Fake casts popular among wives ahead of Chuseok

/ Screen capture from Egage

By Chung Ah-young

With Chuseok or Korean Thanksgiving approaching, fake arm casts are emerging as a popular item among housewives seeking to avoid chores during the nation’s most celebrated holiday.

Online vendors originally began selling fake casts around 10 years ago as props for stage performances or parties, or for those who want to have fun on April Fools’ Day.

However, recently, an increasing number of women are buying or showing interest in the casts to improve their chances of enjoying traditional holidays.

On online communities and social network services, women share information about how to use the fake casts and how to make them look real.

The fad has many reasons behind it in Korea where women do most of the work preparing meals on traditional holidays while men usually chat, drink alcohol or watch television.

Due to the unequal gender roles, many women suffer enormous stress and physical fatigue called “daughter-in-law holiday syndrome” before, during and after traditional holidays.

During traditional holiday seasons, there is a threefold increase in sales compared to non-holiday seasons, according to online shopping malls.

Some online sites even recently sold out of casts. The main customers are women in their 20s and 30s.

The fake casts cost from 14,000 to 16,000 won. There are also fake leg casts that cost around 25,000 won.

“Usually, sales soar ahead of April Fools’ Day, but recently they have been selling like hot cakes before Chuseok,” said one online vendor.

Women generally show interest in the casts, but have a different view on whether to

really use them.

“I don’t want to use this ruse,” wrote one blogger. “But I fully understand why some women use the fake casts. I hate this terrible holiday culture that exploits women, with men taking it for granted that women will do all the household chores.”

Some say they cannot use the fake casts because their mother-in-laws already know about them.

“My mother-in-law recently called me to ask suspiciously whether I had an arm injury, as if she was warning me not to use it because she knew about the casts,” a housewife in her 30s said. “She jokingly asked me if I need it. So I dropped the plan.”

Another woman said that avoiding household chores is not a solution because even though she doesn’t work, she feels uncomfortable.

“I had a real arm injury last year so I wore the real cast on Chuseok. So my mother-in-law and other relatives worked instead of me. I didn’t work but I was not happy. The problem is not just physical work but mental stress that makes me feel guilty when I don’t work. It’s sad,” she said.