Recently, "Parasitic Seoul" was published by Zhejiang People's Publishing House, which revealed that behind the glamorous metropolis of Seoul, there is an unknown hidden space!A web woven by capital and greedy humanity locks countless urban poor into a small space in the heart of Seoul - Antju Village.
Author Lee Hye-mi uses the ant-house village as a breakthrough to peel back the cocoon, and the truth behind the Korean real estate industry is more cruel than the movie "Parasite", which not only reveals the secrets of the ant-house village ecosystem in this metropolis, but also shows us a personal history of struggle from Busan to Seoul.
As a former housing refugee, she has faithfully documented the challenges faced by ant-like people in big cities to make ends meet. The testimonies of the residents who have committed themselves to the "basement house test" are all shocking. The 64-year-old Li Mingdao has gradually developed a mentality that "as long as it can be exchanged for money, he will not hesitate to sell his dignity to the world."59-year-old Hong has been dreaming of making a comeback all his life, but his life is to routinely buy lottery tickets every weekend, hoping to win the jackpot one day;In Anju Village, University Street, young people are no longer as dreamy and romantic as handsome men and beautiful women in idol dramas, but have become housing refugees who do not even have 10,000 won in their passbooks.
Poverty is original sinWhen you are young, you have to endure hardshipsWhy is it so difficult to have a decent home?What is Residential Justice?This book is a bold and sharp exploration of South Korea's real estate industry, tracking down the ruthless property speculators who run the ant-home business, and also investing in the deep affection for the people at the bottom.
About the Author
AuthorLee Hye-mi majored in Chinese and political diplomacy in college. In 2015, he started his career as a journalist at the Busan ** Agency, and later wrote reports in the planning and interview team, political group, and cultural group of the Korean ** Agency. She has won the "Female Journalist of the Year" Award, "Journalist of the Month", "Data Exploration Report of the Year", "Korea Internet News Award" and other awards from the Korean Journalists Association, and won the "Choi Eun-hee Female Journalist Award", which is awarded to only one female reporter a year.
TranslatorTuo Siguang, a practitioner in the Internet industry, a freelance translator, has a master's degree in communication from Sogang University in South Korea, and has translated "The World Meets Again" and "Don't Teach Children to Be "Kings"".
Wonderful sample
Do you feel like you're poor?Do you feel like you belong to the poor class?”
Jeon Dong-so, a graduate of Hanyang University, talks about his life without reservation, but he is a little overwhelmed when it comes to poverty.
I don't feel like I'm poor, and even the question makes me feel bad. Because I feel that once I am labeled as a 'poor person', I will never be able to turn over, and I usually pretend that I don't understand this kind of question. I feel like I'm a man of great ambitions, and I have a lot of possibilities for the future. Because I live here now, I naturally need to give myself a psychological hint to rationalize here. If I come back here after my living conditions have improved, I probably won't be able to live here. But anyway, at least I'm still living here, and if I want to get out of here, I'll have to keep my mind in a state of 'mental victory', or I won't be able to survive.
My current salary is about 2 million to 3 million won, and I think it will rise to 3 million won in the second year of employment. But I've calculated that if you buy a house with just the money you save from your salary, even if you save for eight years, you'll only have 100 million. I don't even know how much my girlfriend will ...... when I save all this moneyI can't afford to invest more money in the house, so I have to stay here for now. ”
Do you feel like you're poor?Do you feel like you belong to the poor class?”
This question is so direct that it couldn't be more direct, like being stared at by a mackerel that has just died. The moment he heard this question, Jeon Dong-so frowned, and then vehemently denied it. He is optimistic about his future possibilities, but pessimistic about the current situation. As he mentions the phrase "spiritual victory," it's hard to determine whether he really thinks it's a spiritual victory, or if he thinks it just because he's waiting for the outcome of the spiritual victory. His answer was also very vague and without clear boundaries.
Why do you think your current situation is not considered residential poverty?”
The property register of the building I live in has an 'illegal building' stamp, but the house I live in in my hometown in Busan is not like this, and neither of my parents is a poor living ......classBy this standard, I have never been a poor resident, and my parents are now living well in Busan. This is nothing more than my residence in Seoul, not my home. So I can't accept that I'm living in poverty. ”
In a society where "poverty is original sin," this question is indeed uncomfortable, because it forces the person being asked to confront the stark reality. Dealing with these deep troubles and being true to oneself is not easy. After in-depth interviews with young people living in Shajindong, I would throw out this sentence as my final question. At that time, all the respondents were uncomfortable with this question, because they had already taken to heart the idea that I am not poor, and the reason why I am in this situation is only to hold on to a better future. Many of them mentioned the term "spiritual victory", even if they were helpless about their current situation. Still, they are presupposing a better future and even deliberately ignoring the working but brutal structure of exploitation.
