I'll say I have to set the photos on fire and my dad will throw me a lighter. The presurgery photos I've kept on Facebook aren't closeups or in focus. At first I didn't care, but then I started making new friends, so I thought I should delete them. If someone asks me if I've had my nose done, I won't lie, but I'm not gonna be like, "Hi, I'm Sparkles, I got my nose done," you know? It's not a very common topic socially—people are more interested in which procedures you had done and where.
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If you ask a Korean girl why they want plastic surgery, it’s an entirely different story. Yes, they want to be “prettier” but for more reasons than the alleged confidence-booster. They want a husband. They want more job prospects. They want to be more accepted in society. They want their parents to think they’re worth something. Because the sad truth here in Korea is that a nose job and a “double eyelid surgery” will get them those things.
Blepharoplasty before & after (AKA double eyelid surgery – adding a crease in their eyelid to give them “double” eyelids) (Source: KennethKimMD)
Reality TV shows parade “ugly” Korean girls transformed via boob/chin/eyelid/nose jobs up and down a runway and brainwash little girls into thinking plastic surgery is the only way to be happy. K-pop stars and other Korean celebrities talk openly about the work they’ve had done, stripping away any stigma attached to plastic surgery, and the media portrays them as “ambitious” women and men who are investing in their futures. Hundreds of cosmetic surgery websites boast the “best prices” and encourage both men and women to undergo these “standard” and “necessary” procedures.
It starts when they’re young. Mirrors are in every room of the school I teach at so students and teachers alike can perfect their hair and makeup at all times. It’s not uncommon for half of my female students to be holding out a compact mirror in one hand and combing their hair with the other during the majority of class. A common graduation present or a “sweet sixteen” gift is the double eyelid surgery to turn naturally narrow eyes into large, anime-looking eyes. These mothers tell their daughters that they’re ugly and are more than happy to pay for the reasonably-priced surgeries.
(Source: Buzzfeed. Interesting documentary about high school life in Korea. Skip to 5:18 for section on “Beauty”.)
As plastic surgery gets more and more common, the pressure to conform to the same face – literally – is rapidly increasing. Koreans aren’t shy about telling each other (or us, foreigners) that you’re fat or ugly. Want people here to think you’re beautiful? Just get your average chin-shave, nose job, boob job, eyelid surgery and jaw restructure so you can look like every celebrity and maybe even possibly get a husband.
As I started learning more about the prevalence of plastic surgery in Korea, I was judgmental. It seems so vain to care that much about what you look like. But then I realized that these women don’t feel like they have a choice. As they’re surrounded by more and more people who are all getting these procedures done and looking more “beautiful”, what choice do they have but to keep up and get the identical surgeries done as well? And now of course little girls growing up in this kind of society don’t know any better. Nobody is here to tell them about “inner beauty”. All of the celebrities look the same so they don’t have a different Korean face to idolize. And if everybody else looks “beautiful”, then men wouldn’t bother giving a plain face the time of day.
The K-Pop Plastic Surgery Obsession
Inspired by pop stars and encouraged by culture that equates success with physical beauty, the "self-racism subtext" of buying an ideal Korean face
Mihija Sohn, Miss Korea 1960, and Sung-hye Lee, Miss Korea 2012. (AP)
When 17-year-old Hailey Kim looks in the mirror, she doesn't see a pretty person. Her face is too round, she thinks; her lips too thin, her nose not quite right. Her reflection fuels a cosmetic surgery wish list -- bigger lips, higher cheeks, and a more delicate chin. Unhappiness with appearance is de rigueur for many teenagers, but for Korean Americans perhaps more than any other ethnic group, this is increasingly being addressed with a scalpel.
California-born Kim has already undergone two procedures: a nose job and double eyelid surgery. These have given her eyes a Western crease and made her nose small and high. Kim had full support from her family for these operations. And why shouldn't she? Her mother and aunts have all had similar operations. Kim hopes to study psychology when she goes to college, but she's deferring for a year so she can work and save money for more surgery.
"My cousin had her nose and eyes done, my mom had her eyes done, and my aunts had noses and eyes done, all in Korea," she says. "I found out about this when I was in elementary school."
None of these operations, however, are as radical as what she wants to do next.
One in five South Korean women has had some form of cosmetic surgery, compared to around one in 20 in the United States.
