Cultural Post 2
This past weekend, I watched a kdrama that was about a woman who had to quit her high paying job in the United States due to being diagnosed with depression from working too hard. Additionally, she was diagnosed with stomach cancer and had part of her stomach removed from surgery. She ended up moving back into her parents’ home in Korea, and she sort of showed up out of nowhere. Her parents, shocked that she was back home, questioned why she returned. Instead of telling the truth, she just came up with the excuse that she got bored of her job. She was afraid of telling the truth because she didn’t want her parents to know that she became ill and couldn’t handle the work in the U.S.
I took second to think about why it is difficult for Koreans to speak up about their health problems to their parents. The culture in Korea is very tight, meaning that there isn’t a lot of freedom to deviate from the norms. Children are taught at a very young age that they must study hard and get good grades in order to get into Seoul University and get a high paying job. Parents often compare the success of their children as it boosts their egos as parents. This can become very toxic and stressful for Korean students as they are constantly pressured into pursuing money instead of their passion/dreams. This is very different from students in the United States where there is more leeway to choose what they want to pursue. Many students here like to study what they find interesting. However, this part of Korean culture is still present in many Korean American families as first generation parents still instill those values in their children while they study here. I just thought that it was interesting to examine the differences between looser and tighter cultures in education, careers, and passions.
This past weekend, I watched a kdrama that was about a woman who had to quit her high paying job in the United States due to being diagnosed with depression from working too hard. Additionally, she was diagnosed with stomach cancer and had part of her stomach removed from surgery. She ended up moving back into her parents’ home in Korea, and she sort of showed up out of nowhere. Her parents, shocked that she was back home, questioned why she returned. Instead of telling the truth, she just came up with the excuse that she got bored of her job. She was afraid of telling the truth because she didn’t want her parents to know that she became ill and couldn’t handle the work in the U.S.
I took second to think about why it is difficult for Koreans to speak up about their health problems to their parents. The culture in Korea is very tight, meaning that there isn’t a lot of freedom to deviate from the norms. Children are taught at a very young age that they must study hard and get good grades in order to get into Seoul University and get a high paying job. Parents often compare the success of their children as it boosts their egos as parents. This can become very toxic and stressful for Korean students as they are constantly pressured into pursuing money instead of their passion/dreams. This is very different from students in the United States where there is more leeway to choose what they want to pursue. Many students here like to study what they find interesting. However, this part of Korean culture is still present in many Korean American families as first generation parents still instill those values in their children while they study here. I just thought that it was interesting to examine the differences between looser and tighter cultures in education, careers, and passions.
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