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Sat, March 6, 2021 | 07:44
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Korean primetime's 'lookism' problem
국내 코미디쇼 외모지상주의 부추겨
Posted : 2015-02-02 18:52
Updated : 2015-03-11 17:45
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Comedian Lee Jin-ho, right, yells at fellow actor Park Na-rae during a skit last month on tvN's 'Comedy Big League.' The skit portrayed the experiences of two couples, poking fun at the couple seen as less attractive than the other. / Captured from YouTube
Comedian Lee Jin-ho, right, yells at fellow actor Park Na-rae during a skit last month on tvN's "Comedy Big League." The skit portrayed the experiences of two couples, poking fun at the couple seen as less attractive than the other. / Captured from YouTube

By Kim Bo-eun


A "good-looking" young couple sits in a coffee shop. The woman starts taking selfies and the man scoots over as if to get in the picture in an attempt to get closer to her.

There's nothing special about these lovers, played by actors on the popular sketch comedy show Comedy Big League. Such well kempt young people can be seen in cafés across the country; in the sketch they're meant to represent "normal" Koreans.

A few minutes later, comedians playing another couple stand in line to order coffee. The woman looks quite different, sporting unglamorous bangs and a plain outfit.

The man and woman discuss the drinks they are going to order but the man only orders his own. When the woman asks about her drink, he asks "Are you a beggar? You order your own drink."

When the couple sit down and sip their coffee, the woman gets a foam mustache, but instead of lovingly wiping it off, the man says she looks like an "old man in the Alps."

The message, hammered home by the skit's simplistic jokes, is simple: If you look different, you're less worthy of love.

The Korean entertainment scene, notorious for its insensitive content, has cut down on racially offensive scenes, but such "gag shows" continue to create jokes that make fun of people for their weight or looks. Observers say such instances of "lookism" contribute to the county's obsession with appearance.

If so, the jokes likely add to stress that Koreans feel in regards to their appearance. Young people say there is enormous pressure to marry at a young age and to a partner of high standing, making a person's looks of utmost importance. Appearance is also important on the job market. According to scholars, such attitudes contribute to the country's high plastic surgery rate.

For Gag Concert the country's longest running comedy show on state-run broadcaster KBS, such banality is a constant source of easy laughs.

The show recently got rid of a recurring skit in which a shapeless college freshman, Lee Su-ji, approaches her crush on campus but is flatly dismissed every time. Still, Lee's main roles are limited to those in which she is "fat-shamed."

Many of the program's skits incorporate the idea that the "less desirable" are legitimately subject to discrimination.

One sketch depicts the interaction between a father and his four young daughters. The father is kind and loving to his first three daughters but not so to his youngest, played by comedian Oh Na-mi, because she is less pretty than her sisters. Oh is widely known to assume the role of "the ugly female comedian."

Such instances of lookism are not limited to women. One Gag Concert skit makes fun of the lengths to which men will go to impress women. These men, however, are played by unappealing male comedians considered homely and unshapely. The punch line is that no matter their efforts, these guys will never be popular with women.

James Turnbull, author of the popular blog The Grand Narrative, which focuses on Korean feminism and popular culture, said that such portrayals may have a negative effect on viewers.

"Whether it's a variety program, a music video, an advertisement, or whatever…if what you're watching stresses being thin, if it encourages viewers to compare themselves with the ideal men and women presented, and/or if it makes you feel like there's such a huge gap between your own body and theirs, then you're just going be left feeling ugly," said Turnbull.

Some observers believe that lookism has a greater impact on young people. The comedy shows, aired during primetime on Sunday evenings, are regarded as "family entertainment" programs.

"Korean television really stands out with the sheer amount of programming time devoted to appearance and dieting, with its uncritical narratives that cosmetic surgery is a safe and reliable means to financial and romantic success; and with the seeming unconcern with and even positive encouragement of passing those messages on to children," Turnbull said.





국내 코미디쇼 외모지상주의 부추겨

훈훈한 한 쌍이 커피숍에 앉아있다. 여성이 셀카를 찍기 시작하자 남성은 사진에 같이 나오려는 것처럼 하면서 바짝 당겨 앉는다.

