Popular Culture in Relation to Value Change in China - Case Study Example

Transformative Impact of Korean Drama/Popular Culture in Relation to Value Change in China Student’s Name: Name of Institution: Instructor’s Name: Course Code: Date of Submission: Introduction Generally, popular culture refers to common life practices and aesthetics in both qualitative and statistical senses. However, many theorists have employed the term to designate specific common cultural forms that mainly arise in the modern day. It is important to distinguish popular culture from both high and folk cultures in relation to its relationship with the masses, i.e. unlike folk culture, popular culture is mass-produced; and unlike high culture, popular culture is mass-consumed (Olick, 1998). On this basis then, the Korean wave qualifies as a popular culture; even the best example of such trends in all of Asia. In week two of October, 2010, a Korean pop culture boy band, Super Junior, became the world’s number one trending topic on Twitter, even beating the-then sensational story on the trapped Chilean miners who had been hoisted back to the surface (Mashable, 2010). Indeed, recent years have witnessed a boom of Korean cultural influence by way of TV dramas, music and film, fashion and food. And that boom has come to include computer games, fashion and food (Toffler, 1980; Chua, 2004; Sen, et al., 2007; Chua, et al., 2008; Richards, 2010; Jung, 2011). Onoshi (2006) agrees with this observation: “From hairstyle to clothes, television dramas to music, South Korea has come to define the tastes of many Chinese as well as other Asians over the past decade.” Infact, claims Cai (2008), even learning Korean is fashionable Many journalists and scholars have speculated on the Korean Wave’s potential impact and influence on Asia’s future. And while Cai (ibid) recognizes this proliferation of South Korean Culture in the Asian countries, he notes that there is no country in which this cultural wave has enjoyed more success than China, e.g. a number of top Chinese officials (e.g. Vice-President Zeng Qinghong) have admitted to watching the Korean TV drama Daejanggeum. The main objective of this paper is to evaluate elements of social transformation and change that have influenced and defined this presence of Korean culture- focus mainly granted to Korean Drama- in China. Change and Transformation First and foremost, it is important to distinguish between change and transformation. Wuellner (1991) observes that transformation is more than mere adaptation to external factors or manipulations. It implies more of a new ‘being’, or rather new ‘creation’, which is different from actual change. While change is a part of transformation, the vice versa is not true. Change is inevitable. However, transformation takes one’s willingness to allow something else to inform him or her. Transformation therefore moves a people from one set of fundamental belief systems to the other in different dimensions, thereby representing a shift in their identity, nature of their relationships and behavior. Transformation and change are seldom uniform throughout the society. The influence depends on what and how a social movement, Korean pop culture in this case, communicates to a people or even a person. To understand this stance, perhaps it is important to earn from Gusfield’s (1968) analysis of social movements, which he argues are defined based on different aspects of social order. Thus, social movement may only have effect on some segments of society, and even influence different people in these segments differently, i.e. it may change current perceptions or affirm them (Gusfield, 1968; Heberle, 1968). Ideologically speaking, the beliefs expressed by a social movement reflect the distinct situations in which the social segments that form its base are find themselves. Thus specific ideas only appear just, right and proper only to specific segments of society as only a segment has experienced the things that make the expressed ideology (ideologies) valid and relevant. The influence of South Korean culture on and in China shows these elements of transformation and change. Korean Wave in China Indeed, globalization has inspired a cultural hybrid between South-Korean and Western cultural elements. Richards (2010) sees a good example of this in the effects of a South Korean TV drama, Yearning, which started airing in November 1990. Apparently, the drama became a national craze with Richards (ibid) even mentioning that during the hours that it aired streets in some cities would be deserted, and many discussed the show, even its theme song hummed everywhere. This craze, as Zha (1995) notes, is partly as a result of there being hardly any other entertainment options in China. This may have been true. But it formed part of the beginning for the proliferation of South Korean culture, and the effect that this wave has since had on China is at the centre of much discussion of popular culture. Yearning is said to have had a number of effects on the Chinese. For instance: Created a sense of identity amongst the Chinese: It has been argued that the drama united most Chinese. Zha (1995) said that most Chinese said that the drama brought out and emphasized the best in them, and helped them feel and understand even better what being a Chinese meant by emphasizing the cherished Chinese values on human relationships and family. However, this point generally draws attention to the strategic and clever infusion of Chinese cultural elements into the Korean drama, an ability that is largely attributable to the fact that the two countries share general history. Korea and China have enjoyed a historical relationship and shared the same cultural background for thousands