Gendered Accessories in Modern Korea: European Luxury, Prestige or Social Stigma?

• In Event: Radical Fashion: Social Changes and Dress Reform in Modern Asia

Abstract

In 1894, the government of Korea’s Joseon Dynasty in Korea announced the Gabo Reform, which marked the country’s first and most important transition to modern society. During this Reform, many traditional customs of Joseon Korea were changed, and western fashion was forced on the people who reacted with mixed emotions, mostly discontent. The proclamation of the “Short Hair Act” in particular, in addition to the re-designing of attires for public officers and the military, caused an uproar.

While government officials put on new western-style costumes and ornaments (medals and badges) as indications of their accomplishments and bureaucratic ranks, women had few such associations and looked upon imported accessories with even greater skepticism. While Korean men might welcome the new short-hair style and western suits as symbols of power and status, Korean women had little reason to participate in this initial wave of westernized dress reform.

During the colonial period (1910-1945), modern European jewelry for women such as diamond rings, pearl strings, gemstone jewelry, and mechanical watches—all imported from Japan and other countries—were very expensive and thus considered vanity items for the most part. Instead of being objects of prestige, these accessories became associated with courtesans or prosititutes who represented decadence. This cognitive dissonance for European-style ornaments, differently interpreted between men and women, carried social and ethical contradictions in modern Korea that perpetuated certain traditional prejudices regarding women’s appearances and material life.

Author

• Kyeongmi Joo, Busan University of Foreign Studies