Kim recently read about a relatively new cosmetic procedure that is colloquially known as V-line surgery. It involves breaking and shaving the jawline to create a V-shaped face. This surgery is popular amongst young Korean pop stars, who have their faces reshaped to give them elfin, anime-like appearances. The V-line shape gives the face a certain fragility, and its childlike appeal has won Kim over.
"I hope to achieve a slimmer, oval face from the procedure," Kim says. "I just want to better myself. My wants may be drastic, but I'm not trying to look exactly like someone else."
Dr. David A. Koslovsky, a maxillofacial surgeon at Columbia College of Dental Medicine, performs the V-line operation regularly, though he has a different name for it. "I perform corrective jaw surgery," he says. "This is first and foremost a functional procedure for when teeth are misaligned. It does have an aesthetic benefit, but that's not why we do it. It's a complex, risky procedure. You could have permanent numbness, and there have been cases where people have died from this operation."
It's also extremely painful. The jaws are wired together for six weeks, and it can take six months for the swelling to disappear. But the danger and the physical pain -- and the possible confusion of seeing a totally different person in the mirror -- is seen as a small price to pay by many Korean American women. To understand why, you have to go to South Korea.
Remarkably, one in five South Korean women has had some form of cosmetic surgery, compared to around one in 20 in the U.S., according to the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons. A powerful Korean consumer culture over the past two or three decades has made Korean women equate beauty with professional and economic success. Feminist criticisms of body objectification are barely heard, and the racial argument that this surgery is a form of "trying to look white" has faded -- due to the rise of Korean pop music culture. K-pop has created a completely new beauty aesthetic that nods to Caucasian features but doesn't replicate them.
K-pop culture -- think "Gangnam Style" -- and its look have spread across East Asia and into the Asian community in the United States. This popularity -- and the value placed on the surgery behind the stars -- has meant that South Korea is now synonymous with medical tourism, and has established itself as an epicenter for all sorts of cosmetic surgery.
Mihija Sohn, Miss Korea 1960 looks nothing like Sung-hye Lee, the winner of Miss Korea 2012. Miss 1960's face is full, her nose is flat, and her eyes are small. Beauty in the 1960s had a very natural slant to it. Women were expected to enhance rather than alter their physical beings. This is in direct contrast to the identikit images of contestants in pageants over the last decade, where contestant pageant teams often feature a consulting surgeon on staff.
"Older standards of beauty were big body, wide hips, and good to make baby," says Bae Seonghee, a 16-year-old schoolgirl from Gumi, South Korea. "Eyes there were slanty and sleepy." Seonghee giggles and hides behind her long bangs. She's elbowed by her classmate Kang NaYeon on her left, and she shrugs and looks up again. "Pretty is a small head, big eyes, and high nose and forehead," she says earnestly. Seonghee is practicing English as part of her school curriculum, and she motions to different parts of her face as she speaks.
Gumi is a small rural town, 115 miles south of Seoul, and the girls at Gumi High School are less sophisticated than their city counterparts. Out of the seven girls I spoke with, only one had even been to the capital. But cosmetic surgery isn't an urban, cosmopolitan phenomenon in South Korea. It's becoming a nationwide obsession.
For the girls of Gumi, it's driven by videos from the WonderGirls and Girls Generation, girl groups that launched with 17 to 20-year-old singers. They all have small faces, large eyes, and tiny button noses. Chins are pointed, cheeks are wide, and their faces glow artificially, imbuing them with the anime quality.
A big industry ensures they stay that way. Everything, from their vocals to their face shape, is manufactured by their management companies. Cosmetic surgery is a large part of creating the K-pop image. Many of the K-pop idols even act as spokespeople for surgical companies. In a video on the Cinderella Clinic website, singer G.Na says, "This clinic is where Dr. Jong Phil is. As you are aware he gives a really kind consultation. Come and become more beautiful." The stars don't actually admit to actually having had the surgery, but it is so rampant among them that numerous websites exist dedicated to analyzing who got what where.
"I like Girls Generation," said Korean schoolgirl Kim RyeoGyeong. "They have double eyelid and a small face; a round forehead -- from an implant. They say they didn't do any surgery, but I know they did."
As James Turnbull, a writer and lecturer in Korea on feminism and pop culture, noted, "The idea here is that you like the appearance of the 'idols' and you should try and look like them."
