Lookism is defined as a “Prejudice or discrimination based on physical appearance and especially physical appearance believed to fall short of societal notions and beauty.” Lookism, in today's society, is becoming a more serious issue compared to the past. Especially in Korea, beauty standards are straightforward. They are to have a small face, big eyes, long legs, pale skin, and a thin body due to the popularity of K-pop stars who are an extreme example of physical beauty. Therefore, often people get plastic surgery and commit to extreme weight loss in hopes to look like a K-pop star. This causes people to come up with the words ‘plastic surgery’ and ‘beauty’ when they think of Korea.

The seriousness of lookism in Korea can be shown through the plastic surgery rate globally. Korea has recorded the highest ratio of plastic surgery per capita in the world from the Shen, L article about plastic surgery and the rate is continuously rising throughout the year. This might be because there is a stereotype that is formed in Korea; society sometimes considers that the more beautiful the outer appearance is, the more educated the person is. Moreover, lookism can be noticeable during employment because some companies tend to prefer more good-looking employees.

Lookism is inevitable in our society because everyone looks different, and some say that the first impression depends on one’s appearance. However, judging the individual just based on their appearance can cause detrimental results for somebody who is lingering in this societal issue. Consequently, to decrease the problem, rather than trying to change the whole idea and the concept of lookism, I think individuals should develop their self-esteem by finding different activities or interests that boost self-love. This may result in not getting affected by the negative attention by the society. In other words, even though some may criticize an individual for not reaching the typical criteria of beauty, someone who is self-confident will not get bound by them.

송혜윤 강남포스트 학생기자  webmaster@ignnews.kr

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