The Image of a Working Woman in the Popular Culture of Modern South Korea

Nowadays gender inequality in the workplace is a pressing issue in South Korea: women more often than men occupy low-paying jobs and all other things being equal are less likely to hold managerial positions. At the same time, the importance of visual culture and visual arts, in particular cinema and television, is growing throughout the world. Indirect experience gained through the media influences the formation of public consciousness, constantly spreads and reproduces generally accepted ideas. This work aims to examine what image of a working woman is created in the mass culture products of the Republic of Korea. The study base consists of 47 TV series and 100 films of South Korean production, released between 2010 and 2019, inclusively, a total of 212 female characters were analyzed in the work. In order to achieve this goal, we first looked into statistical data on the status of working South Korean women. What is more, we examined trends in gender policy in the workplace and the promotion of gender equality through censorship in modern South Korea. After we analyzed the images of working women in films and series and determined to what extent these images correspond to the present situation. In addition, we examined the conflicts that the heroines face, and also found out whether there is a specific or dominant image of a working woman in the popular culture of modern South Korea. Based on the results obtained, we came to the conclusion that although there is no one specific image of a working woman in South Korean TV shows and films, it is impossible to speak of a wide variety of female images. The heroines in most cases conduct themselves according to gender norms, and the main source of conflict for them is romantic relationships. However, most indicators related to the professional activities of the characters are close to statistical data, which suggests that the creators of the content strive to make them realistic. Having examined the gender policy trends in modern South Korea, we can say that the government is taking active measures to narrow the gap between the opportunities for men and women in the workplace and representation in the media, however, since many measures are only advisory in nature, it is difficult to call them effective at this stage.