K-Dramas: Contribution to Hallyu & Impact on Women's Views - Essay Sample

Introduction

Korean TV dramas or k-dramas are the televised plays that have been produced in South Korea. Most of these dramas are popular throughout the Asian continent and are growing interest in different parts of the world. K-dramas have profoundly contributed to the overall Korean wave regarded as Hallyu. They present different views regarding women in the society. Some of the researchers on these TV dramas consider them as having gained a cult such as following among women in Asia. In contrast, others take the position that Korean TV dramas are functioning like pornography for women in Asia. The term paper explores the two perspectives of K-drama to show extend to which the researcher agrees to the assertions and examines the factors of the Korean TV dramas that have transformed themselves into quasi-porn for women.

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The Extend I Agree With the Assertions

Korean TV Dramas as Having Gained a Cult-like Following among Women in Asia

A cult-like following can be described as a group of enthusiasts or fans who are dedicated to a specific artwork presented in a given medium. When one says that Korean TV dramas have gained a cult-like following among women in Asia, it means that the K-dramas have continuously achieved a vast and passionate fan base of women within the Asian continent. I agree with the assertion that Korean TV dramas as having gained a cult-like following among women in Asia. The history of the growth of K-dramas throughout Asia since the year 1999 up to 2010 is clear evidence to show that these plays have gained a cult-like following among women in Asia. According to Keith (2008), the Korean entertainment industry has advanced to abandon conservatism as well as censorship to diversify, absorb, appropriate, and innovate to European and American pop. That saw areas of drama start, including cultures from other parts of Asia, including Japan and China. For instance, in the 1990s, the Korean TV drama industry offered Japan an opportunity to participate in the production of play series.

The Korean Wave in Asia from 1999 to 2010 saw many of the K-drama televised in China, India, and Japan among other Asian countries. According to Yang (2012), the K-wave spread all over the Asian nations, including Vietnam, China, Indonesia, Thailand, and Japan. Chinese audiences began to recognize Korean TV dramas that were highly focusing on the female gender. Women were presented as crying, in need of love and romance, as well as creating an environment of emotional attachment to the viewer (Gee-hyun, 2013). Idol stars from China were appraised in the K-dramas, and women took into acting the Korean plays on the big screen. That led to many of these Asian women actors grow to successful and developed actors.

Women in Asia have developed a tremendous emotional attachment to K-dramas, which is evident in the way many women have increased the participation in these TV plays in South Korea. There is a niche market of K-dramas among women in Asia. The Korean culture is considered highly eccentric for women, and that makes the K-dramas commercially successful in Asia. The My Sassy Girl of the year 2001 was the first Korean TV drama to air in the international market and became a hit in East Asia, South East, and South Asia markets. The Secret Garden, with the appearance of "That Woman," is considered the first K-drama to attract a cult following within Asia and especially in Japan (Allkpop, 2011). Asian women traveled to South Korean with the primary purpose of finding love that was inspired by romance in the Korean TV dramas, as presented by the media such as the Washington Post (Shim, 2011).

In countries such as Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Nepal, K-dramas, increased their time of airing on television channels. Women were highly idolized in the Korean TV dramas with the fashion and hairstyles that were trendy being adopted by youth in Nepal. Furthermore, women in Taiwan began to hanker after the looks of Korea female actors (Shim, 2006). In China, the girls started undertaking surgery to appear like the Korean stars in K-dramas. That explains the increased women fan base of Korean TV dramas in Asia. The Hallyu culture in Korean TV dramas has extended to fashion and style in the broader Asian context. That describes the power of K-dramas in creating the reputation of women as stars in Asia. Dean (2002) revealed that the shaping of eyebrows and shoe styles for women in Asian countries imitated the K-pop culture, especially in Tokyo. In Vietnam, young female models are mirroring fashion trends from Seoul, and South Korea that have been offered by the Korean TV dramas (Kim, 2015). Korean pop collections, such as the Okinawa, are increasingly in Japan to demonstrate exciting concerts and fashion shows participated by women in Asia. Based on many of these presentations in K-dramas, men have been less emphasized, and women idolized, as shown in the discussion. That explains why I agree with Korean TV drama as having gained a cult-like following among women in Asia. Ranging from dressing, makeup, and lifestyle, women across Asia, have been impacted profoundly by K-dramas to live like Korean female stars depicted in the TV plays. It is evident that K-pop culture extended to TV dramas in Korean created an impact not only on the country commercially but also to the Asian nations whereby a vast base of women fans have followed the Korean culture in diverse ways due to the influence from Korean TV dramas.

