short paper
Please write about 250 words for Prompt # 1 and 250 words for Prompt # 2.
Length: 400 – 500 Words, double-spaced. [Please respond to BOTH prompts.]
1. Film to watch(Madame Freedom (자유부인 – Jayu buin) is a 1956 South Korean film)
Prompt: Given the fact that the protagonist Sŏnyŏng’s social freedom and economic independence depends on her work at a Western luxury goods store, discuss her “transformation” in relation to the concepts explained in Cartwright and Sturken’s article such as commodity fetishism, commodity feminism, the rise of consumer culture, and self-improvement. First select 2-3 examples from the film (an example can be a scene, part of plot development, a dialogue etc.) and do a close reading of each example by utilizing the concepts from Cartwright and Sturken’s essay. This prompt is premised upon the connection between her “liberation,” or her transformation from a housewife into a working woman, on the one hand, and various kinds of material goods/commodities (food, clothing etc.) and Western cultural commodities (music, dance, English words etc.), featured in the film as part of the narrative development, on the other hand. You have to have a good understanding of Cartwright and Sturken’s article in order to respond to this prompt. Please make sure you also cite briefly ideas from Cartwright and Sturken.
2.Film to watch (A Flower in Hell (지옥화 – Jiokhwa) is a 1958 South Korean film directed by Shin Sang-ok)
Promp: Mulvey’s article discusses men as active controllers of gaze and women as image, constituting “beinglooked-at-ness” in the Western mainstream films. How do her ideas apply to “Hell Flower” in terms of its portrayal of Korean men in particular? You have to take into account the fact that the masculinity of Korean male characters in the military camp town is compromised or diminished by the presence of the US military and their wealth and dominance. Korean men in this context represent “racialized masculinity” vis-à-vis American servicemen. Analyze Yongshik and Dongshik in terms of their actions, their relationship with women, their behavior, and their gaze, con
cartwright_sturken_consumer_culture
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Prompt 1
After the end of the Korean War, South Korea was deeply embedded in the western cultural sphere as families were put in unexpected contexts. This set the stage for the onset of the independent women, a core theme of the film. The transformation of Sŏnyŏng is best depicted by her decision to accept the job as a cosmetic store manager to chip into her husband’s small income. This example best depicts commodity fetishism as Sŏnyŏng, and her husband is engaged in a social-economic relationship to increase their household income. Through this, she is transformed from a housewife to a working woman. Sŏnyŏng’s transformation gave the rise of an independent woman who was not confined by the societal norms.
(555 words)