Media English 2008

Today, I got the new about Chinese’s violence from newspaper and TV. About 6,000 Chinese people got together in Seoul for celebrating Olympic flame. However, during the event, they struck Korean people and even police officers with various stuff. When I saw the new, I felt uncomfortable. Although the Beijing Olympic should be peaceful, the china show us violent figures including military force on Tibet. To take a personal experience, when I was Melbourne in Australia, I saw a host of Chinese people. The season was Chinese national holiday and I felt Chinese people were so many and was overwhelmed. Likewise, the number of Chinese is too many and their violent doing threatened Korean people today. I believe that Chinese’s civil conscience must be raised up with going their power up.

After watching “”Forbidden Kingdom” I thought people can enjoy their lives. Last week, I watched “Forbidden Kingdom”. At that time I did not expect it would be funny and interesting to me but when I watched the movie I really enjoyed the movie. It was interestig because specially, the movie was fusion style so in my opinion, the movie might make people interested in the movie. While I was watching the movie I could enjoy and experience American and Chinese culture and the tradition. Therefore, I thought the media can inform people that there are many kinds of cultures from other countries. In addition, the media is able to make some kinds of culture mixed like the movie, Forbidden Kingdom. Even though before I watched the movie I didi not expect it would be interesting as I watched the movie, I could enjoy the movie and my life through the media.

Have you seen “We’re Married”?
It is the popular segment on MBC’s Sunday Sunday Night.Seo In-yung & Crown J, Alex&Shin –ae, Solbi&Andy, Jeong Hyung-don&Saori has been appearing and acting as newly couple on the show. Each couple has a different character.Seo In-yung & Crown J are cool, Solbi&Andy are cute, and , Jeong Hyung-don&Saori are realistic And Alex&Shin–ae are Romantic. Some people say ‘We’re Married’ is a kind of reality show but other think it’ a program which just give viewers fantasy for newlywed life rather than reality show. Especially The scenes in which Alex & shin-ae are leading a very happy married life in a big charmingly decorated house look like drama. I think It’s mixed with imagination and reality. because the stars act in a particular situation they are given without any scripts, which make me attracted to the show.

This morning I watched a TV show which introduces a variety of short motion pictures. Among them, there was one scene that a woman who is sitting at the table by window in the coffee shop is smoking. People who walk around the table don’t mind about the woman who is smoking. However, after a while, she gets out of there and smokes on the street. People who are around her start to stare at her strangely.  

 I was very impressed by this scene. I don’t remember the name of this movie, but think highly of this movie director of keen observation. As this scene, it’s very hard to see the women who smoke on the street in Korea, and if a certain girl does, people will look at her strangely.  

I don’t know why Korean women must not smoke on the street. In Korea, there is no any law which forbids women to smoke on the street. In my opinion, it’s sort of sexual discrimination. That is, this custom shows that our society is still a male-dominated society. I wish to know when and how this custom started. 

Of course, because smoking is injurious to health, we had better not do it. Nevertheless, if somebody smokes, not damaging to others, we have no right to blame smoking on her or him as smoking is a matter of taste. Anybody can have such taste. If men smoke on the street, women also can. Therefore, this custom should be done away with.

These days, there is fascinating soap drama that pushes me to pay 70 won for downloading every Wednesday and Thursday. The title of that drama is ‘On Air’ and as we can guess from its title, it’s about broadcasting station and people who work in there.

Like other soap dramas which are about one particular job, ‘On Air’ gives me fun by showing inside of particular job that I both haven’t known or haven’t thought about. Especially it’s more amusing because it’s about broadcasting station where all the stars are in and all the programs that I like or liked have been made in. This drama shows me not only the system of broadcasting station and how they make a drama but also where drama producers are working, how it looks like, how stars are working, relationships between stars and producers and staff and many more. Those are intriguing because those were things that have been hidden by purpose or not.

However, showing inside of broadcasting station and life of stars can’t lead whole 55 minutes of the drama. Of course there are more in this drama which make is fascinating and one of those is that it has good characters. Especially, one main character is very fascinating which hasn’t been in Korean drama before. She is ‘O sung-ah’ who is both famous actress and superstar.

She’s actually a new character we haven’t seen before. She has everything – power, money, fame, beauty – but she isn’t modest or humble. She’s quite rude when situations are not good for her and she’s aggressive and assertive. Usually, this kind of character was the villain before. However, she isn’t the villain and people even love her because she’s the one who everybody in this society, especially women, looks for. She’s superstar, has a lot of money, lives in a great and big house and wears brand goods. Isn’t it what we dream about in this material world even just for a daydream? Frankly speaking, I don’t want to be a superstar but if God gives a chance to become her, I might consider that.

Like this ‘On Air’, the most being seen drama these days, has the factors which attract me and many people; broadcasting station where is bright and cool in our imagination and ‘O sung-ah’. Those are not that instructive but cool. Those are also something we look for. Of course, some might deny but in our deep inside they can’t deny they envy those even slightly. That’s why this drama is fascinating.