"K-pop is a package that's not confined to the music," he said.
Before the K-pop boom, Korean youth already were being brought up on a diet of surgery, so the idea of an operation to look like their favorite starlet is socially acceptable. Children are considered an embodiment and reflection of their parents' status, and to this end they are shaped and molded -- through intense schooling, but also through surgery to be the best they can be. Notions of beauty and productivity are married together.
The surgery quickly caught on. Its first clientele were Korean prostitutes, who were trying to appeal to American soldiers.
16-year-old Chae Jeongwon, a schoolgirl at Gumi High School, has grown up with the understanding that she'll have double eyelid surgery one day. "It's a present for senior schoolgirls," she wrote, in an essay about Korean surgery. "They say, Mommy, if you get my eyes or nose, my scores are better than before. Please!"
The stress on aesthetics-by-knife is part of a strange cultural mix of the modern and the ancient in South Korea today. Families embrace traditional routines such as dining and living together, but equally encourage their children to work 18 hour days at school. The country is the most wired in the world, with the highest rate of smartphone usage -- 67 percent -- and 95 percent of Korean homes having internet access. Technology pervades every part of life, from keyless doors -- you type in a passcode -- to karaoke studios on trains. In this setting, women need to juggle the cultural expectations of being productive, engaged citizens, with the expectations of femininity and beauty that is also demanded from them.
"There are strict rules about women's appearance in the workplace," Turnbull said. "Standards are far harsher than Western countries."
Job applicants, for example, are commonly required to submit a headshot with their resume. Beauty is prized almost everywhere in the world, but in South Korea its value is upfront and open. South Korean employers scrutinize the looks of the applicants -- in search for physical attractiveness -- in addition to their professional qualifications.
Sharon Hejiin Lee, an assistant professor in the department of social and cultural analysis at New York University, explains that, right or wrong, Korean women are themselves propagating these expectations.
"There's a real problem when you make generalizations about a whole country full of women, that they're all culturally duped," Hejiin Lee said in an interview. "There are certain economic situations happening in Korea and America that might impel different choices. We -- Americans -- might not see plastic surgery on the same level here that we see in Korea. But we do see people looking to the consumer market for help in their personal lives. Weigh that through an economic framework, and it's what you're seeing in Korea today."
"In Korea, for a woman to be capable, it's not enough just to have a certain skill set " she said. "You have to be beautiful as well. After the Korean economic crisis in 1997, competition for jobs led to the surgery boom; people trying to get a leg up in the job market any way they can."
In Gumi, Kang NaYeon is getting eyelid surgery as a present from her parents when she finishes her school exams. "Companies don't like to hire people who have had eye and nose surgery," she said. "There's a small backlash against it now, but they still only hire pretty people. Because of this, parents let children have surgery even younger so it looks more natural as they mature." Kang NaYeon said she is a "little scared" about having surgery. "They use a knife or scissors. A cut here and here and then stitches," she gestures.
None of this was so when the American plastic surgeon Dr. Ralph Millard arrived in South Korea in 1954. Korea was a Japanese colony during the first half of the twentieth century, and then was virtually leveled during the Korean War, which lasted from 1950 to 1953. Millard was chief plastic surgeon for the United States Marine Corps. Part of his role was to help treat Korean accident and burn victims. However, Millard decided to "help" in a different way than planned. He performed what Korean academic journals say was the first recorded double eyelid operation in South Korea.
Millard's reasoning was that creating a more Western look would help Asians assimilate better into an emerging international economy. "The Asian eyelid produces a passive expression which seems to epitomize the stoical and unemotional manner of the Oriental," he wrote later in The American Journal of Ophthalmology.
The surgery quickly caught on. Its first clientele were Korean prostitutes who were trying to appeal to American soldiers. Surgery for beautification purposes worked its way into mainstream culture. It became commonplace for Korean women to have eyelid operations to give themselves the Western crease, or "double eyelid."
The first cosmetic surgery clinic opened in Korea in 1961, and year on year, the numbers of women undergoing cosmetic operations doubled and then tripled. Double eyelids are still today the most popular procedure. Asian rhinoplasty -- a nose job -- is second. It extends and shapes the nose, to make the Asian profile "less flat." The two operations are so common that they are not called surgery, but a "procedure."
