[Korean Culture & Language] 중대장은 너희에게 실망했다

 



Hello, this is Uptempo Marketers!

In the last article, I wrote about how Loopy stickers got famous: making parodies out of famous movies and common sayings. The Loopy sticker below addresses a popular saying with a twist, for sure. Can you guess what it might be?

Kakao 잔망 루피 스티커

It says “크게 실망했다”. It means “I’m deeply disappointed in you”. But why is she disappointed, and why is she wearing a combat uniform?

In Korea, there is a famous saying “중대장은 너희에게 실망했다,” meaning “The company (military unit) commander is deeply disappointed in you”. This saying has become famous because all Korean men are obligated to serve the military, and almost all of them have heard a company commander say it.

It is funny because no one really knows why the company commanders are always “disappointed”. Some people even say they have become company commanders only to be disappointed. Funnily enough, there are Youtube videos explaining why. The Youtuber in the video linked below says it is because they have high expectations for their soldiers. A company commander doesn’t want to believe it’s his soldiers when he hears that there’s a problem in a unit. When he realizes the problem was with his team, he gets angry. The expectation, however, is that he isn’t angry in front of people. To control his emotions in front of his soldiers, he chooses the word “disappointed”. I think we all can easily relate to that feeling as parents, older siblings, or group leaders. 

(12) 중대장이 항상 실망하는 이유 - YouTube

This Loopy sticker surely is cute, but with a better understanding of Korean military culture, we can use it in more appropriate situations.

In the next article, I’ll address why company commanders and many Koreans refer to themselves in third person.

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