According
to the poet John Keats, “Truth is beauty and beauty
is truth.” But, what if that beauty was nothing more
than a surgically enhanced illusion? Is the end result a lie
or the truth? The truth is that many of
the stunningly beautiful people in Korea hold the secret to
being beautiful: they paid for it. Stroll around the trendy
neighborhood of Apkujong, and you’ll find a curiously
high concentration of good-looking people. You’ll also
find hundreds of clinics devoted to the lucrative industry
of plastic surgery. There’s even an entire street nicknamed
“Plastic surgery street”. Popular Korean magazines
regularly run full page articles on various clinics and the
procedures they perform. Recently, a magazine geared mainly
towards women in their teens and twenties featured an extensive
layout entitled “Winter vacation, Plastic operation”.
Cosmetic surgery has been so hyped in the press that it’s
been marketed right into mainstream acceptance.
The current statistics are hard to estimate, but after a search
of the internet, one article claimed that about 50 percent
of Korean women in their 20’s have undergone some kind
of cosmetic operation. Many patients are high school students.
Some get cosmetic surgery as a graduation present from their
parents and some are doing it without their parents consent.
Statistics also point to an ever increasing number of men
opting for elective surgery. The popularity of plastic surgery
in Korea is growing at a staggering rate. What’s fueling
this phenomenon?
THE
REASONS
The influence of the media is a contributing factor. Several
Korean entertainers have publicly admitted to having their
faces and bodies altered to please their fans. There’s
even a website showcasing these celebrities before and after
pictures. This public acknowledgement of vanity sends a subconscious
message to impressionable fans that good looks, real or artificial,
can win success and admiration. A big thing on the internet
right now is a website where people send in their photos and
readers vote on who has the best looking face or “ool-jjang”.
Websites like this one are definitely keeping Seoul’s
surgeons busy.
Many
business people are also convinced that having a pleasant
appearance gives them an edge in the workplace. Dr. Geun Lee,
a cosmetic dermatologist based in Yongsan, says the majority
of his clients are office workers and that in order to feel
more confident and to show a better image to clients, people
will come to his clinic for everything from hair regrowth
treatments, to mole removal, acne scar correction, laser skin
resurfacing, and botox injections. Even mature men are turning
to surgery to get facelifts, hair transplants and eye-jobs
to make them look younger and more virile. Due to the fierce
competition to get jobs, some parents are even encouraging
their children to have cosmetic work done in the same way
they encourage them to study harder.
Others are compelled to have a nip, tuck and suck in order
to increase the chances of finding a better partner. Biologically
speaking, attractive people have increased chances of mating
with the opposite sex due to the process of natural selection.
People subconsciously and instinctively want to procreate
with better looking partners to improve the gene pool of their
prospective offspring. Unfortunately, what you see is not
always what you get. In a sensational turn, one English language
newspaper once published an article on a Korean man who was
reported to have filed for a divorce after his wife gave birth
to a baby that looked nothing like her. He claimed he had
been duped by all her cosmetic surgery into thinking he was
marrying someone with better genes.
The ubiquity of cosmetic surgery in Korea and it’s relatively
low price has also made improving appearances more accessible
to the general public. One doctor muses,” Cosmetic surgery
is so popular in Korea because are so many doctors offering
it. Usually demand governs supply; I believe in the case of
cosmetic surgery, it is the supply that drives the demand.
I’d also like to add that the doctors in Korea are the
best in the world. We are meticulous, conscientious and are
good with our hands. That’s why even people from Japan
are coming here to go on cosmetic surgery holidays.”
THE PROCEDURES
Currently
in Korea, cosmetic technology has made such advancements that
most operations can be performed safely and successfully with
less healing time and with a more subtle and effective result.
The most popular procedure in Korea is the “double eyelid”
operation to enlarge sleepy hooded eyes. Following a close
second is the “nose job” which may or may not
involve implanting a piece of silicone, gortex or bone to
heighten the bridge of the nose. Jaw shaving, which makes
the traditionally wide Korean face smaller, used to be a popular
but dubious procedure. These days, doctors are injecting botox
into the jaw to make the muscle smaller, hence shrinking the
face. Another procedure which is gaining popularity is the
butt implant. Though still in a semi-experimental phase, more
and more women are requesting to have more bodacious curves
in places where they typically didn’t exist before.
Youthful skin is also very important to Koreans hence laser
resurfacing, fat injections, peels and botox are also high
in demand. A new mini face-lift procedure-called featherlift,
lifts saggy skin with tiny threads. With it’s low downtime,
featherlift is fast becoming one of the most popular anti-aging
procedures. Liposuction is done so often, even dermatologists
and gynecologists are doing it as a ‘lunchtime’
procedure.
