Chaebol and Lawyers the Mainstream in Dramas

Dramas have developed constantly, reflecting the times. In particular, the stories convey laughter, emotion, reversal and catharsis to people. Above all, the vicarious satisfaction that can be obtained through the main characters in dramas may be the biggest reason why people can't stop watching them.

Advertisement

In fact, the main character in a drama writes a success story that can be reached only by very few people and instead achieves viewers' childhood dreams. Viewers are bound to fall deeply into the story by substituting themselves for the main character in the drama.

Recently, however, there have been voices of concern that dramas have only shed too much light on certain job groups, which could create a distorted perception of reality.

According to a survey conducted by the Broadcasting Monitoring Committee of the Citizens' Coalition for Democratic Press (BMCCCDP) on the 4th of February, chaebol and entrepreneurs accounted for 18% of the main and supporting characters in the 110 dramas aired by 10 broadcasters last year. It was also followed by lawyers and police with 15%.

In addition, jobs that are typically hard to relate with, such as medical professionals (7.1%), entertainers (3.3%), special civil workers (2.0%) and politicians (1.3%) appeared in dramas. High-profile productions such as SBS drama "Hyena", tvN drama "Hospital Playlist" and jTBC's "The World of the Married" are also representative works featuring legal professionals and doctors as the main characters.

On the other hand, the percentage of office workers, who account for the largest portion of our society, was only 10%. In particular, considering that only 3.8% of them are students and job seekers, we can see that the world in dramas is different from the reality we live in.

A bigger problem is that the emergence of chaebol and entrepreneurs is taken for granted even in dramas about young people or ordinary lives. The BMCCCDP pointed out that even dramas featuring office workers don't leave out chaebol and entrepreneurship positions.

Kim Heon-sik, a cultural critic, pointed out the limitations of Korean dramas, saying, "The reality is that there are many minor works that deal with the second generation of chaebols or the 'Cinderella complex'".

The phenomenon was similar in the 2017 survey. In June 2017, the BMCCCDP analyzed the jobs of 119 major characters in 49 dramas, with the highest proportion of occupations being chaebol and entrepreneurs, as in 2019.

This is also due to the excessive concentration of high-income people. According to a survey conducted by the BMCCCDP, the proportion of professional characters who usually receive high wages, such as medical workers, politicians and financial workers, stood at nearly 46%.

On the other hand, only 20% of those in the occupational group were office workers, students, job seekers and the unemployed. In particular, only nine out of 110 dramas selected by the BMCCCDP weren't about high-income people.

In response, Ha Jae-geun, a cultural critic, said, "Dramas are obsessed with satisfying viewers' desire for vicarious satisfaction and envy by showing off their fancy jobs and fancy lives". He added, "It is easier to create a more dramatic twist when featuring a small number of rich or people in extreme situations than ordinary people".

However, it is pointed out that if dramas focus on the fragmentary aspects of Korean society, it can lead to a vicious cycle in which people have despondency and a wrong mindset, rather than emotion and empathy. In fact, some point out that the Korean society is mired in toxic materialism, successism and consumptionism and it is hard to deny that dramas have a significant impact on them.

This society can also become healthier when dramas properly reflect society and deliver the right message accordingly. This is why some point out that drama producers should be aware of their social role as well as their ratings.