Koreans becoming greedy, pretentious

'Republic of Babel Tower' warns of consequences of greed

By Kang Hyun-kyung

Kang Jun-man, a liberal critic and professor of journalism at Chun Buk National University, has released another acerbic book warning that Korean society is heading in the wrong direction and will face the consequences unless its “insanity” is stopped. The sharp-tongued critic claims Koreans are becoming increasingly materialistic and pretentious.

“Republic of Babel Tower: How Koreans Became the Poor Living in a Luxury House” addresses a host of problems Korea is grappling with ― from crammed flats that are forcing dwellers to endure inhumane living conditions, to property speculation that polarizes society even further.

Kang is a prolific writer who has released dozens of books since he became famous for his 1995 book “Killing Kim Dae-jung” in which he described Kim, who was later elected president in the 1997 presidential election, as a political martyr and a target of conservative scheming. He is very critical of the conservative camp, which left right-wingers hardly convinced.

“Republic of Babel Tower: How Koreans Became the Poor Living in a Luxury House” by Kang Jun-man

In his new book, Kang dubs Korea a “Republic of Speculation” or “Republic of Deadly Social Hierarchy” and criticizes Korean society for encouraging people to “win the race,” starting as early as childhood.

He is critical of the way Koreans amass wealth. Property investment is viewed as the easiest way to increase wealth which he says is unfair and abusive. Unfair in that only those who have wealth can invest, and abusive in that the haves' wealth increase comes at the expense of the have-nots, he observes.

He specifies the winners of property speculation are those who have their own housing in the greater Seoul area because housing prices in the region keep rising, so their wealth continues to increase. Meanwhile, he claims, tenants, mostly from regions outside the greater Seoul area, are the losers as they face soaring rents.

The rich's wealth increase comes at the expense of the poor, Kang claims.

Kang views the surge in high-rise apartments as a sign showing Koreans have become greedy and pretentious. According to him, the number of apartment buildings of 31 floors or higher was merely 503 in 2008. The number surged to 1,319 in 2014. Those who live in high-rise apartments are regarded as wealthy.

Kang takes “gapjil,” a term referring to the dysfunctional social hierarchy through which people in an advantageous position abuse their power to exploit those subject to their decisions, seriously. He compares the income levels of salaried workers working at big and small companies to reach the conclusion that the source of the abusive relationships is economic status.

In Japan, he says, the income level of salaried workers at small- and medium-sized companies is about 80 percent or higher than that of workers at conglomerates. But the ratio in Korea is merely 50 percent. He says people who work at companies having 300 or more employees earn 4.2 times more than their counterparts at small- and medium-sized companies. He also says Korea's high youth unemployment, which is double that of Japan, has triggered a social hierarchy.

The author addresses the dense population in Seoul as another sign of the abnormality of Korean society. He says the capital accounts for only 0.6 percent of the nation's territory but over 20 percent of the population resides there, noting Seoul's excessively dense population is the source of the country's housing problems.

Kang says the popping up of goshiwon, cramped flats with communal kitchens and bathrooms, in the urban area raises human rights issues because of the inhumane living conditions. Goshiwon were initially for students or test takers preparing for state exams to select government employees, but residents have diversified over the past decade as housing prices have soared.