These two procedures have led to questions of whether Korean women were trying to look Western. "Often times when Asian American women opt to get surgery, people automatically assume it's because they want to look white, but often you find the pressure to engage in these surgeries coming from their own families, from their connections abroad," said Lee, the NYU professor. "When we think of it as just the desire to look white, we're not really giving credit to the surgery industry that flourishes by reprinting people's features."
Dr. Hyuenong Park, a surgeon at the OZ Cosmetic Clinic in Korea, agrees. "A small and slim face is ideal to most of people now," he said. "Even though many Caucasians have small and slim faces, it doesn't mean Asians want to look like Caucasians. If you inspect some Caucasian celebrities, you find many examples of prominent jaws and high cheekbones. But if you inspect Asian celebrities, they all have small jaws and cheekbones."
Dr. Park said that changes to ethnic features are the main reason patients come to him. "Most Asians have wide skulls and big faces," he said. "Even a slightly wide jaw can make them look heavy, dull, and mean. Jaw reduction can make their face smaller, slimmer, and nicer."
This perspective ties into what Dr. Eugenia Kaw calls the "self-racism subtext." Her research paper, "Medicalization of Racial Features,"focused on how Asian Americans viewed themselves, and how they were influenced by cultural perspectives. "It boils down to physical traits being connected to negative characteristics," she said. "Now it's written as if one was trying to right racial ideology. It's insidious -- not like women who opt for surgery out of empowerment and choice."
Dr. Kaw's background is in anthropology and her paper has been established as one of the first discourses on Asian American surgery. Two decades later, much of her research is still highly relevant. She wrote that the "alteration of Asian American women of facial features is less of a transforming process, and more of a normalizing one, "to allow them to fit in with their Western peers.
While this might be true for some procedures -- such as rhinoplasty and eyelid surgery -- the V-line face is unique to Asians. It stands out rather than conforms to American sensibilities of beauty. Dr. Kaw is unfamiliar with V-line surgery. "It was never mentioned when I did my research at all," she said. "It's a new thing -- it wasn't around 20 years ago."
Helping the rise of V-line surgery is the laissez faire attitude about recovery implications. This is due to the relatively short recovery time of nose and eyelid surgery, traditionally viewed as operations with minimal side effects. These surgeries are so common that patients rarely take more than a day or two off to recover. The same can't be said for the V-line surgery, but not everyone is aware of that.
Typically, a surgeon will make a three-centimeter incision through the mouth, and then insert a three to six millimeter saw or rasp. This is done under general anesthesia. Parts of the jawbone may be removed and the remaining jaw slid backwards or forwards, depending on the agreed-upon outcome. The jaw may then be fixed into place with a titanium plate, using titanium screws or gauge wires.
Side effects vary from bleeding and infection to hematoma and facial nerve palsy. What is considered a heavy-duty operation in the maxillofacial dental world is considered a common everyday, operation in Korea, and the altered face shape has created a distance between the women and their ethnic background. It also has created an identikit model, a face stamped out of a mold, and a replacement of one's identity with one of conformity.
"When you go to the Gangnam area in Seoul, many girls' faces are similar," said schoolgirl Chae Jeongwon. "So many people have plastic surgeries in Gangnam, but famous doctors are limited. So, many girls have had surgery by same doctor."
"Many people will look and say: I know that pretty girl. She did rotation cut, nose, and eye."
South Korea's plastic surgery obsession turns dangerous
South Korea's obsession with plastic surgery is moving on from standard eye and nose jobs to embrace a radical surgical procedure that requires months of often painful A stream of celebrities boast on TV shows how it gave them a "new life," while advertisements extolling its cosmetic benefits are everywhere from street billboards to subway stations, magazines and popular Internet sites.
But there's nothing really "cosmetic" about double-jaw surgery.
A radical solution to congenital facial deformities or for people unable to chew properly due to excessive over or underbite, the operation involves realigning the upper and lower jaws.
One result of the bone-cutting procedure is often a slimmer jawline and that's what caught the attention of South Korea's booming beauty industry.
A small face with a "V-shaped" chin and jawline is considered a mark of feminine beauty in much of East Asia, along with a high-bridged nose and big eyes.
"This surgery alters your look far more dramatically than, say, Botox or a nose job because it changes your entire facial bone structure," said Choi Jin-Young, a professor in dentistry at Seoul National University.
