Plan for the Paper 1) Korean Culture has been spread and systematically infringing upon nation cultures

and identities 2) Korean Pop Culture is utilized in order to advertise and increase Korean exports 3) The Korean Wave is a symbol of national identity and the desire to seek economic power and political security 4) The Cultural stamp of Korea is beneficial to their products 5) The Newly prosperous Asia is now economically powerful and as such has become model for lifestyle as oppose to looking towards American lifestyle as a way of being wealthy 6) Korean wave connects on a national scale as well as generational, this generations music, k-pop marketed as cool towards young new Asians in urban lifestyle and setting Quote to help: Rather than being a product of Korean popular cultures uniqueness or superior quality, the Korean Wave may be a result of the ability of a most secular, capitalistic, materialistic, desire to appease the newly emerging desires and diverse anxieties in the Asian region. The Essay Itself In the aftermath of the 1997 Asian Financial crisis, South Korean culture began to experience an influx of popularity within much of Eastern Asia, due to the explosive success of two of its primary pop culture industries: The Korean Drama and K-pop, a South Korean genre of music that actively combines elements of dance, rock and hip-hop. With this spread of popularity and success within the Asian community came a newfound interest and fascination for all things Korean, including food, fashion, entertainment, and of course culture. It was this cultural spread and open armed acceptance of Korean culture that has led to an ever-growing chorus of anti-k-wave sentiment from groups within China and Japan, who have begun to view this spread as a form of cultural imperialism that seems to be encroaching upon and devouring their own traditional native roots. Despite initially being a marketing success of Korean pop culture to the international community, K-wave has acted as a nationalistic imperialist force of South Korea, that has begun to encroach upon the culture and traditional values of East Asian nations whose populations have chosen to embrace and accept it. In 1999 Beijing journalists created a name that would eventually be used to unanimously describe the ever-growing and immense wave of South Korean Pop Culture that continues to spread in popularity throughout East Asia. The term they created was chosen due to the powerful and seemingly unstoppable nature this newfound spread of entertainment had: they called it the K-wave. In Japan the evidence of the wave was not immediately visible until the Prime time debut of a Korean soap opera titled Winter Sonata in 2003. The ratings were impressive to say the least, drawing an astounding 20% of all Prime Time viewers within Japan. With its incredible debut came a rapid influx of Korean Dramas into the Japanese marketplace, which was met with amazing success. Alongside this success of the k-drama came an ever-growing interest in other forms of Korean entertainment, including the explosive successive of k-pop bands, as well as a curious interest and particular liking towards any and all things Korean for that matter. With this came an open preferentiality towards Korean fashion, entertainment, food and culture that neared the approachment of obsession for many fans, much to the agitation of Japanese traditionalists. The overwhelming success of Korean mass media and culture throughout Asia can be attributed to the clean cut, attractive and most importantly vulgarity and sex free entertainment provided through Korean television and music. In accordance with traditional Asian and Confucian ethical values, K-wave provides all of the entertainment and excitement of American pop culture, without the usual vulgarity and sexuality that comes with it, creating a cleaner

