Parenting

 On Thursday, we saw a video related to Gay&Lesbian parents and families. Actually, these kinds of family structure are not normal and can’t be accepted in our society, in case of Korea. Few years ago, one of the famous comedian did coming out, and after the coming out, I couldn’t see him on TV After few years he tried to show him to the public but he was on the TV just on minor channels.  When I was in high school, I saw a drama called “Queer as Folk”. This drama is about Gays love and how they make their own families. Honestly, it came to me as a shock at first time, and couldn’t even look at my computer monitor, however, as the episode goes by, I found myself getting understand the characters. They don’t love a man; a person whom they like is a man.

 It was easier to watch and understand the video what we saw during the class, I guess it was more comfortable because I already saw about their lives indirectly. While I was watching the video, I can’t imagine how the children will be suffered from the pain or discrimination but can know how their parents love them. Gay&Lesbian couples have no difference with married couple. 

 Among the reading materials, I enjoyed the “Maximum Rock and Roll: The Girls Rock Camp”. The camp is for those of girls who want to be a rock star. Campers are joining in this camp to become full-fledged rock stars by encouraging and developing self-confidence, strength, and empowerment through the medium of a chosen instrument-guitar, bass, drums, or vocals.

 While I was watching a video which is about the girl’s rock camp, I don’t know why but it came to me as a shock. The camp was totally up to the girls. They made a group for them and decided what instrument they want to play and also, if they had a problem between the members, they tried to solve the problem by themselves. There are volunteers and teachers but they let the girls solve the problem and cooperate with each others.

 During the camp, they can learn not only how to play the instruments, but also how to protect themselves. By learning how to protect myself, they are getting close to being a woman I guess. If you turn on the TV especially like MTV, women’s body and custom are focused on more than their music or video which means that young girls are trying to lose weight since they were 10 years old. Young girls don’t care about themselves, they care about their looks, and how other people judge them. However, through this came, girls know how to love themselves, not by others.

Korea

 Today’s blog has nothing to do with our materials or women’s studies. I just want to write about what happened to me yesterday. Yesterday, on Saturday, my Japanese friend and I took a bus to go to the target. We were bored to die so we decided to go to outside, somewhere. When we took a bus at transition center, the bus driver asked me and my friend “Are you from here?” I was a bit surprised, because everybody thinks that I’m from other countries. I said “I am from Korea and she’s from Japan.” The driver said “Oh, then you are from North Korea?” Honestly, I was shocked. I replied “No, South Korea, of course.” Then the driver shot the door, looked into my eyes seriously and said “That’s interesting, you just said of course, Why is that?” I explained what situation we faced with.

Why when I said “I am from Korea”, they asked me North or South?  I want to ask you guys, Have you ever meet North Korean people? Maybe the answer is NO. And until two Korea are unified, I guess you can’t meet North Korean people at all. They are not allowed to traveling other countries. Plus, they can’t come to South Korean to see their family. If there is a reunion meeting for those of family which were separated into North and South, 130000 people applied for this meeting in this year. Lots of people passed away without seeing their family after Korean War

We are still during the war accurately, and no one knows that when this war is over. Korea is the only country that is divided. One of my dreams is that I want to see two Korea are unified and be a country. . I hope it will happened until I died. 

Holiday

 In this week, four classes were cancelled oddly. After my Thursday morning class was over, my holiday was begun. There is no connection between my holiday and Korea’s big holiday, however, this blessed holiday reminds me our big holiday which called Chu-Seok.

 Mostly, Chu-Seok is on September and my family and I goes to my grandmother and grandfather’s house to make sacrifices to our ancestors or just visit and say hi to relatives. Children are playing, sleeping and watching TV. Men including my father are doing nothing seriously. At this point, maybe you guys are wondering what women do. As most of people expected, women are making food for meals even 3 or 4 days before. I’ve seen my mom over 20 years who is suffering from making food for the holiday. There are some specific foods that we need to prepare for and it is really annoying work. Even if we made the food and took this food to grandfather’s house, it’s not over. Moms have to remake it and decorate the food to make it more beautiful. After the sacrifice is over, while dads are playing card game, moms have to prepare lunch for them and after their meal is over, they have a meal with left over.