"But it's a very complex, potentially dangerous surgery ... it's disturbing to see people with no real dental flaws daring to go through it just to have a small, pretty face," Choi told AFP.
The procedure, which involves general anaesthesia and takes months to recover from, carries the risk of various complications including permanent facial numbness or even paralysis.
Data from the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons suggests South Korea has one of the highest per-capita rates of plastic surgery procedures in the world.
Cut throat competition among the growing number of plastic surgeons has driven some to promote more radical procedures that others might not offer.
A number of celebrities, some reportedly paid by doctors, underwent double-jaw surgery and later appeared on TV talk shows saying it had provided a "turning point" in their career and personal lives.
There is no official data on how many double jaw surgeries are performed. One recent study estimated the annual figure at 5,000, but it did not differentiate between cosmetic and medically prescribed procedures.
Some 52 percent of those who had taken the surgery suffered sensory problems such as facial numbness, the study said.
Seoul's consumer protection agency saw the number of registered complaints surge from 29 in 2010 to 89 last year, though many more cases of post-operative problems are believed to go unreported.
"My mouth keeps moving leftward and the jaw area has gone numb," wrote one user of a medical consumer online forum, showing photos of her skewed mouth.
"I can't even feel when saliva keeps dripping out of my mouth," she said.
Last August, a 23-year-old college who underwent double-jaw surgery killed herself. She left a suicide note explaining her desperation after the surgery left her unable to chew food or stop crying due to nerve damage in a tear duct.
Shin Hyon-Ho, a medical malpractice lawyer in Seoul, said he had seen cases where the surgery had resulted in chronic jaw pain, a skewed mouth, misaligned teeth and an inability to chew or smile.
"The number of plastic surgery-related cases is growing ... with complications becoming more serious," Shin said.
A doctor with the Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons said the procedure took off around four years ago when a Seoul dental clinic ran a major ad campaign promoting the cosmetic benefits.
As it became popular, plastic surgeons began offering the surgery, causing the price to fall and making it more affordable to more people.
"If we are seeing more complications, that's largely because the sheer number of people getting the surgery has increased rapidly in such a short period of time," said the doctor, who declined to be identified.
"Yes, it was originally invented to correct a dental deformity, but you can't blame someone for getting the surgery to look good, especially in a place like the South where beauty, especially for women, pretty much trumps it all," the doctor said.
Advertising for the procedure is prevalent and unambiguous.
"The double jaw surgery clinic chosen by the pickiest ladies," reads one typical poster on a Seoul subway station wall, with large before and after photos.
"Everyone but you has done it," admonishes another on a metro bus.
A Seoul lawmaker in January proposed setting a minimum age limit for plastic surgery, noting the danger of "bone-related surgeries" in particular.
But Lim In-Sook, professor of sociology at Korea University, said legislation couldn't tackle the root causes that push some women to risk their health for a prettier face.
"This is a highly male-dominated nation where women need both brains and beauty, or often beauty more than brains, to get a job, get married and to survive in all aspects of life," she said.
Plastic surgery, according to Lim, has become just another accepted way of giving yourself an edge in what is a super-competitive society.
"So every single part of our bodies becomes an object for nip and tuck," Lim said. "Today it's your jaw, but who knows what we'll have to fix tomorrow?"
Imagine living in Korea with that much criticism everyday?! Way to go, no wonder the suicide rate has doubled in the last decade. I consider myself self-conscious and pretty sensitive to criticism, but I know I would never over-do the plastic surgery. In Korea, the people are highly desensitized to Plastic Surgery, yet that doesn’t mean it’s not dangerous at all. You can see the risk and effects that might happen: http://factinformationtruth.blogspot.com/2013/09/masih-tertarik-buat-operasi-plastik.html,http://factinformationtruth.blogspot.com/2013/09/bahaya-operasi-plastik-hantui-orang.html,http://factinformationtruth.blogspot.com/2013/09/ingin-operasi-rahang-wajah-kenali-dulu.html, etc
There are many of us mesmerized by all the before and after pictures of korean Plastic Surgery websites, and all the services they can offer to fix our faces. Suddenly we become more excited with what is now possible, the constant need to fix everything becomes continuous. So when do we know too much is TOO MUCH? Our faces are so diverse, some people have these idealistic versions of themselves that are not possible with surgery. Some want very pointy noses that are too high for their facial proportions, or they become too greedy with their eyes and requesting them too large for their face.
