Misconceptions and Prejudice about Ewha
Despite all the good notions contained in the name and symbol “Ewha,” the word also has a negative connotation; students admitted to Ewha face unjust accusations of being self-indulgent, narcissistic and extravagant just because they pursue an education there.
Society falsely accuses the pride of Ewha students as arrogance and conceit, overlooking the fact that such pride, or more like affection, for one’s school exists in all students.
Professor Lee Joo-hee (Sociology) is aware of such misconceptions for she was once a Ewha student as well and analyzes the reasons behind them through sociological reasoning.
“One of the major reasons behind such criticisms Ewha faces is the sexually unequal Korean society,” professor Lee said. “Ewha opposes the society by supporting feminism and providing female academics as much, if not more, opportunities as men in all fields.”
The other reason behind the cynicism towards Ewha is the society’s prejudice on women which leads men to belittle women by repressing and persecuting them. Such tendency is still seen today where women are expected to go to college not to achieve higher academic standards but instead relinquishing a successful marriage, which naturally brings negative speculations on female university students.
As such, issues intertwined with Ewha and its misconceptions are aroused incessantly. It is not up to the society, though, that will take a step closer to a positive change. It is up to the students at Ewha who are genuinely able to gradually transform what people have of Ewha’s distorted image.
“Before we discuss whether we can change society’s norms, it is important to work up against its positive expectations they have of us Ewha students,” Chae Joo-eun (International Studies, 1) said. “We should not try to diffuse negative images of Ewha but instead make it the foundation of our improvement.”