Of course, even with Jeon Dong-so's current conditions, he is undoubtedly in the top 5% of the youth group. He currently has a regular job with a monthly salary of more than 2 million won and will soon rise to 3 million won, a 40 million won deposit from his parents, and a diploma from Hanyang University, which is the envy of most people.
The problem that needs to be paid attention to here is that even young people with such conditions have to commit themselves to the harsh environment of the "new ant house", and in the face of the reality that the landlords of the "new ant house" who are hungry for profit and have no sense of responsibility or morality squeeze the hard-earned money of the young people in order to accumulate wealth, and even the so-called warning saying "if you are young, you have to endure hardship" is constantly lingering in your ears. The social reality is this, but in the end, young people are left to bear the pressure imposed on them by social problems, and they are comforted by talking about "spiritual victory". This chain reaction reveals a cross-section of a sick society: the world has become so cruel that young people need to fend for themselves, but some morally bankrupt people are still exploiting others to help them climb to the top of the pyramid.
Ladies and gentlemen, please give us a lot of advice!”
The first season of the idol talent show "Produce 101", planned by the Korean entertainment company Mnet Media, aired in 2016. The program attracts Xi students in the name of "opportunity and fairness", but it is actually an out-and-out "system of youth exploitation". Each season of the show features 101 Xi students in their teens and 20s, and in the end, only the top 11 will make their debut. Xi students will "fight to the death" in the show in order to enter the debut group. Each episode ends with the Xi bending over to 90 degrees and shouting loud slogans. After the show, the national producers will cast their precious votes to select the 11 Xi who will finally enter the debut group.
I often feel that this show is actually a symbol of Seoul. First, the Xi students are trying their best to grab the camera, just to be able to enter the final debut group. Second, those young people who came to the capital from other counties and cities brought the support of the whole family and their desire for the stage, just to be able to squeeze into the circle of "Shouyan Gaoxi Chenghanzhongqingwai City and Jiandonghong". Seoul is a passerby*** that recreates the system of exploiting young people in Produce 101.
On the face of it, there is no more democratic way to select than "one person, one vote". But in reality, this is nothing more than a cover for exploitation. The production team manipulated the selection mechanism at will, and even coined the term "PD pick" (i.e., PD pick). Even if it only appears in the background for 1 second, the Xi students will use all their resources to gain a sense of presence.
This show even falsified the number of votes, and from the beginning there was no "fair competition based on strength and hard work". Fans who once swore to the fairness of the vote are now disappointed, and as trust in Produce 101 has crumbled, the once-popular show has come to an end.
Most importantly, the "intrinsically unfair structure" hidden beneath this cutthroat competition has not been revealed. Large entertainment companies like SM and YG, if you insist on analogy, their Xi can be said to be born with a "golden spoon", and there is no need to participate in this show from the beginning. There are about 1,440 Xi trainees in Korea, and there is no guarantee that the company will continue to exist in the future for Xi trainees of small and medium-sized companies. They knew better than anyone that standing on the stage of Produce 101 was the only opportunity to introduce themselves to the masses.
The enthusiasm of the Xi students is essentially "adding fuel to the firewood" of the entire exploitative system, and they are unaware of it. When asked the question, "Are you tired of participating in this competitive show?", they usually answer like this:
Tiredness is also voluntary because as long as you persevere until the end, your dream will come true. ”
I can't help it when I'm tired, I can't afford to pay the rent just by working. It's the only place in Seoul where I can focus on myself without caring about other people's eyes. ”
Just as talent shows instilled in young people the desire to "work hard enough, they will debut one day", the exploitative city of Seoul also instills in young people the illusion of a future: as long as they survive the suffering of the present, they can join a big company, start a family, and own their own house. Seoul is taking advantage of the growing desires of young people.
The younger you are, the more you can endure the hardships of poverty. Young people who are already living in poverty are always excluded from the priority of various policies to benefit the people, because unlike the elderly and street sleepers, young people can enter the labor market at any time, and with the phrase "hard work can get rid of the current predicament", young people are domesticated into "parts" that obey orders. Isn't the classification of people according to their abilities the prescriptive formula of an exploiting society?
With the expectation that "just wait and everything will improve", many people are not willing to confront their poverty head-on, but have begun to rationalize it. They console themselves with an imaginary future and do not consider themselves poor. However, as mentioned earlier, at least one out of every three young people in our society is in a state of poverty "working or looking for a job".
If you look back, you will find that "if you stick to it, you can make your debut" is just a fantasy. The reason why people go out of their way to ignore all kinds of injustices is that our society believes in the myth of abilityism, so that the rhetoric of "because I worked hard, I climbed to the top, so I made my debut" works. In Seoul, where everyone dreams of soaring, young people from other counties and cities are just strangers who are so anxious to stomp their feet at the bottom. Those young people born and raised in Gangnam will not even participate in this war, just like the Xi born with "golden spoons" in companies such as YG and SM, they do not need to get involved in the pyramid of exploitation similar to Produce 101.