A Discussion of Mr. Housewife in Relation to the Social Construction of Masculinity in South Korean Society

Abstract

This article discusses the socially constructed notion of Korean masculinity by examining Yoo Sun-Dong’s Mr. Housewife (Miseuteo Jubu Kwizeuwang, 2005). By regarding masculinity as a value or ‘place’ that one can obtain through practices rather than as a fixed identity, this article takes the view that masculinity is also dependent on adopting culturally specific practices and roles. Yoo Sun-Dong’s film presents a male positioning himself as a housewife, giving the audience a different perspective outside the social construction of rigid gender boundaries. Through critical discourse analysis, the article discusses three themes of narrative: non-hegemonic nurturer masculinity, home as woman’s place to rest, and context-bound female masculinity/emphasised femininity. It is argued that Jin-Man’s Korean masculinity is different not only from the soft kkonminam masculinities, but also other domestic masculinities reflected in the media, both in terms of his relationship with the female gender and divergence from hegemonic masculinity. The film also successfully subverts the conception of the home as ‘a place to rest’ which became a new way to rationalise gender segregation in modern South Korea.