[Opinion] Thirty Something

“It’s like the riddle of the Sphinx. Why are there so many great unmarried women and no great unmarried men?” This question was asked by Carrie on the TV series “Sex and the City.” The show features four single women in their 30s living in New York. They deal with jobs, men, and the search for love. Though women tend to put off marriage these days, it seems in the East and the West alike that it is difficult for a woman older than 30 to meet a great man. There is even a joke that chances for a woman older than 33 to find an attractive man are much lower than the chances for her to get abducted by aliens.

George Bernard Shaw once said, “It’s a woman’s business to get married as soon as possible and a man’s to remain unmarried as long as possible.” This phrase doesn’t apply to all men and women. But a term “old Miss” is derogatory. The movie “Old Miss Diary” both captured critical acclaim and evoked an enthusiastic response from female audiences. In the movie, Mi-ja (one of the main characters) cries, “I never treat anyone badly. So why is everyone treating me badly? I can’t help getting tough to deal with them. Why are they so impolite to me?” Old Miss often gets hurt.

▷It’s not clear whether the world has changed or if women have changed. But a new term was coined to replace the term “old Miss.” The new term, “gold Miss,” refers to 30-something women who have successful careers, maintain financial stability, try to keep up their appearances, are eager to learn something new, and enjoy being single. For a woman to fall under the “gold Miss” category, she has to have at least a college degree, have a professional job, earn between 40 and 50 million won a year, hold assets worth more than 80 million won, make overseas trips or play golf as a hobby. But the truth is that not many women can enjoy such a life.

▷Gold Misses lead social changes and trends as they work professionally during the day and enjoy exclusive nightlife. They are behind a sharp increase in the number of restaurants offering brunch on the weekends, the rising popularity of musicals, a boost in the sales of luxury goods and books, an increase in overseas trips and the boom of plastic surgery. They are also attributed to a decline in the nation’s birth rates. They say, “Women don’t necessarily have to get married,” but what they are really thinking is anyone’s guess. It is also true that some of these women do not choose to be single but remain single since they cannot find a man. A man who will match a “gold miss” probably should be “platinum single man.”

Chung Sung-hee, Editorial Writer, shchung@donga.com