product that is far more accessible to Asian consumer tastes. Like North American and Latin soap operas, Korean dramas feature love stories and romance but without the added sexuality, often building up to an innocent kiss in place of any true blatant sexual acts. This has allowed for a product that can be easily accessed not only to Asian youth, but multiple generations of people as well, who can all enjoy a love story which goes alongside wholesome family, and more importantly traditional East Asian values. It has been this mutual cultural heritage that has led to the unanimous success of the K-drama, as most if not all nations within East Asia and the pacific rim draw their heritage and traditional values from the Confucian values of old. The South Korean government has been openly supporting and promoting the K-wave movement through government subsidies designed to market and financially aid the making and production of domestic films as well television series. It is through this subsidization that they hope to help improve and establish South Koreas national identity and image within the international community, as well as strengthen Koreas own cultural identity and traditional values. This strengthening of Korean culture within the international community has brought upon a newfound understanding as well as admiration from East Asian nations. This cultural globalization or spread of Korean culture has led to a significant strengthening and growth of the South Korean economy, as the ever-growing masses of K-wave consumers spend money in order to satisfy their newfound obsession with Korea. Examples of this link between cultural spread and economic success can be seen within the booming South Korean tourist industry, which specifically targets fans of Korean dramas, promising the chance to visit sites and locations featured within some of the most famous K-dramas and films. This preference and open celebration of Korean culture, by Japanese youth has led to the anger and frustration of Japanese nationalists, who claim that K-wave has progressively been taking over and trying to replace fundamental Japanese values. This ever-growing sense of resentment towards K-wave and Korea itself eventually culminated in the creation of a subgenre of Japanese pop culture called I hate Kanryu or I hate K-wave which is a selection of media that specifically attacks and targets the Korean entertainment industry and its spread within Japan. This resentment and overall discontentment of some Japanese has led to the production and success of a book titled Kenkanryu, which is a combination of manga and essays that despite being blatantly racist and hateful towards Koreans, has become a nationwide best seller. Kenkanryu, which currently has over three volumes on shelves, is a clear example of how far this resentment has in fact spread. It is a book that refuses to stop at criticizing the effects of the K-wave itself, and instead chooses to attack and resent the South Koreans in general. The shocking racism and blatant fact that it has still managed to become a best seller is a testament to the feelings of resentment felt by many of the Japanese populace towards the ever growing spread and dominion of South Korean culture over traditional Japanese tradition. In China as well there has been a growing backlash towards the spread and seemingly unstoppable expansion of Korean Cultural imperialism. In 2006, one of Chinas most well-known television stars, Zhang Guoli went on record calling Korean wave a cultural invasion of China, and pleaded with his fellow Chinese to purchase and support domestic and national media in order to help China maintain its traditional roots and culture. Likewise in 2006 Chinas head of media stated that the government plans to cut down the broadcasting of Korean dramas by half, in order to ensure that Chinese media is not choked out and replaced by foreign entertainment. This decision was made after the popularity of Korean music began to One of the premier consumers of Korean Culture is the nation state of Taiwan, which has experienced an explosive movement in demand and popularity for all things Korean. Between 1995 and 2008 Taiwanese tourism into South Korea has jumped from 100 959 people to 363 122, nearly tripling in numbers due to a newfound interest in exploring the land that has brought them such popular TV shows as Jewel in the Palace a 2003 historical drama which in 2004 broke records for being the highest viewed Korean show in Taiwanese history. Like many Korean dramas, Jewel in the Palace served to bolster tourism within Korea as flocks of fans from around the world visited to view scenery featured in some of their favorite films and tv series.

Despite the success of K-wave and the far reaching spread of its influence, it should be noted that outside of the Pacific Rim and East Asia it has proven to be far less popular and successful within mainstream pop culture. Despite finding dedicated fan bases around the world, there exists no looming threat of South Korean dramas choking out and eventually overrunning domestic television in say Canada for example. While K-wave has experienced remarkable and often overwhelming success in Asian nations such as China and Japan, it has had little if any true effect upon the Canadian entertainment industry. Unlike in Asia there exist no Korean Dramas slotted in on prime time on available basic cable networks within North America. This is due to the fact the ultimate success of K-wave has been based upon the way in which it provides entertainment that unanimously appeals to the traditional cultural roots of East Asian nations. The lack of overwhelming success in North America as well as other locations such as Europe can be attributed to the fact that K-wave is in itself a series of products marketed towards and created for East Asian consumers. Through its successful exportation, marketing and selling of South Korean culture as the new trendy, fashionable and likeable product in Asia, South Korea has managed to promote and improve its overall national standing within the international community. Due to its newfound success it has become appropriate and well within reasonable boundaries for many living within Asia to adopt and assimilate parts of Korean culture into their own lives. From this has come a surge of South Korean cultural-emulation from the likes of Japanese, Taiwanese, Chinese and other East Asian nations. From fan admiration and approval has come the general acceptance and even adaptation of South Korean culture and national values into the lives of those living within foreign nations.