Gender-focused webtoon is gaining fans as well as critics

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The poster for ″ The Story of Seong Gyeong ″ [YLAB]

Earlier this year, some of Naver Webtoons’ works came under criticism for misandry. Misandry can be defined as aversion, contempt or ingrained prejudice against men. A misandrist is the opposite of a misogynist. The charges arose because of certain expressions or gestures the characters used, but for The Seong Gyeong Story the situation was different. Seong Gyeong’s story deals with real-life gender wars among the younger generations in Korea, especially on college campuses. The webtoon is unique in that it tackles sensitive topics head-on unlike other works which proceed cautiously so as not to provoke controversy. Another distinguishing feature is that the webtoon targeted both males and females, which drew fans and critics of both genders at different times. Seong Gyeong’s Story, written by Choi Gyeong-min and illustrated by Youngmo, was first published last September and will end next month. The story follows Gyeong, who is in her early twenties, and the issues she faces due to her beauty receiving unwanted attention and threats from men as well as being the victim of gossip from women. Most of the male characters in the story objectify Gyeong by calling her out, then accuse her of looking for gold when she rejects them.

A scene from “The Story of Seong Gyeong” shows Gyeong’s former art teacher, who gets angry because Gyeong rejects him and considers her a “gold digger.” [SCREEN CAPTURE]

Gyeong is reduced to a femme fatale in the eyes of his peers. Few see it for the person that she is truly a sweet and shy young woman who has a passion for animation. In one episode, a group of Gyeongs’ classmates at college argue over who will give him candy on White Day. White Day is celebrated in Korea and it is when men give candy to their sweethearts. During the fight, the classmates argue over who called dibs on Gyeong, each claiming that she is theirs and that [Gyeong] will be grateful to have candy [from them]. I’m a guy and ashamed of the reality read one comment on this particular episode with 32,016 likes and 1,028 dislikes while another with 25,865 likes reads This is the reality of life university […] Seniors rank freshman faces in order of attractiveness by uploading their profile photos in group chats. Some comments even called the episode hyper realistic. This episode led to a boycott of The Story of Seong Gyeong. The webtoon has become the target of an attack of low ratings and hateful comments, particularly from an online community called DC Inside, which has mostly male members. In a scene where a random group of students discuss the suicide of a classmate, allegedly caused after her boyfriend uploaded intimate photos of her without her consent, one of the characters said that men should die. This dialogue sparked controversy on DC Inside, and was later changed to Jerks As It Should Go.

One of many posts on the DC Inside group that asked other members to attack ″ The Seong Gyeong Story ″ with low ratings and hateful comments [SCREEN CAPTURE]

These “hyper realistic” scenarios are the result of the imagination of the authors. No episode is based on actual experiences. The story stems from plausible situations, Choi told the Korea JoongAng Daily in an email interview earlier this month. According to Choi, Seong Gyeong’s story is just a story that represents the everyday life of virtually everyone. For illustrator Youngmo, Seong Gyeong also looked like a representation of reality.

Gyeong, who is the main character in “The Story of Seong Gyeong” [YLAB]

The purpose of the story was to criticize some problematic behavior of humans, Choi said. On the radical feminist accusations he just replied, I guess from a human point of view, anything [in the webtoon] can be criticized [as everyone has different opinions]. I wanted to portray [Gyeong] as someone everyone has met at least once in their life, Choi added. Whereas when people read [The History of Seong Gyeong] they will each have a specific person in mind. Even though Seong Gyeong means the Bible in Korean, Choi said there was no direct correlation between the two, but was still open to interpretation. The Bible is interpreted in different ways, depending on who reads it and it’s a similar situation with Gyeong, ”Choi said, saying readers are entitled to different opinions and interpretations of the webtoon. Choi was aware of the controversies that accompanied Seong Gyeong throughout the year, but remained firm that the story and character analysis is open to discussion and that there is no no definitive answers. [A webtoon] is also a form of interaction [between the story and the readers], misunderstandings are therefore inevitable, he said. Still, many readers refuted the hateful comments, claiming that if Choi was in fact a misandrist, the story should have had all the female characters as the protagonists and all the male characters as the antagonists. These comments specifically mentioned the character of Ju Ha-na, a classmate of Gyeong who spread malicious and false rumors about him throughout the story. Ha-na is [also] based on one of those people that many know, explained Choi. All the other characters were also designed in the same way. For Youngmo, conversing with Choi helped him better understand each character. It was easy to relate to [the characters] drawing them because [Choi and I] talked about the details of their traits for each episode, Youngmo said. Ultimately, whether it’s Gyeong or his classmates like Ha-na or Nam Ju-yong, Seong Gyeong’s story is one of understanding and recognition. Among these characters, you might see your acquaintances, friends, family, or even yourself. In Episode 30, when Gyeong finally stands up to her former teacher who threatened her after rejecting her unwanted advances, the comments section was quickly filled with positive responses. At that point, all that mattered was for Gyeong to strike back and prove that she is strong. This has given readers hope that Gyeong will be fine, as has anyone who can relate to his character in real life. One comment, with nearly 10,000 likes, represented readers’ hope for the main character, and perhaps for themselves. In the end, I wish the Gyeong were happy.

In Episode 30, Gyeong finally stands up to his former art teacher and confronts him about his problematic behavior towards her. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

As Seong Gyeong draws to a close, Choi and Youngmo have stated that they will prepare together for their next project and expressed their gratitude to the fans. Thanks for sticking with the story until the end, Choi said. Your warm comments have been invaluable to me. The series ended well thanks to all of you, said Youngmo. Hope we can meet again soon.

BY SHIN MIN-HEE [[email protected]]

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