Week 1 - Regina Kwon

Startups give birth to a new idea or ideal goal which eventually blossoms into a monumental change in a designated environment. Yet there is no infrastructure or incubators installed just yet. However, Paul Graham argues that growth is deeply connected to and the main result of startups, which makes sense; it only goes up from here. Korea as a whole went through a lot of devastation in its past history, and like Eung Hong claims, Korea wasn’t technically born cool. Korea became cool over the years as it remade itself. In fact, its national identity keeps changing and demanding higher standards. Perhaps, Korea keeps the past in the past by looking forward to and becoming the future. After all, Korea got in touch with its people and got down to business. They focused on particular desires—the desire to look and feel beautiful, to make millions, and to elevate one’s standing in society. There are a lot of talent/T.V. shows that often highlight this idea of appealing to desires. Graham briefly mentions the importance of knowing what customers want. “Want” is the keyword here. The reality that Korea is essentially the number one nation to provide and undergo plastic surgery reflects this idea. Again, Graham mentions that it’s important to have credible people in the industries. But how do credible people land those jobs and opportunities? It might have a lot to do with the ideals that the country stands by, for the most part, such as higher education as well as plastic surgery. I’m thinking it starts with the Korean people—making them "rebranded"—in order to actually rebrand the country. For Korea to be even more on top and achieve the maximum level of “national aesthetics,” the country would have to promote/encourage the idea of the self-made man noticeably here in America. As a result, more and more common people will be unified because they’d be able to express their talents or ideas that aren’t necessarily linked or tied to family connections or other common privileges. 

Question: Is it potentially dangerous or impractical that Korea relies on mere labels like the “Korean Wave” for its pride and dollars? 

Sources: Graham, Paul. “Startup = Growth.” 2012. & “How to Start a Startup.” 2005. 

Hong, Eung. The Birth of Korean Cool: How One Nation Is Conquering the World Through Pop Culture.” Picador: New York. Print. 
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