Men`s hairstyles

When Son Seok-hee, a professor at Sungshin Women`s University and a popular broadcast announcer and interviewer, hosted the MBC TV debate program "100-minute Forum," Park Won-soon, then a civic activist and now Seoul mayor, asked, “You and I were born in 1956 and are the same age, but how do you look so young?” Viewers burst out laughing when Son said, "I`m the same age as Roh Hoe-chan, chairman of the New Progressive Party," adding, “I`d say it`s not that I look young but that Mr. Park looks older than you really are.” The main things that make men look old are wrinkles and a receding hairline. Son’s hair, which is parted on the sides and covers the forehead, is one thing that helps him look much younger. Those with a receding hairline cannot imitate such a hairstyle.

If the hairstyle of a middle school girl is an expression of fashion sense, that of a middle-aged man is a symbol of youth that is as well maintained as rich hair. The main male protagonists of melodramas often have such a hairstyle, something that would be tough under an authoritarian socioeconomic environment. A typical example is Kim Doo-kwan, 53, former governor of Gyeonggi Province whose hair is parted on the sides at a proportion of 8:2. Therefore, a gentleman’s parted hair can be an expression of self-pride as a professional who pursues a young lifestyle.

Physiognomists or the elderly, male or female, frown on a hairstyle that covers the forehead because they believe that an exposed forehead is a symbol of intelligence or power. More than a few physiognomists say that while young people with hairstyles covering the forehead look energetic, albeit immature, they should show their foreheads as they get older to win blessings from others or gain favor with heaven. Shin Seong-dae, head of the publishing company Dongmunseon, said, “Parted hair covering the forehead on a man is a symbol of castrated masculinity. Just those who appear on TV dramas are autistic, defiant and self-righteous but lack the courage to overcome their own situations.”

Ahn Cheol-soo, the latest entrant to the December presidential election, had parted hair covering his forehead when he announced his presidential bid last week. When he visited the grave of former President Roh Moo-hyun Wednesday, his forehead was exposed. Did he perhaps want to present an image of a politician with experience and intelligence rather than youthful energy? His new hairstyle is huge progress from the one he had earlier this week, using mousse or gel to part his hair. Moon Jae-in, the presidential candidate of the main opposition Democratic Unity Party, has an exposed forehead with three wrinkles, indicating a smooth personality capable of blending in with anyone. No Korean president, even those who ruled many years ago, has had a forehead-covering hairstyle.

Editorial Writer Kim Sun-deok (yuri@donga.com)