Holliday, R orcid.org/0000-0002-8796-1853, Cheung, O, Cho, J et al. (1 more author) (2017) Trading Faces: the ‘Korean Look’ and Medical Nationalism in South Korean Cosmetic Surgery Tourism. Asia Pacific Viewpoint, 58 (2). pp. 190-202. ISSN 1360-7456
Abstract
This paper addresses the growing phenomenon of cosmetic surgery tourism through a focus on the development of this industry in South Korea. Unlike many discussions of this topic, the paper decentres dominant narratives based on west-goes-east or north-goes-south journeys. Instead, we look at regional flows by exploring the experiences of Chinese patients travelling to South Korea in search of facial cosmetic surgery – procedures often referred to as the ‘Korean Look’ and associated with exported Korean popular culture. We focus on the contested understandings of the motives for and outcomes of this surgery between Korean surgeons and Chinese patients, documenting one example of the cultural investments and (mis)understandings that can impact on the experiences of medical tourists as they travel across national borders in search of treatment. We situate the development of cosmetic surgery tourism in Korea in the context of a discourse we call ‘medical nationalism’, showing how surgeons in particular reproduce this discourse in terms of pride in their contribution to the economic and reputational success of South Korea on a world stage. However, we demonstrate finally that, as a privatised, feminised and trivialised form of medicine, cosmetic surgery will always fail to deliver in this respect.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | (c) 2017, Victoria University of Wellington and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd. This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: 'Holliday, R , Cheung, O, Cho, J, and Bell, DJ (2017). Trading Faces: the ‘Korean Look’ and Medical Nationalism in South Korean Cosmetic Surgery Tourism. Asia Pacific Viewpoint. ISSN 1360-7456,' which has been published in final form at [https://doi.org/10.1111/apv.12154]. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving. |
Keywords: | cosmetic surgery; gender; Korean Look; medical nationalism; medical tourism |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Education, Social Sciences and Law (Leeds) > School of Sociology and Social Policy (Leeds) The University of Leeds > Faculty of Environment (Leeds) > School of Geography (Leeds) > SOG: Cities & Social Justice (Leeds) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number ESRC RES-062-23-2796 ESRC RES-062-23-2796 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 16 Dec 2016 11:57 |
Last Modified: | 15 Jun 2019 00:38 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Wiley |
Identification Number: | 10.1111/apv.12154 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:109548 |