The social growing pains of a high-speed society

Kim Ju-weon

Much attention has been given to the speed with which Korea got to where it is today. It’s well known that the country’s meteoric rise from the ashes of the Korean War to the upper echelons of the world’s economic powerhouses is basically unparalleled in human history. The successful shift from dictatorship to democracy is also a common theme of political rhetoric both in and outside of the nation’s borders.

But the things that have thus far been neglected in this rapid drive for progress are only recently coming to the fore. The dichotomy that exists between Korea’s success and its people’s ability to enjoy that success is more and more frequently a subject of study. A May 22 article in this paper reported that one national survey found 78 percent of Koreans were unsatisfied with their leisure activities last year.

Living here, it doesn’t take long to discern that the diligence the citizens of this country pride themselves on, and with which they built their economic miracle, belies increasing questions about how they may reap the benefits of their newfound affluence.

Kim Ju-weon sees this as “part of the development, the evolution” of his birth country. A staple of the local English broadcasting world and host of Arirang Radio’s afternoon drive news show, “Riding Home,” Kim was born at Severance Hospital in Sinchon, western Seoul in 1983. He and his family emigrated to the United States when he was 8. He is now an American citizen.

He returned here in 2006 as one of Korea’s golden prodigal children, fluent in both English and Korean, with a new point of view on the country.

“Before I left [the U.S.], I thought Korea was the best at everything. I’d sit there and brag about it, how great the food was, how advanced the technology was; I had a very grand idea of Korea,” he said, adding with a laugh that his screen name in the States was “Kpower4ever.”

“When I came back, Korea was definitely advanced, but I had never seen the social downsides, the repercussions of its growth,” he said. “The things that made Korea recover so fast from the Korean War, the living for the bottom line, had the effect of sacrificing the appreciation of life.”

The devotion to the so-called ppalli-ppalli lifestyle leaves people unsure of what to do with life outside of work, he said. “There’s not really any leisure time. Look at the vacation time people get, look at the overtime people work without extra pay.”

Although Korean kids are usually tempered for the rigorous work schedule of adult life by the extremes of the local education system, Kim’s move to the U.S. meant he wasn’t.

“I really enjoyed my childhood. ... I didn’t have to spend all my time in a hagwon. Coming from that environment, I had a different perspective on the fast-paced, laboring lifestyle here,” he said.

Given their parents’ drive for success, kids here may exhibit an early tendency toward materialism, he said. “I have a friend who teaches English in Banpo. He said fourth graders were comparing the cars their parents drive and their parents’ income.”

However, he believes that same Korean spirit that drove the nation’s development will also get it through this next stage.

“Things are changing, people are realizing,” he said. “You have to remember that Korea is a young democracy. We’re feeling the growing pains of Korea. I’m glad to be a part of it.”

[richard@joongang.co.kr