 This is our traditional way how we spend our holidays and what men and women do. As I am a girl and over 20, when I go to grandfather’s home, I do work. However, my brother doesn’t do anything like other fathers. He goes to somewhere to play games or watch TV. If one of girls says “why they don’t do anything?” my grandfather said “Because they are men”. After our holiday is over, my friends and I talk about what we do during the holiday and why do we have to suffer from housework, not men. In this year, I was not in Korea so I don’t have to do work but… I will do these stupid house chores for my life for sure. I can’t say this thing in front of our family, so I wrote in the blog. YEI!!!!!!!!

Relationship

 I just read a blog about Relationship. Who makes decisions on where to go out to eat? Or what to do when you are together? Like the author? Blogger said guys are making decisions on what they are going to do or go without asking their girlfriend. So called they make “Date Plan” for their baby!! I want to talk about our culture-Korea.

 In Korea, mostly guys pay for meal and girls pay for dessert like coffee. This is the most common way of how do Korean couple are dating and also it is kind of a ‘custom’. When a boy and a girl just start to date and if he doesn’t pay for the meal, there is a possibility that he can’t see this girl anymore. However, this abnormal dating guide is getting changed. Lots of women want to pay half of their dating fee and pay more than before.

 Now I am hoping that this stupid custom will be disappeared. I think the custom makes women more being independent. Why women are expecting the boyfriend to pay for their date? Only guy did the date? NO. Then why should men pay for it. Women should think about this custom over and over.date? NO. 

Enchanted to Cinderella complex

  During the class, we watched a movie called “Enchanted”. While I was watching the movie, the only thing that came to my thought was that “It is really typical Disney movie.” Starts with ‘Once upon a time’ and ends with ‘Happily ever after”, isn’t it too obvious story to audience who has seen at least one movie released from Disney?

 Like other princesses, Giselle was waiting for prince who can take her with him. From this Giselle’s dream, we can connect with ‘Cinderella complex”. Cinderella complex which come from Cinderella movie is unconscious desire to be taken care of by others-men, based primarily on a fear of being independent. In Cinderella movie, she serves her stepmother and stepsisters after her father’s death by doing most of house work and staying just at home for their family. In the movie, Cinderella’s behavior seems independent in the early the reason why I think like that is that she could handle most of situations and express her opinion to the family even if the opinion is ignored or not. On the other hand, two of step sisters are having a dream to marry prince when the king announced a party. Their dream might mean that they want to rely on man not to be independent women because of fear of to be independent.

 Maybe most of women have the Cinderella complex I think, however, having a complex is not a big deal. How they are going to do to get the prince is the most important part. 

pop culture gone wild

In the book on the first line, it says “It’s not exactly news that pop culture is all sex all the time. But it's not just "sex"-it's us girls." When I read these sentences, I thought that what the differences between about sex and girl are.  If a woman celebrity tries to look like sexy, this girl's image is connected with sex I think. Why women celebrities are trying to be sexy? Do the media make them to be sexy? Or Women themselves want to be? I think it's both.   Audiences are crazy about singers who have sexy images and lots of celebrities seek this image. On their demands, women are getting pursue the image. And, not just celebrities, normal girls are also seeking this image. Pop culture, mass culture, is making women to be like celebrities. Then, who defines hot? If we turn on the TV, we can see some TV programs which talk about women. They defines the meaning ‘hot’ and women are trying to be looked at, Even in magazines, there are bunch of magazines for men and inside of the magazines, lots of women’s clothes are short or none! Is there any magazine for women? I don’t think so. Why women have to be looked at and are trying to be?

 There is no reason that women have to be graded by men and we don’t have to pursue these kinds of images. Even if the media says that a woman who has sexy image is beautiful and charming, we have to find our one beauty and characteristic which can appeal to men, not an image that the guys want to.