My theory on how Asians consider Westernized, Caucasian features more beautiful than Asian, or Korean in this case, features have been proven to be true once again through this photos/pictures a website in Korea has published on "the perfect 3D beauty".
As you can see this is a face not of an Asian, but well maybe abit middle eastern. The laws of beauty in Korea are found- as I've already noted in my previous blog entry- big round eyes with double eyelids, pointy nose, small white face, small lips, rounder, curvy face- as in flat face as we Koreans usually have as we can see in the traditional masks. The thing is now with enhanced plastic surgery methods and whitening products, many girls actually look like this. Also this face was actually based on couple of famous Korean actress, Young-ae Lee which resembles this 3D beauty, especially the first picture, and Tae-hee Kim.
There is also a male version of the perfect beauty, which really looks like a gay middle eastern man- which from the Iranian President's speech in the US last month, does not exist in Iran. Anyhow, the same principles adhere here, big eyes, sharp nose, but unlike the women abit tanned.
Whichever the case, these pictures show how we really hate our original features of small single eyelid eyes, flat nose, flat face and all. Which I have to say is a well chosen facial features of some of the world wide known Asian super models. However, having said all this and many times, even I myself do find the rounder more bigger eyes with a more curvy facial features attractive maybe due to my socialization in Korea, maybe other reasons. However, the more I see these faces, it does seem like everyone looks the same- the same plastic surgery methods - and seem to lack any real character in their faces.
So in conclusion, to make my eyes and perception change along with those of my fellow Koreans and other Asians, I would really like to see some real Korean feature beautiful faces on screens, magazines etc because I do believe there are as much beauty in these faces, no even more beauty due to the character it holds. If distributed widely and frequently enough, I think the perception of what is beautiful will change after awhile. This in the longer run will do wonders in improving the self image Korean women will have on themselves of considering their natural state beautiful not something that needs to be augmented. but of course will bring bad business to plastic surgeons.
The sad thing is unfortunately this process will probably be done by Western Media and not by Koreans, the same way Zen interior design or Yoga became popular back again in Asian countries only after it became a hit in the US market or in European countries. We need others to tell us we are beautiful because we can't see it in ourselves(which is the point I've made in the previous blog).
Another thing that frustrates me from this beauty conception is that we as in the Asian societies do not have the diversities to have several types of perception of beauty and form one set norm, well at least in Korea. For it is not that I think the 3D beauty is ugly or anything, no, but it is one thing to consider that beautiful and another to consider ONLY that beautiful. We serious need diversified looks, norms and beauties.
Of course having said all this, I know our societies are changing and that our societies are dynamic where even norms change as quickly as the fashion fads. Another good news is the increasing diversification of the racial composition of Korea, where now it boasts 2% of its population of being foreign born or migrants. As social composition becomes diversified I expect, project that our conception of what is beautiful and what isn't will change as well. Or maybe not, maybe we will always look at "Westerners (서양인)" and envy their good looks compared to ours, despising our parents as well as our ancestors for giving us such unfashionable looks.
17 comments:
honey the grass is always greener.
you must surely have come across guys hitting on you as " a bit of exotic" probably, you quite like that too.
also westeners are trying very hard to fit to a specific ideal too.
This subject really is not worthy of so much mental masturbation.
anything that allows for mental masturbation is worth talking about.
I am more up for the get as much as you can get or do...
I know that westerners are also trying to fit an ideal, but I don't see masses of European-Caucasians going to plastic surgeons to look more Asian.
western ideal of beauty : Barbie
how about sandra oh? she's so hot, I'ld do her.
For quite a while, the West has been economically dominant - this has led amongst other things to a popular western aesthetic being adopted as "norm" around the world.
Throughout history, a "dominant" civilisation's ideals tend to be emulated by the "other".
The thing is Eastern ideal of beauty : Barbie (as well)
Maybe the African ideal of beauty : Barbie???
I totally agree with the economic domination leading to the cultural social domination of norms.
Will the rising economic influence of China change the cultural ideals and standards? How does economic dominance translate into cultural dominance?
economic progress or success = better society/country = better citizens = pretty citizens
economic domination = ability to dominate cultural social norms i.e. money = power and the power concerns societal/cultural aspects as well.
Just look at how American/US cultural is dominating societies- yes even European societies, don't you try to deny this- due to its domination of economic systems = neoliberalization.
Globalization = americanization of societies??
Hmm, the 3D model looks more like a mixed Asian and Caucasian person to me. She doesn't look anything like a full Korean, nor can she pass for a full Chinese or Japanese. She can totally pass for a child of a Caucasian mother and Asian father (or vice versa) BUT this is not the typical beauty of a full-blooded Asian.
For Korea to post this kind of picture up for their people to see is saying that everyone has to look like they're not Korean to look beautiful.... That's not a good message to send out to the younger generation. Even though they're all getting their faces done to look more (non-Korean), their children will come out looking as Koreans would look like.
A society full of man-made beauty is horrifying to me. I hope that Korea will set a good example for other Asians and turn this bad trend around. Because there is a Korean wave, and the celebrities of Korea do not have typical features that majority of Asians are born with, they're sending messages across Asia... that are sending the young woman to plastic surgeons.
I hope this trend will change and that people can start focusing on what is more important. If Korea continues on like this, I'm afraid the true beauty of Korea will be lost....
Is there a single standard for human beauty? The cultural dominance of the west have infused a certain standard for the concept of beauty.
Maybe in future when Asian become more self assured, they can drop the pretense of trying to remake themselves in the western mold. For now Asians are still going gugu and gaga over the 'perfect' caucasian/Asian-like features of MRiriam/Magibon.