Korean TV Dramas Are Functioning Like Pornography for Women in Asia

TV dramas focused on pornography majorly base the content aired to the audience with many sex scenes, undressed images of the actors, and sex organs exposed to the viewer. Because of basing many of its contents on women and girls, one would say that Korean TV dramas are highly sexualized, which is not the case when looking at a TV drama with pornographic content. The amount of sex in K-dramas is next to a minimum, and the emphasis of the producers is to portray more of Korean culture in the media that many of the Asian people can associate with. That is why I would disagree with the assertion that Korean TV dramas are functioning like pornography for women in Asia. Lehman (2006) denoted that Asian women looking for pornography in film will be interested in bald and childlike men and women, straight as well as nude gays. Emphasis of pornography is highly represented by large butts, anal and oral sex in the content of the TV drama or film.

Korean TV dramas do not bombard the viewer with much pornographic content, including sex and nude actors (Jackson, 2017). They are more focused on the plot and not sex scenes that pop now and then in pornographic movies. Looking at many of the K-dramas, the sections for sex are poorly edited, or shown within a few seconds or even cut away to avoid the pornography aspect. According to Ebrey and Walthall (2009), popular TV dramas are usually dubbed to ensure they can be viewed in other Asia countries that participate in the modern global culture, including China, Taiwan, Japan, and Korea. Korean TV dramas such as the Winter Sonata sell well in other Asian countries. It is not because of the pornographic content, but the different Asian cultures can identify with the content in these plays. Women in Japan, China, and Taiwan could associate with the stars because of the fashionable and stylish nature of the Korean TV dramas.

In Japan, much of the film content is highly promotes pornography. Hybridization of the modern, as well as the traditional components of Korean culture in K-dramas, has enhanced their cultural and social proximity in Asian countries (Jackson, 2017). The Confucianism principle seems to work well for Asian countries when it comes to adapting to the K-dramas. For instance, East Asians are highly attracted to TV content that is familiar with their traditional elements, and Korean dramas provide them with precisely that. The difference is in the modernity, which allows the other Asians to sympathize with the characters as well as the plot of the K-dramas. The traditional elements in K-dramas are credited for being Confucian as they promote respective elders and ancestral worship, among others. Love is demonstrated respectfully and not through pornography. For instance, the Korean drama Boys over Flowers is a TV drama that displays filial piety. The main character chose to forgo the romantic relationship to please the elderly mother. The TV drama gained popularity in China and Japan, with Japan and Taiwan doing a remake using their language because of the success it achieved in the Asian countries (Cho, 2011).

Korean TV dramas are not functioning like pornography for women in Asia, but as an example that they can emulate in their families to resolve conflicts. The traditional element in a K-drama such as the Boys over Flowers reveals that the family of the male protagonist accepting a marriage to a woman of a lower status (Jackson, 2017). That depicts the family resolution tactics that Asian women learn from Korean TV dramas. One can say that K-dramas function as hope for women in Asia. The themes of modernity embraced in Korean TV dramas appeal to women of Asia as they depict a different and alternative traditional world of negotiation as well as reconciliation (Lin & Tong, 2008). Hybridization of Korean TV dramas contributes to their success in the Asia women audience, where cultural proximity is the essential aspect of retaining the traditionalism of the content instead of pornography. Pursuit of personal freedom in love relationships illuminates the need to respect of elders in K-dramas. For instance, the female protagonist in Winter Sonata married a man she did not love to please the parents. At the end of the TV drama, there is a conflict in the marriage due to tension. The audience can project personal feelings and beliefs in the real world (Lin & Tong, 2008).

In Japan, Korean TV dramas support the traditional values of women in the Japanese context. The women audiences in Japan experience nostalgia with K-dramas as they associate with the social and cultural atmosphere of the plays (Yang, 2012). When looking at the Winter Sonata Korean TV drama, one would say that it is a romance drama that addresses first love, familial duties, and lost romance. Women of Asia and especially Japan, are fans of this K-drama not because of pornography content but as a result of the characteristics of the protagonist, Min-Yeong (Kim, 2011). The features of the protagonist in K-dramas are modeled in a manner that promotes the values of traditional Japanese society. Middle-aged women flock to view South Korean TV dramas as they feel reminiscent of their first love. The emotional, as well as the humanistic side of the male and female protagonist attributes, emphasize on the emotionality of Japanese tradition. There is little that a viewer can attribute the K-dramas to pornography for women in Asia.

The Factors or Characteristics of Korean TV Dramas That Have Transformed Themselves into Quasi-Porn for Women

Quasi-porn is usually pornography in its soft-core. It is generally pornographic video that is poorly edited with many of the sex scenes cut away, the angles changed and involvement of too much talking during the sex scenes. For Korean TV dramas, they exhibit characteristics that have transformed them into quasi-porn, including the rare display of sex scenes, the need to develop the plot and connect with Korean Culture and other Asian traditions emotionally.

Rare Display of Sex Scenes in K-dramas

The sex scenes are rarely seen in K-dramas. The images are more concerned with revealing the meditation of the character's personality, performance, and body. According to Jackson (2017), the producers of Korean TV dramas are more concerne...