By James Pearson and Raphael Rashid
Last week, a photo of some girls not giving up their seats to elderly commuters on the Seoul subway caused such a stir on the Internet that it became one of the most talked about stories of the month. Instantly dubbed “bean paste (doenjang) girls” ― a term reserved for girls who live frugally (on bean paste stew) so they can save up for designer handbags and shoes ― netizens were quick to demonize these probably pretty leg-tired ladies for not respecting their elders. Bean paste girl is hardly a flattering term, yet quite in keeping with the amount of fire Korean women have found themselves under from the online community this year.
Every week it seems Seoul’s giant octopus of a subway system gives us a new celebrity. Thus far on koreaBANG, we’ve seen it all: