Cute Korean Women, Cute Korean Girls: Kawaii Digestibility in Crying in H Mart and Pucca Público

Abstract

In Crying in H Mart, Michelle Zauner details her Korean American identity and relationship with her mother, Chongmi, as well as the pain of loss after Chongmi passes away from cancer. Given that Zauner writes of serious topics in her memoir, this thesis examines cuteness and how Zauner’s Korean female family members appear to be cutified. To contribute to interdisciplinary discourse, I outline Korean Americans’ unique position on cuteness during a time of Korean popular growth and their relation to Japan and Japanese cute, or kawaii. Building upon present understandings of cuteness, this thesis involves close reading of various “cute” scenes and raises the possibility of an imperialistic, kawaii cuteness furthering a digestibility that entails less accuracy and authenticity for Korean and Asian American female representations and women in the real world. 

When combined with serious topics, the cuteness attributable to the food and childlike portrayals in Crying in H Mart can be detracting and distracting, not leaving space for fuller contemplation and more realistic descriptions of topics such as trauma, identity struggle, and grief. Moreover, those illustrations of the Korean women as childlike are questionable considering existing associations between Korean and Asian/American women and cuteness. Korean and Asian American women writers who notice the memoir’s cuteness and popularity may come to believe that they should produce similarly cute, digestible works, prolonging expectations of Asian feminine cuteness. Ordinary individuals may also think to embody cuteness in general, even in serious contexts, a sentiment outside consumers may (continue to) hold. For another object that points to Crying in H Mart’s creative patterns, this thesis includes a section on Pucca, a Korean television show that raises questions of caricature, pan-Asianism, misogyny, imperialism, and overall digestibility. If such similarities exist between the two works, Korean-affiliated creators are likely fulfilling expected patterns, which can be broken upon their realization.

Table of Contents

Introduction ................................................................................................................. 1 

Chapter One: Cuteness and the Korean/Asian American Female Sphere ............................ 7 

American “Cute” and Asian American Women ................................................................. 7 

Japanese Soft Power, Cute/Kawaii, and Korean American Women ...................................... 10 

The Cuteness of Food, Digestibility, and Asian American Women’s Writing ...................... 20 

Chapter Two: Cuteness in Crying in H Mart ................................................................... 28 

Memories through Korean Snacks from H Mart ............................................................... 28 

Characterizations of Korean Female Family Members ..................................................... 44 

Chapter Three: Cuteness in Pucca and Crying in H Mart vs. Pucca .................................... 64 

Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 78 

Bibliography .................................................................................................................. 83 

About this Honors Thesis

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School	Emory College
Department	English
Degree	B.A.
Submission	Honors Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Asian American Studies Literature, Asian Literature, American
Palabra Clave	Kawaii Japanese colonialism Asian American literature Cute Studies Memoir Japanese imperialism Cuteness Asian caricature Pan-Asianism Digestibility Michelle Zauner Women writers Korean Wave Soft power Korean American literature Hallyu Korean culture Pucca Mother-daughter relationships Crying in H Mart
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Erica Kanesaka, Emory University
Committee Members	Patricia Cahill, Emory University Chris Suh, Emory University

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