Child:”Mom, why am I the ugly duckling ?" Mother:"Just wait till you turn 18, then the nice doctor will turn you too into a swan".
Jeannette Francis reports on the the rising popularity of plastic surgery amongst South Korea's young in a story for SBS Dateline, and looks at how the fresh faced stars of the K-Pop music scene are fuelling their obsession…
I generally tend to take sweeping statements about a populace with a bucket of salt. Before I left for South Korea, one of my colleagues (himself of Korean descent) had this warning for me: “They're very superficial,” he said, shaking his head in dismay. “They're completely obsessed with looks.”
He told me tales of the schoolgirls who would get given plastic surgery as graduation gifts; the mother-daughter teams that would cash in on the two-for-one clinic discounts; the pervasive desire to 'look more western'. Nicole Kidman, he said, with her high nose, big eyes, slim jaw and white skin was considered the pinnacle of beauty.
In reality, that pinnacle is much closer to home and it's shaping a generation with a penchant for plastic.
According to The Economist, South Korea has the highest rate of cosmetic procedures per capita in the world. Some reports place the number of South Korean women who have had a cosmetic procedure at one in five. In the city's ritzy Gangnam district (made famous by the sashaying satirist Psy) there's a strip known as the 'beauty belt', a suburb filled with hundreds of plastic surgery clinics and little else. It has one of the highest concentrations of plastic surgery clinics in the world.
Along this strip is Dr Rhee Se Whan's clinic, Grand Plastic Surgery. In the last five years, Dr Rhee has seen an increasing number of young people getting surgery. Ninety per cent of the clinic's clientele are under the age of 30 and of them, half are under 18. But what's interesting is why.
“K-Pop stars and Korean celebrities have influenced the younger generation [to get plastic surgery]. For example, if you look at the before and after photos of K-pop stars you'll see they have gotten prettier. When people see this change, they want to be pretty as well, they want to look as good as them,” says Dr Rhee.
K-Pop is an international phenomenon. The pop stars are known for their catchy tunes, synchronised dance moves, trend setting fashion and flawless faces; those big eyes, high noses and slim jawlines - features not inherently Korean. They're also known for the amount of plastic surgery they get. With reference to one particular girl group, I was told their faces changed each time they released a new song.
There are exceptions, but it's a generally accepted principle that to succeed in the pop industry, you must be beautiful, in other words you must have those aforementioned features that define beauty. And if you – like most Koreans – are not born with these you can – and should – change them and many pop stars do.
I wasn't entirely surprised to hear about the K-Pop industry's cosmetic compulsion, despite how systematic and excessive it seemed. What was surprising, however, was that the plight for perfection trickled down to the country's youth.
Dr Rhee says the majority of young people come in to get what's known as double eyelid surgery, where a second eyelid is created to make the eyes look bigger. (If you're reading this and are not of north Asian descent, odds are you already have a double eyelid that you've probably never paid much attention to.)
“During school holidays, half the class would come in and get surgery done and when they go back to school, their friends would see that they've become prettier so in the next break you would have the other half of the class coming in,” Dr Rhee tells me. I immediately picture a hoard of giggling schoolgirls rushing with oversized backpacks laden with books into the clinic. The reality is more understated but not by much.
Beauty and image play a critical role in Korean society (you must include a headshot on your resume for example) and everyone – and I mean everyone I interviewed – believed the prettier you are, the more likely you are to succeed, be that at pop stardom or otherwise.
What my visit made clear is that there is an ideal standard of beauty in South Korea, one encapsulated by the country's pop stars. Whether it's natural or not doesn't particularly matter. As the K-Pop phenomenon grows so too does the plastic surgery industry. Coincidence? That depends on who you speak to.
Nobody care about " inner beauty' there.. just feel pathetic.
Nobody can deny that appearance is important but
judging people only based on their appearance?
What kind of world? is our personality, inner beauty, behaviour, virtue doesn't matter anymore
as long as we are pretty , handsome, cute, cool , hot??
I do knot what is the difference between human and animal anymore.
even animal knows us better without care whether we are pretty , handsome, fat, thin, or whatever..
Who am I to judge people who live in a world like that?
“The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mole,but true beauty in a Woman is reflected in her soul. It is the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she knows.”
― Audrey Hepburn
― Audrey Hepburn
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