The Male Hero in America and Korea, A Comparative View
by James Na ~ September 5th, 2006. Filed under: America, Humor, Korean Culture, Koreans in America, Miscellaneous. Hey, wait a minute. I just noticed something about the contrasting male hero types in the U.S. and Korea today. In the U.S., the 50’s style male action hero is dead:
They don’t want to be feared, they want to be hugged. They want to be told, “It’s okay, big fella.” They don’t want to shoot anyone, if possible; they certainly won’t beat a confession out of a suspect or verbally rip the head off a kid who’s new to the unit and trying hard. Their anger is well managed. They never get even, they don’t punish, they see the folly of vengeance, they inflict pain only on special occasions.
But in Korea, the “strong, silent type” is wildly popular (and exported to the rest of Asia)
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Most important, however, has been the South Korean entertainment industry’s perfection of the strong, silent type on screen…
I especially recall Choi Min-Shik’s vengeful character in “Old Boy,” South Korea’s breakout success at the Canne Festival.
Although the Korean Wave often features the romantic, rich, kind men, I think it is true that many new Asian male action heroes perfect the rough, strong, silent type so popular in American cinema until the 70’s.
What’s that all about?
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September 5th, 2006 at 6:41 am
The commentary is on the shift in the shift in the expectation and virtues in the idealized male. I think it comes from a imprecision in the terms used. Stoicism was misapplied to actual stoicism and an unrelated lack of emotional range. Also, after World War II, when a lot of folks had actually shot someone, it was kind of passe. In the 70’s, stoic qualities were imprecisely identifed solely as a lack of emotional range. And the guys who were writing had never really ever shot anybody. So, the violence became unreal and the heroes were given emotional ranges that were positively described as having emotional depth. Unfortunately, this was also misapplied to guys who were weak or histrionic. Since then they’ve tried to balance it: the silent hero with tragic past, but his depth is to be found in how he acts out: suicidal bravado, fighting wildly, bursts of inspiration, etc. So he gets to be tough, but only because he’s so deep. And, as imprecise as before, deep is also misapplied to melodramatic personalities. I miss Lee Marvin. Nick Casavetes was good. Gary Cooper. Ah well.
September 5th, 2006 at 7:44 am
I shot a dog once… Does that count?
I kid, I kid.
When I ended up having an impromptu surgery at a Seattle hospital, the surgeon told me that I could have died, because I waited too long to come to the hospital (I had, er, a bit of pain for three days before I thought maybe I should go to the ER).
Then he told my wife to tell me that John Wayne was dead.
I told him that I’d punch him out like the Duke would… only if he had not put sleepy drugs into me for the surgery.
I grew up in Korea with John Wayne films and Kung Fu movies (which often featured the honorable revenge theme prominently), which went a great length to formulate my sense of manliness (as did, I guess, all those propagandistic anti-communist short films frequently broadcast on TV).
What the surgeon said was heresy to me.
He was probably the type who thought Pierce Brosnan made a good Bond.
September 5th, 2006 at 7:52 am
What would John Wayne do? Has always been a good question to ask ones self. Anyone remember him and Lee Marvin in DONOVAN\’S REEF? THE SONS OF KATIE ELDER, with Wayne and Dean Martin. Men that loved and fought and drank and did the right thing. Tears, no way, not written in. But every man knows, that men cry, in the dark, for a second or two. Right?
September 5th, 2006 at 7:53 am
I cried once… when my dog died. Does that count?
Sorry, I couldn’t help myself.
September 5th, 2006 at 8:37 am
It\’s OK. Counts. Once is enough.