It seems there’s nothing Korean surgeons won’t
try. One glossy Hong Kong publication touted a procedure performed
only in Korea where one gets poison injected into their calves
to make the calf muscles atrophy. For those afflicted with
thick calves syndrome (daikon calves) this is a blessing.
“It’s a small price to pay to look good in these
season’s designer shoes” the magazine extols.
THE
RISKS
Because it’s becoming so commonplace in Korea, it’s
tempting to think that changing one’s look via cosmetic
surgery is as easy as changing the color of your hair. Unfortunately
surgery holds risks ranging from bleeding, scarring, infections
and not healing properly. There’s also a risk of not
getting the desired result. In the hands of a careless money-grubbing
chop-shop doctor, the consequences can be even more dire or
disfiguring. In rare cases, people die.
There may also be psychological implications to having your
appearance altered. Most doctors try to gage the mental health
of their patients beforehand. Patients with realistic expectations
and a fair level of self-esteem are the best candidates. One
doctor states, 'I'm a plastic surgeon, not a psychologist.
I can only improve what's on the outside.’
Despite the fact that the taboo surrounding cosmetic surgery
has somewhat been lifted, people are still reluctant to admit
they have had work done or want to have work done. Naturally
there’s a risk of being perceived them as vain, fake,
egocentric or unintelligent.
Perhaps the biggest risk of all is the impact of cosmetic
surgery on Korean society. Korean people currently place so
much emphasis on superficial appearance. One girl comments,
“It's becoming ingrained in people's minds that unless
they look good, they can never amount to anything. Shouldn't
people be regarded for who they are and what they have achieved
rather than what they appear to be?” Is cosmetic surgery,
in fact, contributing to the burgeoning vanity of a previously
pragmatic and innocent society?
In
a completely spiritual and politically correct world, studying
hard, working hard and valuing people for their intelligence
or goodness should be enough to make it in life. But, despite
people’s attempts to discount the importance superficial
beauty, there’s just no denying that in Korea, as well
as in most of the world, appearances and first impressions
matter. The winner of a cosmetic surgery reality TV show says,
"I always wanted to believe people were ultimately judged
by what was inside but I knew from my personal experience
that this wasn't true. It's always the pretty girls who win
the good things in life." The conclusion is, until the
day comes that people transcend caring about looks altogether,
beauty will still remain a big business in Korea.
Here
are some thoughts and comments on cosmetic surgery:
"As
an Asian growing up in a small town in America, I hated looking
different. I was scarred from my childhood when my American
classmates constantly taunted me and ostracized me for being
"Chinese". They didn't even know where Korea was.
I was determined to make myself look more caucasian, and after
my nose job and double eyelid surgery, everyone thinks I'm
an exotic mix." K, 25 yrs old, female
"After
my surgery, people looked at me differently. Shop girls were
more eager to help me, it was easier to gain entrance to exclusive
nightclubs, and I definetly got more dates! I agree that beauty
opens alot of doors, but you have to have a good head on your
shoulders and emotional intelligence to get what you want.
Cosmetic surgery will never guarantee you a job, a boyfriend
or a life, unless they find a way to do brain or personality
transplants!" D, 32 yrs old, female
"After
I got my boob job, I had guys falling all over me to take
me out and buy me drinks. I thought getting more attention
from guys would fill some kind of void in my life, but it
hasn't. It's been annoying being recognized only for my body
and nothing else. Now I'm trying to dress more consevatively
and work towards being more spiritual and developing my mind."
S, 29 yrs old, female
"Cosmetic
surgery is a personal decision. I wouldn't do anything to
my own body, but I'm not going to judge someone who wants
to do it. If someone has the money and something is really
bothering them about their physical appearance, then why not?"
C, 35 yrs old, female
"
I would think twice before dating someone who had cosmetic
surgery. To me it signals some kind of insecurity. In Korea,
so many girls look like barbie doll clones. I prefer a girl
with natural charisma and a good character. For the most part,
I think girls are way too obsessed with their looks and I
can't believe people are risking their health just to look
better." J, 33 yrs old, male
"I
don't care what they've had done. A beautiful girl is a beautiful
girl. It really depends what I want from them. If I'm after
a one night stand, then Pamela Anderson, Bring it on! If I'm
looking for my wife, then looks alone are not enough."
P, 35 yrs old, male
"I
know a girl who was like a little sister to me. She got liposuction
and had her breasts made bigger. Way bigger. Now she looks
like a porn star and I must admit, I'm embarassed to be seen
walking on the street with her." N, 25 yrs old, male
