LE SSERAFIM’s Yunjin Sparks Heated Debate In Korea After Reading “Feminist” Book
LE SSERAFIM‘s Yunjin has boldly stepped into the spotlight, not with a new song or dance routine, but with a book in hand. The idol was recently spotted on the television show Omniscient Interfering View, deeply engrossed in the Japanese novel “Breasts and Eggs” by Mieko Kawakami.
This act has ignited a fiery debate across various online communities, pointing at the ongoing tension regarding gender equality in South Korea.
yunjin was reading and annotating the book “breasts and eggs” by mieko kawakami!
it’s a book that centers around 3 female characters and talks about taboo topics like reproductive rights, motherhood, and other arguments about the autonomy of a woman’s body. pic.twitter.com/ltYkE8ExnF
— ez 🍋 (@writtenbyhuh) February 24, 2024
“Breasts and Eggs” is a compelling narrative that delves into the lives of three women grappling with societal expectations, gender roles, and personal identity in contemporary Japan. The book offers an important exploration of womanhood, challenging oppressive societal mores and encouraging readers to ponder their own paths to self-acceptance and autonomy.
In the clip that aired on MBC, Yunjin is not only reading the book but also annotating it — proving just how carefully she was dissecting the novel.
The reaction to Yunjin’s literary interests has been polarized. On Namu Wiki, a popular online encyclopedia, some netizens criticized the idol, questioning her decision to publicly display her engagement with feminist literature.
This harsh backlash may remind many fans of past controversies where female idols faced backlash for expressing feminist sentiments, most notably the incident involving Red Velvet‘s Irene and her mention of “Kim Ji Young, Born in 1982.”
The novel — another one with strong feminist themes — led to severe fan outrage. Irene’s male fans even went as far as to post pictures of them burning her photocards, or destroying them.
Recently I ordered Author Cho Nam-Joo’s Kim Ji Young, Born 1982 and today they finally delivered the Canadian edition! They included a section where different publications praised the author and book. Quartz Magazine’s quote also mentioned Irene. #Irene #RedVelvet pic.twitter.com/RExYEH8f90
— valerie (@renesurrection) May 18, 2020
when men burned Irene’s pc because she read feminist book, joy got hated for liking a post about feminist book and wearing a feminist t-shirt, Irene and Seulgi tricked some men into thinking monster was about lesbians and they said it was disgusting… https://t.co/LEcVUNhUgi pic.twitter.com/pkinl9h1P6
— 🧡🐻🧡 (@mangojuish94) July 22, 2023
Meanwhile, on TheQoo — another well-trafficked online forum — Yunjin’s actions were met with praise and support. Many netizens lauded her for using her platform to shed light on important issues and for not shying away from expressing her personal interests and beliefs.
- “What’s so bad about reading a book?”
- “Here go the insecure men again lmao”
- “Read some book, you insecure men. You losers who’ve only been around men, you guys are f*cking losers lol I suddenly love Huh Yunjin”
- “Looool Read a book once in a while, you idiots lool omg”
- “I mean, that book is about American feminism that you guys praise so much. Why are you freaking out about American feminism lool You said it’s different from the feminism that’s spreading in our country looool”
- “Read some books for god’s sake lol Stop creeping around NamuWiki and leaving hate comments and instead do something productive lol”
- “First of all, Huh Yunjin is an American. Do you think she’d rather be a good housewife than a feminist lmao It’s hilarious that you even thought she wouldn’t be a feminist. All you natives, please spread this to America”
- “Seriously again, it’s the men cursing and causing a fit by themselves”
The discussion has extended beyond Namu Wiki and TheQoo, and even beyond South Korea. International fans on Twitter have rallied behind Yunjin. They commend her courage and view her choice as a step forward in normalizing feminist discourse in the mainstream media, particularly within the K-Pop industry, where idols are frequently scrutinized for their every move.
it’s so admirable to see yunjin pursue her hobbies whenever she can and as a bookworm myself, i love that she also loves reading books… my smart heodaengie 🥹
pic.twitter.com/t6ykmQKaO4— ᰔ (@yunjintheist) February 24, 2024
Not only reading "Breasts and Eggs" by Mieko Kawakami, Huh Yunjin also brings "All about Love: New Visions" by Bell Hooks and Frederick Nietzsche's book as well (haven't found the english version yet) pic.twitter.com/EJM5CcI7MI
— ୧⍤⃝📔dee (@deeversity) February 24, 2024
yunjin and her love for reading 📚💖 pic.twitter.com/iSnFCZQj2d
— joe (@elsserafim) February 24, 2024
you could tell yunjin definitely emjoys reading and not just for show cuz of the way she always reference the things she says on interviews based on books she read, in detailed manner too… not saying i doubted her but theres just too many people faking to be a book person…
— ✨ || ia – on vacation 🍃 (@swanandserpent) February 24, 2024
As the debate rages on, it’s clear that the conversation about feminism and gender equality in Korea is far from over.
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