of years (Cai, 2008). They both belong to the Confucian cultural circle in East Asia, and the civilization of Han and Huaxia have not only influenced Korean values and cultures, but also its customs, etiquette and social structure. This shared philosophy, expression of feelings and thoughts have enhanced or boosted the acceptance of Korean cultures and dramas by the Chinese. Moreover, China has somewhat lacked a traditional culture. Apparently, the Great Cultural Revolution and May Fourth Movement diminished the significance of Confucianism, thereby creating sort-of traditional-cultural vacuum in China (Cai, 2008). Most remarkably, Korean shows manifest an integration of both traditional Confucian and western cultures (Cai, 2008; Sang-yeon, 2008). The Chinese started to see traces of the Confucian culture and values, expressed in the dramas, including family-centered behaviors and tendencies, respect for the aged, preference for sons, etc. Thus, the Korean shows envisage the fates of a people (affections, love, friendships, etc) as well as reflect the ideas and thoughts of the modern world, i.e. “historically, Korean popular culture is rooted in traditional Confucian elements and equally baptized in the western [American] culture” (Cai, 2008). Some have even argued that the Korean Wave could help and encourage the Chinese to reexamine and reassess their tradition Confucian culture and thus facilitate a renaissance of traditional culture. South Korean cultural hybridity and products: But while this newly acquired sense of identity has drawn the Chinese people towards ‘their own’, it has equally expanded their love for the Korean. On the contrary, it drew even more the Chinese love and tastes toward South Korean culture and other products, especially amongst the youth. In 2004, according to statistics (cited in Cai, 2008), of the 12,000 drama episodes produced in China, only 5000 aired, leading to an approximated annual loss of 3 billion RMB, an equivalent of $427 million. This was perhaps the reason Zhang Guoli, the famous Chinese actor, bemoaned that China was increasingly becoming a ‘giant’ importer of ‘foreign’ culture (quoted in Cai, 2008). Alice Chen (quoted in Sang-yeon, 2008) says that the evocation of Asian values and sentiments has been an important factor in attracting many Asian toward the Korean popular culture. Mally, a fan of Korean drama, said in an interview with Sang-yeon (2008) that: "Koreans must be very proud of their tradition and culture. Looking at Korean movies or soap operas, I am usually so amazed. They make effort to express 'Korea'”. She went ahead to cite Daejanggeum (Jewel in the Palace) as an example. “I could feel the Koreans’ pride of their culture and tradition. The food, clothes, history…” But both Cho (2005) and Lee (2008) do not agree with this claim of nationalism, who see it as a fusion of both indigenous and exotic elements targeting a cosmopolitan crowd, i.e. a hybrid culture. Infact, Onishi (2006) argues the Chinese youth are not exactly after the South Korean culture. Instead, they seek Western culture. Nevertheless, South Korean culture makes this easier in the sense that it acts as a filter for the Western values, making them available and somewhat palatable and acceptable to the Chinese as well as other Asians. Onishi (2006) quotes a graduate student at the Beijing University who says that although most young people [we] like American culture, they cannot accept it as it is. This presence and increasing proliferation of South Korean culture in China is a manifestation of cultural hybridity, i.e. the process by which cultures borrow from each other, which combine with indigenous cultures to result in a new cultural form (Black, et al., 2010). Globalization of the consumption culture: The notion of South Korean cultural wave is more than just about specific items bought in shops, e.g. American Yankee caps. As Onishi (2006) notes, South Korean missionaries in China are preaching Christianity that wears an Asian face. This is evidence of the global consumption culture that emphasizes on the ‘right packaging’ in order to sell best (Hart, 2001; Pratt, et al., 2009). For example, TV sets and Samsung cellphones have increasingly become symbols of Chinese coveted consumerism (Onishi, 2006). The South Korean culture generally thrives on buying and selling, rather than ideas and values (Richards, 2010). Conclusion New cultures, knowledge and lifestyles are increasingly passed transculturally easily and fast in an increasingly globalized, technologically-mediated world (Black, et al., 2010). Thus, the capability of the Korean Wave to illicit such an amount of influence across Asia should not be surprising. However, in transformative power of the considering the ability of popular culture to effect transformation and change, one should equally note it limitations, lying in its dynamism envisaged in the volatility of trends, even as many suspect the Korean Wave is already diminishing. Indeed, many remain highly skeptical of the generative strength of popular entertainment (such as the ability of the Korean Wave to pique a return to the authentic Confucianism), and argue that only a limited number of high culture forms that are aesthetically and intellectually rigorous can have the transformative power to facilitate the resolution of historical grievances within and between countries (Black, et al., 2010). Still, even if the hallyu era finally died, the fact remains that things will never be the same again. The result of the Korean Wave having swept across and through the region is that the regional shoreline and landscape will never regain the same precise configuration they held beforehand. 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