Negotiating attractiveness: Korean American perceptions of body image and identity in light of the Korean Wave

ABSTRACT

This study sheds light on how digital technologies and transnational media culture in the U.S. promote new ways of making sense of Korean American identity by renegotiating Asian attractiveness in terms of body images and identity. As a prominent case of media globalization, the rise of the Korean Wave in a global context initiated the exploration of Korean Americans’ imagination of attractiveness. Noting that white standardized body images have spread along with mass-mediated content, this paper questions whether this new media environment brought with it a similar shift in perceptions of attractiveness. Employing the concepts of intersectionality and Appadurai’s notion of global imagination, the researcher delved into the daily lives and media practices of Korean Americans during ten months of fieldwork in the Philadelphia area and conducted in-depth interviews with about thirty Korean Americans. Transnational media became emancipative resources for their global imagination, embracing their ethnic identity. Yet, young Korean American women in particular actively engaged in consumerism driven by global capitalism, as well as Western-centered beauty standards and fashion trends, via mediated images in Korean media. In this way, this new media environment is not an exclusively emancipative force, especially for young women in a racial minority group.

KEYWORDS:

• attractiveness
• Korean Wave
• Korean Americans
• intersectionality
• global imagination

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. Since they were constantly exploring the best opportunities they could get in the U.S. or South Korea, they did not claim to be Koreans or Americans. Instead, they were actively learning and joining the local U.S. culture. They participated in diverse activities such as Korean American churches, Korean American Student Associations, and other local events hosted by local Korean Americans where they could find social networks and potential support.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

HaeLim Suh

HaeLim Suh is an assistant professor in the School of Communication, Film and Theatre at the University of North Georgia. Her research focuses on media globalization, popular culture, and gender, race/ethnicity, and class identity. She teaches a variety of courses including Korean Cinema, Globalization and South Korean Media, Intercultural Communication, and Film Appreciation.