Cultural Conflict & Women's Reception

                                  Cultural Conflict & Women’s Reception       Yu-Han (Frank) Chang

The first question I had after watching this film was that – “Was the attitude of the general public towards the Western cultural influence at the time similar to the one underlying in this film, Madame Freedom?”.

Through out the film, the distinct contrast between the Western American culture and the traditional Korean values was clearly portrayed. Seon-yeong’s transformation from the initial housewife status to the role of a working woman was, perhaps, a great example. In the beginning, Seon-yeong was always listening and asking her husband, Tae-yun, to make decisions. She was a mother taking care of her son and a wife washing her husband’s clothes. These traits were fitting of the traditional Confucius values and were portrayed in a positive way. Contrarily, after she started working at the Paris Boutique, she began to take in the popular Western culture under the influence of her friend, Ms. Choi.  The depiction by the film on this change was rather negative. The film showed how she kicked her son aside when he asker her to stay. Her friend, Ms. Choi, ended up getting conned and committed suicide in desperation. Seon-yeong, over excited about this newly gained freedom, could not resist the temptation of other men and was caught having an affair. Consequently, she was rejected at the doorstep of her home by her husband and portrayed with immense remorse at the final scene of the film. After watching this film, I felt that the producer wanted to present a cautionary tale not just about the affairs but towards the entire Western culture in general. Was this a popular perception at the time?

The second question that I had came to me after I read “Questions of Women’s Film: The Maid, Madame Freedom, and Women” by Soyoung Kim. In the paper, Kim mentioned that this was a “woman’s film”, targeting women as the main consumers. I could not help but to wonder how women at the time receive this film. This question may sound similar to that from Soo Min’s earlier post but I am taking a different approach.

The film title would have definitely sounded very catchy to the Korean women, who have been repressed by men for hundreds of years living in a traditionally male dominant society. And indeed, the film did show numerous occasions that would have appealed to the women’s desire to obtain freedom. For instance, the opportunities for Seon-yeong to meet other men who actively show their appreciation and desire for her company. However, I felt that the film had intentionally and unfairly depicted women as vulnerable and weak against temptation and deception. For instance, Ms. Choi was so easily deceived in giving millions of Wons to Mr. Baek. Seon-yeong was also quite easily won over by Chul-ho despite the numerous signs of Chul-ho seeing multiple women at the same time. In complete contrast, Tae-yun, the husband, was somehow able to resist Ms. Park. This would relate back to the argument of the film. The film supported the traditional Confucius values, which stated that women are weak and easily tempted beings and hence, should be kept in the private spaces such as home. Did women feel disappointed for being unfairly represented after watching the film at the time?