이는 tvN의 인기 코미디쇼 코미디 빅리그의 코너 썸&쌈의 한 장면이다. 앞의 장면은 흔히 보이는 커플의 모습을 그린다. 

몇 분 후, 또 다른 커플이 커피를 주문하려고 기다리고 있다. 촌스러운 바가지 머리를 한 여성의 모습이 이전 여성의 모습과는 사뭇 다르다. 

남녀는 주문할 음료에 대해 얘기를 나누다가 남성은 자신이 마실 음료 하나만 주문한다. 여성이 자신의 음료에 대해 묻자 그는 '거지야? 네 껀 네가 주문해'라며 다그친다.

앉아서 커피를 마시는데 여성 윗입술에 거품이 묻는다. 여성이 인기 드라마의 여배우 모습같지 않으냐며 농담하자 남성은 '알프스의 할아버지' 같다며 화를 낸다.

이 코너의 개그는 마치 '예쁘지 않으면 사랑받을 자격이 없다'라는 메세지를 내보내는 것 같다.

국내 예능 프러그램은 모욕적인 컨텐츠로 악명이 높다. 최근 인종차별적 컨텐츠는 줄였지만 개그쇼는 계속해서 외모에 대해 웃음거리를 만든다. 이는 한국의 외모지상주의를 부추기고 있다는 지적이 나오고 있다.

KBS의 개그콘서트에서도 이러한 소재는 널리 사용된다.

작년 연말까지 방영되었던 '선배, 선배' 코너는 개그우먼 이수지씨가 관심 있는 선배에게 다가가지만 매번 거절 당하는 내용으로 꾸려졌다. 이 코너는 없어졌지만 이수지씨는 늘 배역이 '뚱뚱한' 캐릭터로 한정된다. 

또 개그콘서트의 여러 코너는 '못 생기면' 차별받아도 된다는 메세지를 담고 있다.

'사둥이는 아빠딸'이라는 코너는 아빠와 네 딸의 모습을 보여주는데, 아빠는 예쁜 세 딸에게는 다정하지만 외모가 셋만큼 예쁘지 않은 막내 오나미씨에게는 덜한 모습을 보인다. 오나미씨도 '못 생긴 개그우먼'의 역할을 종종 맡아왔다.

이러한 외모지상주의는 남성에게도 적용된다. '핵존심' 코너에서는 남성들이 여성의 마음을 사로잡기 위해 자존심을 부리는 갖가지 행동을 그리지만 이들은 흔히 '못 생겼다'고 여겨지는 외모의 남성들이다. 이 코너 또한 외모가 멋지지 않으면 아무리 노력해도 여성들이 좋아하지 않을 것이라는 메세지를 내포하는 듯 하다.

한국 페미니즘과 대중 문화에 대해 글을 쓰고 강연하는 제임스 턴불씨는 그러한 컨텐츠가 관객에게 악영향을 끼칠 수 있다고 한다.

'예능 프로그램이든, 뮤직비디오든, 광고든 그것이 날씬함을 강조하고 관객들로 하여금 이상적으로 여겨지는 남녀와 자신을 비교하게 만들게 하며 그 사이의 괴리감를 느끼게 한다면 결과적으로 티비 보며 스스로 못 났다고 느끼게 될 것'이라 전했다.

또 이러한 코미디쇼가 일요일 저녁 황금타임에 방송된다는 점에서 더욱이 문제가 있다. 이는 가치관이 형성되는 성장기에 있는 어린이와 청소년들이 바람직하지 못한 영향을 영향을 받을 수 있기 때문이다.

'한국 방송은 외모와 다이어트에 할애하는 타임이 독보적이다. 또 한국 방송만큼 성형수술이 돈을 많이 벌고 연애를 잘할 수 있도록 돕는 안전하고 믿을 수 있는 수단이라고 전하며, 어린이에게 이러한 메세지를 전하는 데에 있어서 무심하거나 심지어 적극적인 방송은 전세계 어디에서도 찾아볼 수 없다'고 턴불은 덧붙였다.
Emailbkim@koreatimes.co.kr Article ListMore articles by this reporter









 
 
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