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KIM JI-YOUNG, born in 1982, had high hopes of excelling at her job in an advertising company. She was young, curious, and above all, ambitious—but such desires were immediately dissolved in the face of reality. Kim, like many other women in South Korea, got married, and eventually had to leave her job due to heavy household chores and child nursing. She was stuck in a vicious cycle of labor, and felt her identity fade away little by little. Her enthusiastic and creative self with visions of her career ceased to exist; she was now just one of the many mothers and wives in postmodern Korea
Review
Kim Kyu-ri
2019.12.02 02:28
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TEENAGERS. THEY are either “thinking about shagging, about to shag, or... shagging,” as the Netflix series Sex Education so frankly puts it. Indeed, it is only natural that teenagers—no doubt driven by their hormones—are enthusiastic yet confused about sex. According to Defining Sexual Health, a report published by the World Health Organization (WHO), adolescence is a period which sets the basis for mature sexual relationships. Teenage sex education is essential in educating the next generation of youth to be well-informed, but also to destigmatize sex as a taboo subject. In fact,
Review
Kwon Do-in
2019.11.02 22:22
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RICH BRIAN, Joji, Keith Ape...are all names you have probably heard of or have seen in your YouTube recommendations and Melon discovery. You would have also noticed that these artists share two significant similarities: they are all under the New York City-based hip-hop label 88rising and are all of Asian descent. CEO Sean Miyashiro’s 88rising is currently an Internet sensation, producing one viral song after another and amplifying the exposure of East Asian artists in the western pop culture scene. Today, hip-hop music is no longer a genre for black artists only—with the founding of 88r
Culture
Kim Kyu-ri, Noh Ruby
2019.11.02 22:15
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CLICK CLICK—bright lights blind your eyes and all you hear are the snaps of the camera. Your body stiffens, uncomfortable with the amount of attention you are receiving; but as you adjust to the studio’s surroundings and the photographer’s occasional “you’re doing great” remarks, you slowly begin to loosen up. Even though we live in a technological society where we can take hundreds of high-quality photos with a simple flick of our fingers, photo studios continue to thrive in our neighborhoods to remind us of how it feels to be the protagonists of the world, even if it’s just for a few m
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Noh Ruby
2019.10.06 20:24
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A SINGLE click, and the newly released album of your favorite band is already downloading. The process is swift, convenient, and virtual. While this has become the norm in today’s hyper digital era, one cannot help but miss the LP-listening-days when music entailed anticipation. To listen to LP music, one had to wait for the record’s release and arrival, clean the disc and finally, carefully place the record on the turner. While cumbersome, the slow-paced preparation only increased the anticipation and value of music. Listen up music aficionados, LPs are back in mode which means that it is tim
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Kwon Do-in
2019.09.04 00:55
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“NO CHICKEN, no eggs, and no cheese, please,” is a typical line said by vegans when ordering their menus at restaurants. A practice based on the absence of contact with animals, veganism is rising in popularity all around the world, and Korea is no exception. With its rise, the spectrum of such lifestyle is also expanding. Veganism in Korea is now evolving into a wider and more versatile philosophy, possible through its developing outlook as a commercial interest. A green philosophy According to Vegan Society, a vegan organization founded in the United Kingdom, veganism is defined as “a way of
Culture
Kim Kyu-ri
2019.09.04 00:48
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WHAT DOES your ideal music festival look like? Does it involve standing in the sun for hours without any updates on your favorite artist showing up? Or do you imagine you and your friends huddled together in fear of tents falling on top of you due to harsh winds and heavy rain? If this sounds like a holiday to you, then this festival would have been your personal paradise. On the last weekend of July, tens of thousands of people fell prey to one of the biggest scams in festival history, as many entered with high hopes but came out empty-handed from the Holiday Land Festival (HLF) 2019. What wa
Review
Noh Ruby
2019.09.04 00:12
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SUMMER IN Korea is known to be deadly. Temperatures in Seoul reached 39.6˚C last year, being the hottest in 111 years.* And having experienced such extremes each year, many of us have our own coping mechanisms to fight off the heat. Visiting waterparks or staying in air-conditioned rooms are all great options, but survival can be a bit more creative. Enhance your summer with D.I.Y activities available at Ssam-zie-gil, Insa-dong area. Read more:https://www.yonsei.ac.kr/en_sc/admission/korea-now.jsp?mode=view&article_no=177137&board_wrapper=%2Fen_sc%2Fadmission%2Fkorea-now.jsp&pager.offset=0&boa
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Kim Kyu-ri
2019.06.03 23:48
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“And yet through it all, Cinderella remained ever gentle and kind…” ~ Narrator, Cinderella (1950) IT IS a strange thing – not many people remember this key takeaway from one of the most iconic Disney princess films of all time. When we think of Cinderella, many tend to remember the magical glass slippers and the promises of true love with a “Prince Charming.” However, tucked away and often forgotten are lessons of courage and kindness Cinderella conveys despite all the adversities she faces. Cinderella’s endearing qualities have always been the driving force of the narrative&mdash
Review
Azrin Tan
2019.06.03 00:08
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WHAT IS the perfect body? Or rather, what do you consider as the perfect body? Does a certain image pop up? It most likely will, but chances are your image of a perfect body will not be exactly the same as someone else’s, and this is a normal occurrence. “Perfect" is an abstract concept that is only achievable in theory, and it is also an ever-changing model that changes its appearance to fit the times. The standards for a perfect body differ in each time period and culture, but the idea of a perfect body lives on. In Korea, that standard has been envisaged as skinny. Though we may not actual
Culture
Kim So-yeon
2019.06.03 00:05
