Message from jflinn

[Anonymous]

I'm having a little trouble understanding your criticism of my article, but I would like to respond.

First, there is in fact a difference in public perception in Korea between what is commonly termed "talent" who have broad crossover appeal and appear in multiple forms of entertainment and actresses. Some of these women have been sucessfully able to parlay sexually provacative material into popularity, but for others it has been a disaster. There is particular censor of nude photos, but sexually charged music vidoes and acting parts also expose talent to criticism from society.
However, there is very little evidence that Lee Eun-ju's public reputation suffered much from her taking roles in provocative movies. The public perception of her was largely comiserate with being a "serious" actress, with real artistic value attatched to her performances. The criticism was largely in her head. Lee Eun-ju's reputation was not ruined, and she had been continuing to find work precisely because she had earned credibility as an actress (which ties into my commentary on how women in Korean media have to carefully navigate in order to both comply with social norms dictating conservative "Confucian" sexual mores and seek ways to stay in the public eye that frequently exploit their sexuallity)
The final paragraph is NOT meant to contradict the earlier part of the article. Instead, it is my contention that while she seems indeed to have felt guilt and aprehension over her role, this was symptomatic and not causative. Mental illness is a serious problem, and there is ample evidence that Lee Eun-ju was suffering from clinical depression, which was left largely untreated. By assigning a quick and easy "cultural explanation" (ie Lee committed suicide because she couldn't live with herself after taking a sexually explicit role that offended "confucian" propriety) we will fail to understand both the cultural meanings of sexuality in Korean media AND the tragic end to Lee Eun-ju.
Finally, please note that my name is spelled with an "i" not a "y" Flinn, not "Flynn"