Wedding in Korea, from traditional to wedding hall ceremony
Last time, I talked to you about my feelings concerning wedding hall ceremonies.
But then I asked myself, why is it like that ? How and why is it different from the wedding ceremonies I know ?
<About Korean Wedding Hall Ceremony, in the point of view of a foreign guest>
How is it different ?
One of the first big differences is probably the length of the ceremony. Compared to other cultures where the ceremony can last a whole afternoon and night, a wedding hall ceremony will last no more than 30 minutes.
Then, several weddings take place in the same building while in European culture, for example, the wedding will be in a private place so unknown people cannot invite themselves.
Prices are also confusing. Indeed, if you get to meet a wedding planner, they will offer you packages with what they call the "스드메" (studio, dress, makeup) but you will not know how much is the dress, or the makeup exactly. And weirdly, if you wish to have your dress from someone else, the package price will go up.
Plus, the decoration is very standardized. No customized decoration; if you have the chance to have choice, you will still not be able to modify it from A to Z.
Mandatory things are countless. Wanted some freedom at your wedding to choose your decoration, your scenario, the way you want your pictures ? It is not the right ceremony for you; the wedding planner will control everything, in a very standard proceedings.
Moreover, in European culture, 50~100 guests wedding are not uncommon but in wedding hall, most of the time, you will have a countless number of guests. Most of them will be absolutely unknown people because they will be your parents' friends, coworkers or other acquaintances.
And finally, when western culture see the wedding as a festive day to spend with the bride and groom, it will be very difficult (or impossible) in wedding hall ceremony to spend time the main characters of the day.
Why is it different ?
The difficult question is now, why is it like that ? Why did Korea went from a very traditional wedding ceremony to this kind of ceremonies which want to look more westernized?
We can look at history first:
If we follow the thoughts of few authors, this change would be due to a society of consummation which push people to control and create their image following the one they admire, which is in Asia, the European image.
This is probably why, due to their absence in the Korean traditional wedding, we can feel that the meaning of the proceedings is reduced and that the ceremony is more like a show.
Indeed, in the Korean traditional ceremony, there is no aisle, no officiant as we have in western culture, no vows, no greeting speech, etc etc.
Even if every culture change and grow over time, an important ceremony like a wedding has a logic and a cultural aspect that is anchored in a country. But through the quick change of the Korean wedding ceremony, we can absolutely feel the (very) quick modern Korean society change.
Some will like this change, others will not but it sure is the reflect of the society.
This is only a thought so do not hesitate to leave a comment and let us know your opinion!
♡
And as always, if you wish to have a customized and intimate wedding in Korea, check our homepage here and contact us at hello@wedit.kr !
Interrested in our International Wedding Directing Service, click on the link:
0 comments: