death
Funerary Portraits for Those Who Can't Afford Them
Portraits are required at conventional South Korean funerals. But in a country where over half of the elderly population live below the poverty line, more Koreans can’t even afford that. Here’s a photographer who offered to take free portraits of the seniors in Jongno, Seoul.
We Need to Talk About Suicide Reporting
How do we find the optimal balance between our right to information, and the risks inherent in broad dissemination of sensitive information? Around 24 hours have passed since 27-year-old Jonghyun, a member of the popular K-pop group SHINee, took his own life. It’s already a huge story, both within
Obituary: The Legacy of Jonghyun
In an interview with Esquire magazine in April, Jonghyun of K-pop boy band SHINee shared the following story: “A few years ago, I cried in front of my mother and older sister. I was super drunk…. I woke them up late at night and asked them if they were happy.
Mourning Your Loss: Funerals and Cremation for Pets
While all living things are bound to die, the average lifespan of pets is shorter than that of humans. Most pet owners have to bear the burden of bidding farewell to their animal companions. And in South Korea until recently, saying goodbye to pets meant thrusting them into a trash
Another Dolphin Death In South Korea's Aquariums
On its website, Geoje Sea World, an aquarium and marine theme park, describes itself as “second to none in Korea,” a place “expressly designed for cultivating interactive and mutual relationships between human-beings and marine mammals.” Geoje Sea World offers a variety of programs that allow people to swim in pools