"Hwabyeong", a Korean Cultural Syndrome

Hwabyeong is known as a Korean cultural-bound syndrome which is situated at the intersection between depression and anger syndrome. Translated as “anger illness” or “fire illness”, hwabyeong is a mental illness resulted from repressed feelings, which has a specific somatization in middle-aged Korea...

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Main Author: Diana Budeanu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Alexandru Ioan Cuza University Press 2022-12-01
Series:Linguaculture
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journal.linguaculture.ro/index.php/home/article/view/313
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author Diana Budeanu
author_facet Diana Budeanu
author_sort Diana Budeanu
collection DOAJ
description Hwabyeong is known as a Korean cultural-bound syndrome which is situated at the intersection between depression and anger syndrome. Translated as “anger illness” or “fire illness”, hwabyeong is a mental illness resulted from repressed feelings, which has a specific somatization in middle-aged Korean women: lump in throat or chest, feeling of suffocation, palpitations, heat sensation, burning feeling in the stomach, insomnia etc. While this syndrome is often stressed as a clinical study case, hwabyeong can also be found in Korean literature, proving the power it holds within the society. Two such cases from Korean contemporary literature are The Vegetarian, by Han Kang, and Kim Jiyeong, born 1982, by Cho Nam-joo. Despite the fact that no one mentions hwabyeong, the main characters show clear symptoms of the disorder. They also match the pattern of those who suffer from this disease. At first glance, someone might say they are gone mad, but looking more closely at their background, their symptoms and behavior, they are no different from many other Korean women. Yeong-hye and Kim Jiyeong are two women from South Korea who experience body rebellion because of society’s failure to let them express as individuals with personal needs, ambitions and feelings.
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spelling doaj.art-a602bf134d5044e4986278571b7777762023-01-11T08:35:41ZengAlexandru Ioan Cuza University PressLinguaculture2067-96962285-94032022-12-01132"Hwabyeong", a Korean Cultural SyndromeDiana Budeanu0University of Bucharest, Romania Hwabyeong is known as a Korean cultural-bound syndrome which is situated at the intersection between depression and anger syndrome. Translated as “anger illness” or “fire illness”, hwabyeong is a mental illness resulted from repressed feelings, which has a specific somatization in middle-aged Korean women: lump in throat or chest, feeling of suffocation, palpitations, heat sensation, burning feeling in the stomach, insomnia etc. While this syndrome is often stressed as a clinical study case, hwabyeong can also be found in Korean literature, proving the power it holds within the society. Two such cases from Korean contemporary literature are The Vegetarian, by Han Kang, and Kim Jiyeong, born 1982, by Cho Nam-joo. Despite the fact that no one mentions hwabyeong, the main characters show clear symptoms of the disorder. They also match the pattern of those who suffer from this disease. At first glance, someone might say they are gone mad, but looking more closely at their background, their symptoms and behavior, they are no different from many other Korean women. Yeong-hye and Kim Jiyeong are two women from South Korea who experience body rebellion because of society’s failure to let them express as individuals with personal needs, ambitions and feelings. https://journal.linguaculture.ro/index.php/home/article/view/313hwabyeongcultural syndromecollectivismrepressed feelingshanunfairness
spellingShingle Diana Budeanu
"Hwabyeong", a Korean Cultural Syndrome
Linguaculture
hwabyeong
cultural syndrome
collectivism
repressed feelings
han
unfairness
title "Hwabyeong", a Korean Cultural Syndrome
title_full "Hwabyeong", a Korean Cultural Syndrome
title_fullStr "Hwabyeong", a Korean Cultural Syndrome
title_full_unstemmed "Hwabyeong", a Korean Cultural Syndrome
title_short "Hwabyeong", a Korean Cultural Syndrome
title_sort hwabyeong a korean cultural syndrome
topic hwabyeong
cultural syndrome
collectivism
repressed feelings
han
unfairness
url https://journal.linguaculture.ro/index.php/home/article/view/313
work_keys_str_mv AT dianabudeanu hwabyeongakoreanculturalsyndrome