Photo credits: Radio Times
Author’s note:
Media is often consumed rapidly—that is, viewers find it entertaining but do not think deeply about the lessons taught by the source or what real events may have inspired it. Thus, many viewers do not connect catastrophes and horrors portrayed in TV shows and movies to similar events in real life, preventing these issues from truly gaining light. An instance of this is the popular 2022 Korean drama The Glory, in which a schoolgirl is brutally bullied and takes it upon herself to bring revenge to her violent bullies decades later. Though many do not realize this, the series is based on real events, telling the story of a violent and traumatic bullying experience of a young girl in Korea. When watching media, even shows or movies that are not based on specific real-life events have morals or lessons that can be applied to real-life scenarios. Through the exploration of the real story behind this famous drama, I urge readers to look deeper into the morals and lessons of criminal dramas to better react to similar scenarios in real life. This way, victims are more likely to be believed and understood.
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She had woken up that day knowing the incoming school day would be just like all the others. The thought scared her more than anything in the world.
As she shrugged on her school uniform, she felt unbearable sores as the fabric brushed against her bruised arms. In the mirror, she saw purple, blue, and red splotches painted across her thin, bony limbs. Burns and bruises stained her body and soul.
Exiting her room, she covered up every trace of her bruises and plastered on a false smile for her parents. She didn’t need any more warnings to keep her mouth shut—five death threats had been enough for her. Her mother kissed her goodbye, grasping her shoulders as she tried to hide her wince as convincingly as she could.
As soon as her shoes touched the muddy floor of the school playground, she looked up to see them—the four people who haunted her dreams and reality. The ringleader held up a hair curler as a taunting smile graced her face. The sight incited complete, debilitating fear that nearly stopped her heart.
Avid watchers of the 2022 Korean drama “The Glory” may find that the above scenario sounds familiar. This is because while the horrible bullying described in “The Glory” may simply seem like a fictional cautionary tale, it is based on an entirely real bullying case in South Korea.
Screenwriter Kim Eun-sook created the show after some research on the topic of bullying in South Korea. Bullying is an extremely prevalent and serious epidemic in the country; approximately one in three students were targets of bullying by their school peers. This combined with immense academic stress has led to a severe rise in suicides amongst teenagers. The effects of bullying do not stop at graduation, however. The trauma that victims are left with leaves indelible mental scars that oftentimes affect them for decades after their bullying has concluded. Furthermore, many of Korea’s largest celebrities have faced bullying scandals or been exposed for being bullies in their school years.
As she researched, Kim uncovered a real-life case that occurred at a girls’ school in 2006. After being targeted by three other girls, a ninth-grade girl was tortured for over twenty days. The bullying that she endured involved a great amount of physical abuse, the most notable of which was when her arms were burned with a curling iron. The bullies would demand the victim give them money, and if these demands were not met, they would knock the victim around with a baseball bat, scratch her chest with a barrette, and abuse her with punches and kicks. The bullies peeled off some of the healing scabs that the victim developed with their nails.
As a result of the continuous, long-lasting torment, the victim was hospitalized for six weeks for her various injuries, including a protruding tailbone. Even after the twenty days of harsh torture concluded, the victim was scarred psychologically. The trauma she faced in her teenage years undoubtedly affected her mental health throughout her adulthood.
Both in the drama series and in the real-life incident, the student received little to no support from the teachers and officials at the school she attended. In the drama, this is emphasized when a teacher beats her repeatedly in the teachers’ lounge for coming forward with the truth. The lack of support from school officials is commonplace for many bullying cases in Korea, especially if the victim is from a low-income background while the bullies are from much more wealthy and influential families.
Thus, “The Glory” reflects the prevalent issues of injustice in Korean bullying cases. When watching this show, it must be remembered that the harsh bullying that the main character faces is not where her suffering ends; it is extended, imprinting greater psychological effects, due to the lack of support she receives as a result of her low-income status.
To build a society in which bullies are rightfully punished and victims can successfully heal from traumatic experiences, one must believe and support a victim. Only then can there truly be justice.
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Jurisview Journal is a student-led blog that publishes biweekly articles about interesting criminal cases. Our aim is to shed light on cases that require justice or further exploration and provide input on controversial legal events. We also publish infographics to help victims or those who wish to educate themselves on legal issues.
Works Cited
“The bullying crisis sweeping across South Korean schools.” Al Jazeera, 22 June 2023, https://www.aljazeera.com/program/101-east/2023/6/22/the-bullying-crisis-sweeping-across-south-korean-schools. Accessed 26 July 2024.
Park, Jun-hee. “Hair curler bullying scene in 'The Glory' stirs memories of similar case from 2006.” The Korea Herald, 11 January 2023, https://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20230111000571. Accessed 26 July 2024.
Rath, Katy. “Is Netflix's The Glory A True Story? Real Events Explained.” Screen Rant, 25 March 2023, https://screenrant.com/netflix-the-glory-true-story/. Accessed 26 July 2024.
Srinivas, Eshita. “A look at the heart-breaking real-life incident that inspired Netflix's 'The Glory.'” Lifestyle Asia, 17 March 2023, https://www.lifestyleasia.com/ind/entertainment/streaming/the-real-life-incident-that-inspired-netflix-k-drama-the-glory/#google_vignette. Accessed 26 July 2024.
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