   “Harry Potter” is one of my favorite books and movies. Since I have watched the series of Harry Potter from the 1st to 4th I decided to see the 5th movie again which is the “Harry Potter and the order of phoenix” While watching it I found something interesting to think about. In this movie, the ministry of magic started to control the Hogwarts which means that the government interferes in the education in school. Two ideas flashed through my head. The first thing is the relationship between the government and schools. The second thing is what students can do and should do when it really happens.

   In my opinion, we can not eliminate the government when talking about schools because in some way schools need its help and it makes the education laws. For example, many Korean universities are receiving financial assistance from the government. However, government should regulate them as least as possible. Few years ago, in Korea, there was a heated argument about the government’s control over the universities’ way to pick students. At that time, I thought that the government go beyond bounds because schools have to right to pick students in whatever ways they want.

   Seceond, how should we behave when it really happens? In this movie, Harry and his friends think that it’s unfair and improper so they make a secret group to protest against the govenment power. I think we should do the same way if we are in this kind of situation because we have right to be educated in the better circumstances and express our own opinions. Although it’s illegal just like in this movie, we shouldn’t stop fighting againt it. If we let it happen, we will lose our power and voice just like we did about 50 years ago. I remember many people who fought against the vicious government and died for their faith.

   This movie can be just a fantasy movie to some of you but at leat to me and today, it definitely gave me something important to think about. Fortunatley, Harry Potter and his people win in the end of this series of books and movies as if it shows us that every justice wins.

My mom took a test today so she wanted to order something for dinner. Plus my brother said he is willing to treat. Mom said she wants to have pizza. “How come? you don’t like pizza that much!” I asked. “She saw a publish paper this morning and keeps saying that she will have pizza sooner or later.” he said.

She made a call and my brother listened to it and said, “I hate that! What’s going on nowadays? They are supposed to say ‘hello’ or ‘thank you this is a * * pizza house’ or something. You know what they say when they just answer the customer’s phone?”

“What?”

“Hi, you live in 899dong 623ho don’t you?”

Would that be the really really first line when a restaurant answers the phone from their customer? Keeping our address and information makes me feel uncomfortable. If I were in that situation I would hung up the phone. It feels like I have stolen something instead of myself.  Have you ever experienced like this happening? Anyhow, now, we are waiting for our pizza though.  

   I decided to see this movie because there is James McAvoy who is one of my favorite actors. Anyway, this is a movie about the apprearance-for-apprearance principle which is common these days. Not only women but also men are obsessed with the idea of being looking good because people of today have a tendency to judge people by their appearances. This movie criticizes this problems. There is a woman whose name is penelope and who has pig’s noses and ears because of the curse given to their family long time ago. The curse is removed only when she found a noble who is in love with her regardless of her piggish looking. To make long story short, she finally finds a man who try to marry her but at the wedding, she realizes that she doesn’t want to be changed and she likes herself as the way she is so she refuses to marry him and comes back to home. At that time, the curse is released just like magic, which means she is the one who could have break the curse at the fisrt place not a noble or a lover. Through this movie, I started to think about many women in Korea who do plastic surgery and try to lose their weight to be looked more beautiful. They are the people who can not be satistied with their own appearance and do their best to fit themselves to the other people’s expectation. It’s stupid and it’s like a curse that is given to you by yourself. As you all know, if you can not be contented with yourself, you can never be happy. Happiness is up to you. Moreover, in the end of this movie, she also finds the man who truly love her and he has loved her since she had a pig’s nose.  I’m not saying she is lucky. I am saying that we all should become a person like him who can see the person’s inside. I guess that’s what this movis was made for.

  What would you do if you have an extraordinary power that others don’t have? These days, i’m watching “Heroes” that caused a great sensation in America. Though I’m on season1, most of people who started to watch the drama has finished season2, and they are waiting for the next.

  The characters in the drama are really fascinating, so that I dream of having the power as they have. The most attractive power that I want to have is healing. A cheerleader named Claire has the power, so that she never get hurt. Even she are dead, she can return to life when the cause of her death is removed. Isn’t it amazing? However, the heroes consider their power separately from our thoughts.

  As I watching the drama, I realized there are always two sides to every matter whether we don’t like it. I mean, there is nothing that is just good or bad. The characters want to live normally as they did before finding their specialities, but they can’t. Moreover, the events that happens around them are not strange and they suffer from them.

  Have you watched “Heores”? If you can choose a power among form the heroes, what would you like to have? Why?

  You all remember Paul Potts who won the “Britan’s Got Talent”? On the same day one little 6-year-old girl whose name is Cornnie Talbot got the second score. Suprisingly, her voice is incredible and just beautiful. She even made a woman judge cry. Actually every time Cornnie sings she cries. On April 23rd, little singing angel Cornnie arrived at Korea to show her talent to people. She is adorable. She has got her own records already and look how many people are interested in her nowadays. The number of ‘hits’ are amazing. Eventhough she said that she feels happy whenever she sings I feel that Cornnie might loose her childhood which is never going to come back. She has to run in playground with her friends not on the stage with lots of adults everyday. Though her singing surprised me I am worried that she might loose her own life since she is too young. What do you think?

Most of all,  why don’t you click here? This is from Youtube. Are you ready?  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWNoiVrJDsE