[Korean Culture & Language] High Context Culture


Hello, this is Uptempo!

‘Culture’ refers to the ‘way of life’ of groups of people or the manner in which they conduct themselves. Cultures may vary amongst various groups. One’s writing, religions, music, attire, cuisine, and daily activities all reflect their culture. The culture and mentality can differ significantly even between neighboring areas.


Since South Korea is a high-context culture, Koreans do not speak as much as lower-context cultures like people from the US, UK, or Germany and rely more on context when communicating.


Even within Korea, there are some regions that have a stronger high-context culture. One of the known regions for high-context culture is Chungcheong Province (충청도). 


Han Hyo-joo, a well-known actress, model, and singer, is from 청주(Cheongju), the capital city of North Chungcheong Province. She is known for using a high-context communication.



In this video, Hyo-joo asks, “오빠 옥수수라도 먹을래?(Do you want some corns?)”

Kwang-soo replies, “아니 괜찮아 (No, I’m good)”
The caption on Hyo-joo reads, “옥수수 맛있겠다~(The corns look delicious).”

After a while, Hyo-joo asks again, “옥수수 사줄까? (Would you like some corns?)”

Then Kwang-soo and Ha-neul laugh and reply “괜찮다고 많이 얘기 했는데 왜 누나가 계속 사줄까 라고 (물어봐?) (We said we’re good a few times. Why do you keep…(asking)?”

The caption reads, ‘그냥 먹고 싶다고 하세요!(Just say that you want it)’

Ha-neul then says, “찾고 만다. 형 내가 무조건 찾을게요. (Let me find some corns for you. Trust me. I’ll find them.)”


Hyo-joo is finally happy after finding a stall that sells corn.


Is there someone that you know who uses high-context communication? Are you good at finding out what they are actually trying to say?

댓글

댓글 쓰기

이 블로그의 인기 게시물

[Korean Culture & Language] Impulsiveness and MBTI

이미지
Hello, this is Uptempo! The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) has become increasingly popular in Korea in 2020, owing to people’s boredom due to the COVID-19 quarantine. Since the spring, MBTI feeds have been readily available on Facebook, Instagram, and other social media platforms.   Below is a popular meme titled ‘ #MBTI 충동 (MBTI Impulsiveness) ’. This meme jokingly illustrates how ‘ 충동적인 (impulsive)’ each MBTI types are.   https://ddnews.co.kr/mbti-%EC%A7%A4-%EB%B0%88/ It reads: 전혀 충동적이지 않음 (Not impulsive at all): ENTJ, ISTJ, ISFJ, ESTJ 평균적으로 충동적임 (Average impulsivity): INTJ, INFJ, ENFJ, ESFJ 너무 충동적 (Very impulsive): INTP, INFP, ISTP, ISFP 엄청나게 충동적 (Extremely impulsive): ENTP, ENFP, ESTP, ESFP 전혀 means ‘ not at all ,’ 평균적으로 means ‘ to an average level ,’ 너무 means ‘ very , ’ 엄청나게 means ‘ extremely ’.   The above meme is another illustration of impulsiveness by MBTI types. ENFP says “ 요즘 자수가 너무 배우고 싶어 (I want to learn how to embroider). 근데 나 소묘도 배워...
자세한 내용 보기

[Korean Culture & Language] Switching between the liver and the gallbladder

이미지
Hello, this is Uptempo! “Saving face” has always been a very important part of Korean culture. Most Koreans try hard to “ 체면을 세우다 (build one’s face),” and “ 체면을 지키다 (maintain one’s face),” and not to “ 체면을 잃다 or 체면을 구기다 (lose one’s face).” ‘ 세우다 ’ means ‘to build’ ‘ 지키다 ’ means ‘to keep’ ‘ 잃다 ’ means ‘to lose’ ‘ 구기다 ’ means ‘to crumple’ or ‘to damage’ ‘Saving one’s face’ means ‘to build one’s reputation,’ ‘maintaining’ one’s face’ means ‘to keep one’s reputation,” and ‘losing one’s face’ means ‘to lose or damage one’s reputation.’ However, some people are more concerned about their profit than “saving or maintaining their face.” They “ 간에 붙었다 쓸개에 붙었다 한다. ” ‘ 간 ’ means ‘liver’ ‘ 붙다 ’ means ‘to stick’ ‘ 쓸개 ’ means ‘gallbladder’ It is directly translated to “It sticks to the liver for a second and then moves to the gallbladder to stick to it for another.” It describes the behavior of someone who switches between two opposing teams or groups for completely selfish reasons. The...
자세한 내용 보기

[Korean Culture & Language] Washing one's Identity

이미지
Hello, this is Uptempo! In July 2021, a Chinese man in his 50s got arrested for killing two people in China and fleeing to Korea. It took years to catch him because he has ‘ 신분세탁 (washed his identity) ’ . Photo by   Jeremy Sallee   on   Unsplash https://www.joongang.co.kr/article/24104555#home According to Korea JoongAng Daily, this murderer killed two people in Yantai, Shandong Province, China in 1987, when he was 20. While hiding in China, he made a new passport after ‘ 신분세탁 (washing his identification) ’. He entered Korea in 2016, and has obtained a permanent residency (F5) visa by marrying a Chinese woman who had obtained Korean citizenship a while back. The term 신분세탁 (Washing one’s identity) refers to a person’s attempt to conceal their prior identity to rebuild a new life . Prostitutes and ex-convicts, for example, are likely to strive to 신분세탁 (rebuild their lives by concealing the fact that they have ever committed a crime or worked as a prostitute).   Belo...
자세한 내용 보기