There's a matchmaking company ad I run across almost daily on my way to and from work. It's by a company called Duo, and they've got a lot of cute Korean puns going on involving their name that make me chuckle or fractionally impress me. They also use nice looking models that seem like the ideal husband/wife. I remember thinking a few times that these businesses make interesting ads, though I would never dream of using their services myself.
It wasn't until today that I realized these subway advertisements for matchmaking companies are freaking everywhere. Not just Duo, but most other large-scale matchmakers. There's at least one HUGE advertisement in just about every subway station, and inside the trains too. Ad after ad, of the same company. I found the most overwhelming one of all, today at Dongdaemun History & Culture Park station.
I only took two shots because it would look strange for someone to take picture after picture of something so useless, but I swear there were at least like 15 of the SAME matchmaking company ads lined up on the wall, all the way to one of the exits. And smack in the city center at that. One of the busiest neighborhoods in Seoul, packed with tourists and Koreans alike. I would assume that ONE advertisement in this station should cost a fortune, yet these guys are dominating the whole place.
Which got me thinking; first of all, are these companies actually that successful? Do they really have as many members as they boast? I'm guessing yes, because they obviously manage to pay for all these advertisements, and dozens and dozens of them too. I mean, clearly it's not just this station - I actually started paying closer attention to matchmaking ads on my way home today, and was pretty amazed at how many I found (though I didn't count the exact number). I admit it was a complete pointless activity, something that someone with nothing else better to do might spare the time for, but I was very intrigued all of a sudden. And maybe I really didn't have anything else better to think about.
Anyway, and second of all, if all these companies really are successful, then dayyyum, how desperate are Korean people to get married? Because these companies aren't like regular dating sites; for anyone who becomes a member, the ultimate goal is marriage. These people pay millions of won just to have their profiles scrutinized and verified, to be set up with a handful of potential life partners. And that's how the businesses calculate their success rates: by number of married couples. I mean... I guess it's not a bad thing, to have a company systematically and efficiently search for the perfect companion for you, but I do think that Koreans in general tend to place the act of marriage quite high up their list of life priorities. Avoiding being single at an older age is a big deal for a lot of people. So is being divorced. Which is total bullshit, because marriages fail all the time. It's a huge commitment to spend the rest of your life with someone who was at one point a complete stranger; you can't expect it to work all the time, right? Why is not being married such a problem? Why is it considered not normal?
I myself have been guilty, when meeting some weird and hysterical older people, of thinking "no wonder they couldn't get married." But when you think about it, there are plenty of crazy married assholes as well. It's a miracle how some of these people even managed to find someone, but it happens. And you know, maybe it's actually better that some people don't get married at all, instead of forcing it in order to conform to society's expectations, and ending up making someone else's life miserable as well as their own. Is it really worth it to spend so much money on trying to find someone to marry? I'm not against marriage or anything; I would love to get married if I ever come across the right person. I just wouldn't pay an agency to go hunt someone down for me because I'm too impatient to let destiny take control.
Maybe I'm just being naive since I'm not at that stage of desperation yet. Maybe I'll understand it when I get older, though I doubt it. I just think it's very interesting, and a bit sad, that these matchmaking companies can shamelessly plant in our heads the notion that marriage is a necessity which should be obtained by all possible means, even (or maybe especially) by using the help of these companies. That's all.
It wasn't until today that I realized these subway advertisements for matchmaking companies are freaking everywhere. Not just Duo, but most other large-scale matchmakers. There's at least one HUGE advertisement in just about every subway station, and inside the trains too. Ad after ad, of the same company. I found the most overwhelming one of all, today at Dongdaemun History & Culture Park station.
I only took two shots because it would look strange for someone to take picture after picture of something so useless, but I swear there were at least like 15 of the SAME matchmaking company ads lined up on the wall, all the way to one of the exits. And smack in the city center at that. One of the busiest neighborhoods in Seoul, packed with tourists and Koreans alike. I would assume that ONE advertisement in this station should cost a fortune, yet these guys are dominating the whole place.
Which got me thinking; first of all, are these companies actually that successful? Do they really have as many members as they boast? I'm guessing yes, because they obviously manage to pay for all these advertisements, and dozens and dozens of them too. I mean, clearly it's not just this station - I actually started paying closer attention to matchmaking ads on my way home today, and was pretty amazed at how many I found (though I didn't count the exact number). I admit it was a complete pointless activity, something that someone with nothing else better to do might spare the time for, but I was very intrigued all of a sudden. And maybe I really didn't have anything else better to think about.
Anyway, and second of all, if all these companies really are successful, then dayyyum, how desperate are Korean people to get married? Because these companies aren't like regular dating sites; for anyone who becomes a member, the ultimate goal is marriage. These people pay millions of won just to have their profiles scrutinized and verified, to be set up with a handful of potential life partners. And that's how the businesses calculate their success rates: by number of married couples. I mean... I guess it's not a bad thing, to have a company systematically and efficiently search for the perfect companion for you, but I do think that Koreans in general tend to place the act of marriage quite high up their list of life priorities. Avoiding being single at an older age is a big deal for a lot of people. So is being divorced. Which is total bullshit, because marriages fail all the time. It's a huge commitment to spend the rest of your life with someone who was at one point a complete stranger; you can't expect it to work all the time, right? Why is not being married such a problem? Why is it considered not normal?
I myself have been guilty, when meeting some weird and hysterical older people, of thinking "no wonder they couldn't get married." But when you think about it, there are plenty of crazy married assholes as well. It's a miracle how some of these people even managed to find someone, but it happens. And you know, maybe it's actually better that some people don't get married at all, instead of forcing it in order to conform to society's expectations, and ending up making someone else's life miserable as well as their own. Is it really worth it to spend so much money on trying to find someone to marry? I'm not against marriage or anything; I would love to get married if I ever come across the right person. I just wouldn't pay an agency to go hunt someone down for me because I'm too impatient to let destiny take control.
Maybe I'm just being naive since I'm not at that stage of desperation yet. Maybe I'll understand it when I get older, though I doubt it. I just think it's very interesting, and a bit sad, that these matchmaking companies can shamelessly plant in our heads the notion that marriage is a necessity which should be obtained by all possible means, even (or maybe especially) by using the help of these companies. That's all.
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