''Winter Woman'' () is a 1977

South Korean film The cinema of South Korea refers to the film industry of South Korea from 1945 to present. South Korean films have been heavily influenced by such events and forces as the Japanese occupation of Korea, the Korean War, government censorship, t ...

. It is based on a

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

by Cho Hae-il which was serialised in the

Chosun Ilbo ''The Chosun Ilbo'' (, ) is a daily newspaper in South Korea and the oldest daily newspaper in the country. With a daily circulation of more than 1,800,000, the ''Chosun Ilbo'' has been audited annually since the Audit Bureau of Circulations w ...

in 1975. The popularity of the novel led to the film being made. Dealing with the sexual awakening of the female protagonist, the book and film earned the condemnation of conservative critics, however the author's leftist subtext went unchallenged overshadowed by the sexual themes. The film was the best selling Korean film of the 1970s, and made a star of its female lead

Chang Mi-hee Chang Mi-hee (born January 27, 1958) is a South Korean actress. She was born Lee Yun-hui in Seoul, South Korea in 1958. Chang debuted as an actress in 1976 as starring in ''Seong Chun-hyang jeon'' directed by Park Tae-won and TBC TV drama, ''Haen ...

Plot

Yi-hwa is the daughter of a prosperous Christian preacher and has been raised to be morally and sexually conservative. Whilst still in High School her beauty earns her the admiration of many including Yo-sub with whom she becomes friends, however when Yo-sub desires sex with her she rejects him and he commits suicide. Becoming a university student she becomes the girlfriend of Suk-gi and he too desires to have sex with her. When Yi-hwa remains true to herself and rejects his advances he rapes her. Suk-gi dies in a car accident and she receives a posthumous letter from him accusing her of being selfish for withholding from him that which she could give without cost to herself, and valuing her chastity more than those she claims to love. Shocked by her first sexual experience and the deaths of the two men she rejected, she becomes a sex volunteer, offering her body to men to use for sex; however she refuses both emotional attachment and money. Graduating from university she becomes a journalist covering stories about Seoul's female factory workers and she meets an idealist young teacher working with the children of the urban poor. Just as she is giving her body to those in need of sex, he is giving his mind to those in need of inspiration, they are both giving "water to the thirsty". She offers herself to him for his use. Even though they are now together, the novel concludes with the implication that she will continue to volunteer herself to those who have need of her.

Cast

as Yi-hwa *

Shin Seong-il Shin Seong-il (May 8, 1937 – November 4, 2018) was a South Korean actor, film director, producer, and former politician. A legendary actor with 500 films in over 40 years, Shin debuted in director Shin Sang-ok's 1960 film ''A Romantic Papa'' a ...

* Kim Choo-ryeon * Sin Gwang-il *

Song Jae-ho Song Jae-ho (born Song Jae-eon; 10 March 1937 – 7 November 2020) was a South Korean actor. Career He made his acting debut in 1959, and became best known for his work in 1970s and 1980s Korean cinema, notably ''Yeong-ja's Heydays'' (1975). S ...

Park Won-sook Park Won-sook (; born January 19, 1949) is a South Korean actress. Filmography Television series Film Variety show Music video Theater Books Awards References External links * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Park, Won-so ...

* Han Sang-mi

Context

In the years around the writing of the novel, the years of the

Miracle on the Han River The Miracle on the Han River refers to the period of rapid economic growth in South Korea, following the Korean War (1950–1953), during which South Korea transformed from a least developed country to a developed country. The rapid reconstru ...

, South Korea had undergone a massive and rapid urbanisation and industrialisation. Led by the military dictatorship the Korean people were seen as a resource to be mobilised to build and strengthen the country. The prostituting of Korean women, especially young peasant women who in previous generations would have worked the land, was seen by the military as a means to earn foreign currency through sex tourism, and as a means of maintaining good relations with American servicemen based in Korea; the continued presence of whom was seen as essential in deterring the North from further aggression. However, this

commodification Within a capitalist economic system, commodification is the transformation of things such as goods, services, ideas, nature, personal information, people or animals into objects of trade or commodities.For animals"United Nations Commodity Trad ...

of South Korean women was at a mismatch to the social conservatism of the military dictatorship and the image of the virtuous wife and daughter in

Korean Confucianism Korean Confucianism is the form of Confucianism that emerged and developed in Korea. One of the most substantial influences in Korean intellectual history was the introduction of Confucian thought as part of the cultural influence from China. ...

. The protagonist is of a class not usually the subject of sexual exploitation, and the fact that she does not take money for her services differentiates her from her unluckier sisters. The sexual and social mores of that place and time deny her the right as a woman to be a sexual being in and of herself with the right to pursue sex for her own gratification, instead she must justify her sexuality in terms of the needs of men, as acts of charity. During the

Park Chung-hee Park Chung-hee (, ; 14 November 1917 – 26 October 1979) was a South Korean politician and army general who served as the dictator of South Korea from 1961 until his assassination in 1979; ruling as an unelected military strongman from 1961 ...

dictatorship, film making like all other media was heavily

censored Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...

to disallow open criticism of the regime. Criticism of the military government and the advancing of leftist ideas therefore had to be indirect and by

allegory As a literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a hidden meaning with moral or political significance. Authors have used allegory th ...

. Of the film genres that enjoyed the greatest latitude was the so-called "Hostess films", lurid melodramas about the world of the Korean

bargirl A bargirl is a woman who is paid to entertain patrons in a bar, either individually or, in some cases, as a performer. The exact nature of the entertainment varies widely from place to place; depending on the venue this can be individual enterta ...

. Despite the fact that the protagonist is neither the good nor bad girl of Korean films, but combines elements of both, ''Winter Woman'' falls into this genre; and perhaps the critics would have found the film less shocking, if despite her background, Yi-hwa had accepted money for her sex work. Metaphorically Yi-hwa is a representative of the

bourgeoisie The bourgeoisie ( , ) is a social class, equivalent to the middle or upper middle class. They are distinguished from, and traditionally contrasted with, the proletariat by their affluence, and their great cultural and financial capital. They ...

, and awakened to the needs of the

proletariat The proletariat (; ) is the social class of wage-earners, those members of a society whose only possession of significant economic value is their labour power (their capacity to work). A member of such a class is a proletarian. Marxist philo ...

gives that which she can to those in need.

References

External links

* *{{kmdb film, 03153, Winter Woman 1977 films 1970s romance films 1970s erotic drama films South Korean erotic romance films South Korean erotic drama films 1977 drama films

Plot

Cast

Context

See also

References

External links