I actually came to read this through searching for hits on the Korean perception of beauty having already spent excess time wondering about the Japanese ideal. The reason for this being an attempt of self confirmation, I think because I've found the opposite.. that I have focused too much on being considered beautiful by Asian standards, considering Asian women to be more beautiful and being incredibly flattered to be asked whether one of my parents was Asian by a Korean woman. I was only semi aware of the extent to which many Korean women have gone to achieve a look of Westernised beauty. Interesting blog.
If the 3D model pictured above is the ideal of beauty in Korea, than I guess most of the world could have that ideal, I think any culture would find that beautiful. Also, she doesn't really look "western", she looks eurasian or even mexican. Anyhow, doesn't every culture find beauty in the rare and exotic. I live in MN, and most women here are lighter, scandanavian looking--and the "ideal" beauty here is to look darker. Go figure. Does this mean we're trying to look more eastern? It's all about the exotic factor. Looking youthful also plays into it- pale + larger eyes makes you look younger.
This phenomenon isn't about Korea; it's about new methods of beauty and large acceptance of plastic surgery on a global level.
I think people hone in on Korea and Japan because their results are so naturally beautiful and feminine.
And really, women have always been "unnatural"-- throughout all of history we use whatever we can to look more attractive.
It used to be that you're either born with it or not. Now that has changed to born with it or have money to change or no money. And there's nothing wrong with that.
I'm a Japanese, living in the US. I'm crazy proud of my untouched features. Japanese, Korean, Chinese, all Asians, we are beautiful, with our natural features. Korean people are beautiful without surgery, no use for it, no sense to be made from it. I understand in Korea there is this "standard" that actresses and actors must "comply" to to even work. But, everyday Korean people should not try to emulate that.
We as Asians should be proud of what we have naturally. What is the future of the world? A population of not only Asians but of every other race that don't look anything like what they naturally do.
Give it another oh, 200 years or so, there will be no more humans, just a world of perfectly plastic cyborgs...lol.
Anyway, for me, looking into the naturally shaped eyes of an Asian male will weaken my knees faster than any Westerner's eyes would... ~_^
I am mexican and i do look so much like the girl in the 3d picture but with bigger rounded eyes, so i guess the beauty stereotype of koreans is maybe trying to look like latins or western people, i really would like to know if there are any beautiful original korean people who could post a picture, in mexico original mexican beautiful women and men are really amazing, i just saw one girl totally mexican type walking down the street this morning, so i would like to know if in Korea exist beautiful people with native faces or not
Why do people JUST like to ASSUME that Koreans or other Asian ethnic groups are trying to be "western" or "white" ??!! Nothing can be further from the truth, and you people are thinking too highly of your own race. The post credited the computer generated models after the famous acress, YoungAe Lee. I am Asian, and like YoungAe Lee, I never had any plastic surgery and look closer to that computer generated model above. That's right. No Surgery EVER!! So stop generalizing Asians. Also, ask any Asian if they are trying to look more "western" or "caucasian" when they are getting plastic surgery. You will be proven WRONG! The Asian standard of beauty has been the same through out their history. You can do your research yourself, and you'll find that in Japan and Korea's history books, and this is going far back in history, before they even got exposed to Westerners entering their lands, and their standard of beauty was always the same as today's standards. You people sure sound like you know what you're talking about. That's pure ignorance, and I wouldn't make assumptions so boldly about another race that you don't have the capacity to understand.
Eastern Asian beauty standards are mostly about appearing as childlike(youthful as possible) the only Westernization there is in the eyelids and the nose, however east-Asians prefer everything about their eyes to be large, long, and bountiful so prefering larger double eyelids once they realized it was something outside of a genetic abnormality is expected. Westerners have our own beauty standards, but most of them are very subjective. We want our men muscular and manly looking with short hair and mostly no effeminate features like bangs and we want our women voluptuous, more so than an S-Line, we actually want protruding features. Koreans prefer women who have a feminine yet childlike appearance because it presents them as young and innocent. This non-threatening appearance translates into a nice contrast to the power that it helps those that fit into this standards attain.
http://musingsandotherdigressions.blogspot.com/
Human has golden mask ratio u can look it up via google and plastic surgery is done by this rule. So ur saying that asian do surgery to look like westerners is wrong assumption
Why do you think asians are doing plastic surgerys to look like, well white people? Aren't we just trying to look like a more beautiful asian? What I think your saying is, asian women do plastic surgery to look like white people, so there is no such thing as a prettier asian? You white people have all the beauty? All these people are just trying to look like their prettier self, and that means their prettier self is not asian anymore but a white person!? So what you're saying is, white people are more beautiful than asians. seriously?! I think asians are very beautiful and they would NOT want to look like white people! shimmery black hair, and pearly white skin, or a bit tanned, what else would anyone want!? You know, asians do plastic surgery not to look like white people, but to look like a prettier asian, because THEY WEREN'T BORN NATURALLY THAT PRETTY! I know some chinese actresses, who haven't done plastic surgery, like Yang Mi, and Liu Yifei. they were born pretty. so you're saying people who were born, not that pretty can't make themselves prettier, cause when they do, their making themselves look like white people?!? Well, lemme tell you this, you do not understand asians. AT ALL! By the way I am a Chinese in Canada, and I like my asian looks. VERY MUCH! I never wanna dye my hair or ANYTHING! I like my black hair very much, and I think Asians can be just as pretty as white people, not changing their looks!
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