By Byun Hee-jin
Reporter of Campus Section

Not even a month is left until the summer break. Korean students have a tendency to take good care of the way they look by going on a diet or getting plastic surgery, during the vacation. Freshmen dream of being a so-called “lecture-beginning goddess,” and seniors who are in between jobs get “employment surgery” to give a good impression at the interview or on their resume picture.
Koreans are living in an era where appearance is just one more area for competition today. University students recognize appearance as an important way of raising their value. As a consequence, side effects such as the rising rate of getting plastic surgery or falling self-confidence are common in Korea. So how would countries other than Korea think about the appearance-oriented society? The Argus met HUFSans from three different countries and heard their thoughts on it.

Lookism has pervaded Korean culture, even on daily necessities. Stationery designing enterprise Ban8 sparked controversy by selling 10 kinds of products with words of appearance discrimination. There were phrases that incite appearance discrimination such as “You should study real hard with your look!” “Oh! People with good looks do not need to study.” However, the enterprise said that it does not have any plans to stop merchandising unless problems are posed, since its products received a good response on many online communities.

The Argus: What are your thoughts on the rampant lookism in Korean society?
Curtis: I think that is awful We never do that in Canada and if it does, it would receive heavy criticism. Korea tries to follow the trend of appearance which changes every year. I think Korea’s appearance-oriented society squishes people’s confidence. I noticed that Koreans are more honest about how bad others look, such as saying, “You gained weight,” or “You look ugly today.” I think Koreans have a mindset that it is helping them to look better by telling them what to fix, but it may hurt people’s confidence. Canadians never say such things to friends. Instead, we compliment people to make them feel good.
Enrico: I think this is crazy. I see that lookism in Korea is a matter of social power. Usually, women are judged on their appearance much more than men in Korea I think. I have seen an interviewer asking Korean men “What is the ideal standard of girls for you?” All of them answered her “pretty look.” In Korea, women should be pretty to be accepted by society. They care so much about their looks because they are scared of not being accepted. As a result, their final decision is usually to have plastic surgery. However, she would be criticized again after getting an operation because she lost her natural look. It is another depressing thing for me in Korea.
Hongyuan: I did not know about excessive lookism in Korean society. But, when I think that, it is horrible. Most people are not appearance-oriented in China. I understand the first impression or appearance is very important since it is a standard for judging one’s whole image at first sight. However, it is more important to get along with and know the person.

Last March, the part-time job labor union conducted a survey targeting part-timers of CGV and Lotte Cinema. The survey results showed that 87 percent of part-timers suffered from appearance evaluation during work or when interviewed by the administrators. Administrators’ insulting remarks especially to female part-timers aroused controversy, saying things such as, “Put on makeup properly, or no one will want to see your face,” “Who would want to give an order to you?” or “We are losing customers because you look bad.”

The Argus: How much does appearance affect social life in your country?
Enrico: In Italy, people are not judged by your look, but how well they do on their performances or how smart he is. If you work at a cinema, you will not be judged on how pretty you are, but how well you can interact with people or how fast you are doing tasks.
Curtis: In Canada, people judge others on their intelligence, personality and attitude, not appearance. In Korea, when you want to be beautiful, you know exactly what you have to look like because there is a standard of appearance that society has set. However, Canada is a culturally and ethnically diverse country such that the beauty standard of people is all different. Each race has its own look and characteristics. There is more flexibility in beauty in our country than Korea, which also affects the way people judge you. People are attracted to the ones who have confidence in their own individuality.
Enrico: I have seen many Koreans trying look similar to each other. In Italy, you can have your own particular look such as a huge tattoo or weird hairstyle. We prefer to look different, and it does not matter at all. I know people in Korea would probably look at you negatively if you do that. It does not make sense to me, judging someone on the way you look rather than their own skills.
Hongyuan: How you look is not a big matter in China. We do not judge people by their beauty. Chinese do not care about the looks of others. Rather, Chinese prefer people with honesty.

There is a saying “Appearance is also a competition” when finding jobs in Korea. Jobseekers put a lot of effort into a picture for a resume to raise their competitiveness on appearance by editing the photo or getting “employment surgery.”
According to a survey done by the employment portal site “Saramin,” 84.2 percent of 273 human resources directors answered that the appearance of applicants influences their evaluation. It is revealed that 56.9 percent of directors deducted points or rejected applicants because of their appearance, and 33.7 percent added points or let applicants pass if their appearance was outstanding even if they had low qualifications for the job.

The Argus: Even if it is not an occupation that requires an outstanding appearance, is it still an important element when getting a job?
Curtis: No, not at all in Canada. In Korea, it is required to attach your picture to the resume, but any photographs are not required when applying for a job in Canada. Your look does not affect the way they conduct the interview. The interviewers do not remember what interviewees looked like. They ask questions based on what their skills are. Ugliness can never be the reason for not hiring in Canada.
Enrico: Totally the same case for Italy. I ensure that you will never be judged by the way you look in Italy. In my country, a picture is not required before the interview either. Information such as who you are, what did you do, school grades, and work experiences is needed. Also, I went for the Italian Embassy interview with casual clothes on. The ambassador and other important people were evaluating me, but they did not care about my appearance.
Curtis: If somebody comments on your look and fires you because of your looks, then you can sue them in Canada and get a lot of money from the company. Appearance cannot be a fair reason to fire someone. The reason of firing should be based on their behavior, attitude, and lack of skill or effort.
Hongyuan: In China, a photograph should be attached to the resume, but it is just to identify the person to know whether the right person came to the interview. Chinese edit their picture for their own satisfaction, but we do not do it to look better for the interview. The most important thing for getting a job is his academic ability, or which university he graduated from.

It has become a custom in Korea for high school seniors to get plastic surgery for aesthetic reasons before they enter university. According to a survey done by the university students’ magazine “Daehaknaeil” and Banobagi Plastic and Aesthetic Clinic, out of 459 students, 38.1 percent answered that they had gotten plastic surgery or cosmetic injections. Also, it was revealed that plastic surgery was usually done under external pressure. 23.9 percent of male respondents had plastic surgery at an acquaintance’s suggestion, and 44.5 percent of female respondents had an operation to improve their self-confidence, envying others’ appearance.

The Argus: How does your country view plastic surgery?
Curtis: Canadians look down on plastic surgery because it makes people look artificial. In Canada people usually do it out of necessity or if you have something wrong with you. For example, it is accepted if you got a burn on your face to recover it. However, getting plastic surgery just for aesthetic reasons is frowned upon and criticized by people because we believe that people should look naturally beautiful. You are never going to get your original and natural look back after getting plastic surgery. We encourage people to have their own independent look.
Enrico: Italian society in general does not prefer plastic surgery. I have never seen young Italians or my Italian friends wanting plastic surgery, but it is common in older people. They get Botox injections because they feel uncomfortable with their wrinkles. Still, people judge people because they got plastic surgery.
Hongyuan: Chinese people get plastic surgery if they want to be prettier and have more confidence in themselves. The main problem is that operations are not considered safe in China. If I was to plan on having plastic surgery, people around me would have negative reactions toward me, not supporting me doing it.