기사 메일전송
A New Perspective on Tattoos
  • 문소현
  • 등록 2019-05-27 11:41:05
기사수정

 

 What do you think about the image of the “tattoo?” Only ten years ago, it was common for tattoos of dragons or snakes to be put on the arms and back of the toughest people. Today, however, many people are tattooed for self-gratification and to express personality, and furthermore, to enjoy it as an art form. People sometimes have beautiful pictures on their bodies and images of things that are valuable to them. To better understand this cultural phenomenon, the Pharos will explore society’s changing perception of the tattoo.

 

The Pharos conducted a survey to investigate the perception of tattooing among students at Kyonggi University. Only 4.5 percent of the students surveyed said they had been tattooed. As many as 36.4 percent of the students have considered getting a tattoo in the future. For the question asking what they think about tattoos, the students gave various opinions, including “It is an art,” “It is a personal choice,” and “I do not care about others’ tattoos, but I won’t try it.” The most common result for the question of why they got tattoos was for self-satisfaction, accounting for 45.5 percent, followed by 40.9 percent of respondents who chose individual expression. In addition, regarding negative attitudes toward tattoos, there were a variety of answers, including “I think there is still a prejudice about tattoos,” “I should respect tattoos as a reflection of personality,” and “I still have a negative social outlook on tattoos.” Students at Kyonggi University thought it was natural that negative attitudes toward tattoos are present in Korean society at today, but there were also many opinions suggesting that this attitude should be improved.


The main reason why the tattoo's perception has improved is that tattooing has diversified to cater to the diverse needs of people. The tattoos of the time when tattoos were negatively regarded showed the Japanese-style tattoo “Irezumi,” a style that greatly embellishes animals such as snakes and dragons. Such tattoos were often intended to emphasize the superiority of gangs and violent acts, the creation of a frightening atmosphere, and the homogeneity of the organizations. Therefore, when people think of a tattoo, a negative response is elicited. However, there are more familiar and beautiful genres of tattoos such as lettering, the evocative tattoos of watercolors, and other beautiful paintings. As a result, tattooing became popular as there were more tattoos that ordinary people could embrace. Therefore, the attitude toward tattooing has become more generous than in the past. In addition, as more and more people wanted tattoos, even tattoo stickers appeared for fashion purposes.

 

Next, the Pharos met and interviewed a student in the Department of Electronic Physics at Kyonggi University to listen to the thoughts of someone who has gotten tattoos.

 

Q. Please introduce your tattoos.

A. What I did is a tattoo in which roses grow from buds to flowers because I always try to think about a bright and positive future. Also, a word related to the meaning of the image is tattooed next to the flower.

 

Q. How did you get into tattoos?

A. I had always thought that I wanted to try a tattoo. Then one day, my friend sent me a tattoo drawing, and I liked it so much that I did it.

 

Q. Have you ever been subjected to society’s negative view of tattoos?

A. I haven’t really felt it yet. I haven’t had a part-time job, and I’m still in university, so I haven’t prepared for a job. Moreover, I’ve never been discriminated against because I haven’t shown my tattoo. In addition, I think it’s natural for the older generation to have a negative view of tattoos because in the old days, people such as gangsters and criminals usually used to do it.

 

As the above interview demonstrates, tattoos have become another art form for people to enjoy, free from the prejudice of being simply scary and bad. In addition, a tattoo is a way to express a person’s individuality, and also an effective way to hide an ugly scar. In other words, it has moved away from being a symbol of deviance and become a means of self-expression and a tool for making one’s beliefs known. You need to act with prudence before you get a tattoo, of course, but why not look on it with an unjaundiced eye and instead of thinking negatively, respect it as an expression of one's individual personality?






sohyun7709@daum.net

 

clara3003@naver.com

 

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