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A DEFINING characteristic of the culture of the younger generation is hybridity, evident from a multicultural and hyperconnected society, mass media, multilingualism, and the multiple identities that the young are continuously exposed to. Under the influence of younger generations, hybrid cultures are born, mixing the old and the young, leisure and work, and art and industry. More specifically, many young entrepreneurs are using abandoned factories as a locus for this new culture, attracting youth to a run-down neighborhood by setting up cafés, galleries and more. Seongsu and Mullae Dis
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Lee Chae-wan
2019.05.07 14:38
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“IT’D BE better if the world would all slow down,” the song “ClosedLoop” woefully laments, the acoustic arrangement in the background deceptively simple and the voice that accompanies it hushed. After a series of drum taps follows a slight distortion that mutes the clear guitar sounds, and then immediately intensifies. The song is somber, wondering about the benefits of facing reality when one can choose to stay home, and its message is enhanced by the sleek atmosphere the musical arrangement creates. This is a talent that music artist Elliot Moss has mastered in his 2017 album, Boomerang. The
Review
Kim So-yeon
2019.05.07 13:06
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A PATCH of denim, a scrap of silk, and strips of floral patterns are sewn together to form a vibrant, psychedelic scarf. Originating from clothing factories, each scrap of cloth was once worthless debris ready to be burned or tossed away at waste dumps. Now, the waste can be arranged and synthesized to fashion new clothing through what is known as upcycling. A combination of the words “upgrade” and “recycling,” this concept is an enhanced version of recycling where waste is transformed into a better product. Unlike recycled materials, whose quality often degenerates as the cycle progresses, up
Culture
Kim Kyu-ri
2019.05.07 13:04
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“CARPE DIEM. Seize the day. Make your lives extraordinary.” The time we have in the world is shorter than we think, so we must not let time pass us by. For one man, he captured the essence of this quote by making his life exceptional until the very end. Robin Williams, a man with unmatchable presence, grew to be one of the most brilliant performers to ever grace the screen. Starring in various movies that touched upon sensitive subjects such as trauma and mental illness, Williams served to guide the troubled and inspire them to overcome their obstacles, no matter how bleak the present may seem
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Kim So-yeon
2019.04.04 01:40
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A CROWN of bright yellow daffodils, magenta hibiscus, and orange dahlias outline the portrait of a woman adorned with gold nuggets and rainbow beads. At first glance, we picture Frida Kahlo and her famous self-portraits. Yet Frida isn’t the only pioneer of colorful, vibrant art. A traveler, writer, and artist, Chun Kyung-ja expressed her pain and sorrow through spiritual motifs and saturated hues. Chun is well known as a figure of contemporary and modern Korean art, and her works deal with unconventional themes portrayed through original, novel methods. Like Frida’s, Chun’s colorful paintings
Review
Kim Kyu-ri
2019.04.04 01:33
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SPACE BA settled on the fourth floor of Sewoon Electronics Plaza in November 2014. With a cheap deposit of ₩2million and a monthly rent of ₩200,000, Song Yo-bi, an art director of Space Ba, an exhibition venue for artists, found the room a suitable place to start artistic projects along with other young artists. Song found the Sewoon Plaza inspirational for her art as it offered a unique atmosphere arising from the Euljiro neighborhood, which has served as Korea’s manufacturing hub since the end of the Korean War. Craftsmen who have been in the area since the 1960s welcomed the you
Culture
Lee Chae-wan
2019.04.04 01:28
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THERE ARE a handful of independent artists that I would recommend to those who want to take a break from mainstream music. Not only do they create songs with color, but they are also memorable with peculiar names that stick to your mind immediately. K-indie is not just HYUKOH and MeloMance, the two most popular artists in the genre. Hopefully this article will serve as a guide for music listeners ready to discover new tunes. 92914 92914 is an indie-rock/R&B duo that debuted in 2017. Its members Lee Joon-ki and Kwon Joo-pyeong first met at church. According to an interview with ICONtv, Lee was
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Kim Kyu-ri
2019.03.06 11:13
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FIRST, IMAGINE a trip involving the hottest models on Instagram, sea cruises atop a sunlit deck, and the top-charting music artists blasting their best hits on a luxurious beach island. Beautiful people dance and have drinks on the edge of the cruise ship, eagerly anticipating the next day. Now, imagine thousands of confused crowds, huddled up on a small, barren island with no food, water, information, nor escape. The weather is unforgiving, and panic is thick in the air, everyone clueless and scared. Both scenarios describe the infamous 2017 event, the Fyre Festival, but only the latter becam
Review
Kim So-yeon
2019.03.06 11:10
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WITH THE drop in temperature, you become conscious of the chills running through your body. You have been out for too long, and you desperately wish to warm your icy body. Your eyes catch steam rising to the skies and a delectable aroma beckons you to follow. A small but cozy stall awaits you, and the owner gives you a welcoming smile. The booth is filled with foods that invite you to have a taste, and the first bite sends bliss your way. Winter has finally arrived and so has the plethora of street foods unique to this season. These winter treats have become a familiar staple of Korean culture
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Kim So-yeon
2018.12.02 19:13
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“ALL THINGS considered, there’s a lot worse stuff that's happening today, I mean, a couple of people getting killed by one guy with a knife is not that big a deal,” said the latest victim of Michael Myers* in the recent cinematic release of Halloween (2018). With the drastic increase of societal “horrors” in America, a few of which include a plethora of gun violence, racial hatred and increasingly visible incidents of sexual assault, it is understandable to see a heightened reflection of these themes within the horror industry. And this has not gone unnoticed by mainstream Hollywood critics.
Review
Aimee Miller
2018.12.02 19:01