/bjuːtɪ/ : Not the Plastic Approach

May I interest you in a surgical procedure  in which I scrape away at your bones and inject chemicals into your body? Or you might also know it as plastic surgery, where you can be able to have a slight understanding of how Barbie feels like.

Being a part of a Korean family, it is no surprise when you see someone on TV or a close friend have their nose or eyes "done". It is because the idea of beauty plays such a big role in the South Korean society. I have had certain friends and family members suggest to me\ that when I visit Korea, they know a surgical hospital where they do natural-looking nose jobs at a good price. What struck me the most was that they said it as if they were talking about the weather! Almost every celebrity, both men and women,  has done at least one feature on their face and it has become such a trend that there are middle schooler's parents that take their child out to get a nose job as a graduation gift at the age of 13.....Of course then there's me that received a cupcake for a graduation gift.

The idea of beauty has lost it's meaning over time but it has come as no surprise to me that people are going as far as morphing our natural face in order to reach society's definition of "having the goods". Is it not agreeable that as the more time goes by, the more better looking people come around? It sounds silly but  as we see all sorts of variations of gorgeous groups of men and women, it is in the human nature to be considered the most pleasurable. But it is all ironic because beauty means to be alluring with individuality. The idea of attractiveness is to have characteristics that stand out from others, to be different. The only way to achieve true charms is not through a needle but with self-discipline. In the end, it does not matter about having the perfect nose or having a definite jawline, but more of the inner beauty.

These were the candidates for the 2014 Korean Beauty pageant. Notice each of their totally different facial structures. There are called Korean Barbies for obvious reasons.

/ekspekˈteɪʃn/ : A Stereotypical History

The Declaration of Independence was a big step in American history where we literally declared freedom from the ownership of Great Britain. It was stated that this country would stand alone with the freedom to be ourselves, a nation without stereotypical characteristics. Does this sound like America? I slightly chuckled when I typed this because it is so prominent in this country that everything is based off of an expectation. It is ironic that the land of liberty goes against creating equality among its citizens.
I will proudly say that I am an American citizen. I was born and raised in the sunny state of California until I was ten and then I was transported by car to some state that I think is called Mishagan?
 Yet, in the country that stands for equality and justice, this doesn't seem to be the case.
I recently have gotten in touch with an old friend of mine .  As we were chatting about the good ol' days , he told me that being one of the only Asian-Americans at his school, he had to live up to high expectations and I could really relate to that statement. In each race, there seems to be somewhat of an assumption set although it has never been clearly stated how high our short and long term goals must be. Yet a title is put upon us just by the color of our skin. Is this equality? Is this justice? Is this what our founding fathers desired in the future of their country?

/ækʃn/ : Think before You Act

Sadly, we have arrived to the finale in the Scarlet Letter this past week.  Sigh, what a shame.

 Aside from all sarcastic remarks, I did absorb a couple of lessons from the novel. What I realized is even in the last chapter, it mentions that Dimmesdale and Hester were buried under a tombstone with a scarlet letter. Literally until they died, the sin that they had done was imprinted upon their lives. All actions will characterize who we are in society.

At the moment when I read this, I thought, wow these Puritans really can’t just move on with their lives can they? But after truly thinking about it, society is represented by these Puritans. I may also be guilty of being like them. I remember there was once a teacher that continuously called me Jee-ah-na the entire school year and I held such bitterness in my heart.  I don’t remember her for anything else except as a teacher with pronunciation issues…..FOR ONE YEAR. I just. I can’t .I knew exactly how Hermione felt like when she was correcting Ron for the Levios-A spell.

But back to the point, we all are in fault of only remembering people by actions they have done to affect us.  It may not always be in a negative sense. But I have come to recognize that I must be alert of my actions for that is what people will remember me the most by. 

/ɡɪlt/: Punishment Brought Upon Ourselves

I always questioned why the court must use the word "guilty" when they accuse the defendant  of crime. One is only guilty if they themselves believe they are. No other human being is allowed to call another guilty. Guilt is only an emotion that you can set upon yourself. 

As we go on in our quest to survive through ( erh, I mean enthusiastically study) the Scarlet Letter, Dimmesdale suffers misery from the guilt of not revealing his sin to the townspeople. He whips his back and starves in order to punish himself. What I have noticed is, if he were not such a holy and innocent figure, he would not have felt as much guilt. For example, instead of putting a minister in Dimmesdale's place, let's say he was a criminal instead. Would he have felt the same amount of burdening guilt?

Let us take time and reflect  when guilt weighed down our shoulders. How was your reaction? I do recall that during my 3rd grade book fair, I attempted to steal a 50 cent pen and I felt so guilty I wailed in front of the cashier, who became so bewildered, and I begged for forgiveness. Guilt is what truly brings out our inner character. In our times where we feel most vulnerable,  "In their moments, people show you who they really are." (Joker from Dark Knight). Yes that movie ties in completely with this blog post. I remember this line so well because I connected to it so well During such emotional occasions, like guilt, we can't help but express our true personalities. In a way, guilt is what reflects who we are as people.