3월 31일 Topic입니다!

기사 내용이 좀 긴거 같아서 하나만 올려요 ~ 길다고 너무 당황하지마시고 한번씩만 읽고 오시면 수업시간에 빨리빨리 읽고 바로 토론 가능할것 같습니다.ㅎㅎ   대신 기사 하나하고 기사 필요없이 회화연습할수 있는걸로 하나 준비해갈께요 :) 내일 뵈어요~!   Dog's Life in Korea Koreans are often targets of derision and criticism among animal lovers for eating dogs. And, as summer approaches, there is no way an honest observation on Korean culture can leave out the perennial dog eating controversy. Now, an opposite phenomenon is spreading in Korea: There's a wild race in Korea to see who can treat dogs best. Pet shops are springing up all over the country and the demand for highly priced pet dogs is skyrocketing. It's fashionable for young women to carry the dogs into restaurants, trains, buses, or subways, as if they are humans, snugly settled in their owners' coat pockets or bags. Dogs face several extreme fates here. Some of them are eaten, some of them are treated like human babies, and some are neither humanized nor eaten, but abused beyond imagination. While some Koreans eat dog stew (boshintang), another group of Koreans cannot do enough for their dogs. There's a pet dog rage in Korea, which is about as wildly popular as boshintang. Foreigners notice that there are two kinds of pet dogs in Korea. One is the kind that is tied to a leash seldom longer than three feet, miserably surviving in an area not much bigger than the space for a small chair. These dogs are household pets in name only. No one plays with them, there is no playground for them, and they shiver in extreme cold and swelter in unbearable heat. The pet dog rage is not for this group of common house dogs. Most of them are mutts and mixed breeds of ignoble parentage. The second kind of pet dog is of the smallest variety of the canine family, such as Miniature Poodles, Chihuahuas, Shih Tzus, West Highland White Terrier, Yorkshire Terriers, Mexican Hairless Dogs, Dachshunds, Scottish Terriers, the Maltese breed, and so on. These small, pampered creatures are popular among the Korean middle class, mainly because they are expensive and small. The owners, mostly female, carry these little critters everywhere. They carry them in their bosoms onto the subway, restaurants, stores, anywhere people go, even into the rest stops on the expressway, where they are forbidden. What are the facts concerning the internationally contentious issue of dog eating in Korea? Recently, the Korean government issued a set of health regulations governing the dog meat industry. Instead of letting the sleeping dog lie, this government intervention stirred anew wild controversy from both sides. Suddenly, this famously native Korean cuisine once again occupies center stage. This is what a Korea Times editorial once said about the dog meat controversy: ``Dog meat is now the fourth most consumed meat in Korea after pig, cow and chicken, although it is not sold in ordinary supermarkets but is supplied to restaurants through special channels. Official statistics on dog meat circulation have not been updated since the late 1990s but available figures show that some 9,000 tons are being served at about 6,500 establishments across the country annually. This does not include the many dogs that are killed and consumed privately at dog-eating parties in the countryside and the large volume of dog meat that turns into a sort of 'extract' considered as a health medicine cum food.'' This is a touchy issue for most Koreans. Much nationalist sentiment is mixed with culinary passions and cultural relativist arguments, and those who love Korea's dog eating custom call the critique `culinary imperialism.'' Although those who actually eat boshintang are few here, the very idea that a fairly respectable national dish is in international dispute both embarrasses and angers many Koreans. Former actress and self-dedicated animal lover Brigitte Bardot even questioned the morality of the Korean delicacy. Bardot argued that cruelty to the dogs in Korean culinary demand was unreasonable and immoral. Koreans, both boshintang lovers and ordinary citizens, countered that it was none of her business as Koreans were entitled to eat dogs as much as anything, even pointing out worse things other foreigners eat. Considering the variety of ways in which humanity satisfies its need for eating pleasure, it's easy to justify that eating dog stew is not any different from other oddball dishes of the world. In this age of cultural relativism, it is easy to agree with this argument. The issue of dog eating in Korea stirs debate only because of Korea's aspiration to be a world class nation of advanced culture and manners. While what people eat in Nigeria (termites, mayflies), or in Thailand (tiger testicles, baby pigeons), or in China (monkey brains, snake liver), is probably far more indelicate than dog meat in Korea, none of these nations is staking its claim to the rank of world class status. Korea is different because it wants to be an advanced nation, not just in claim but in fact as well. Is boshintang an essential part of Korea's dietary arsenal? The answer is, very clearly, no. Koreans enjoy plenty of meats in enviable variations, as the editorial above points out. Dog meat is not necessary for any practical reason, not to mention the cruel way the condemned dogs undergo torture to increase the tenderness of their meat. A small minority of men who wish to fortify their manliness or counter the summer heat seek out and consume the delicacy. Would the scene of Koreans devouring dog stew hurt Korea's march to world class status and impress foreign visitors negatively? Definitely. If Korea is serious about becoming a member of the civilized elite, not eating boshintang might have a very beneficial effect overall. It would be a small sacrifice for a great advancement. Also included in this dog revolution should be better treatment for the outdoor dogs, perhaps with longer leashes, better dog houses and maybe some space for them to play in. Pet owners are advised to learn that dogs should not be fed off dining tables at restaurants. Only time will tell which of the above roads to destiny the future Korean dogs will take.