Korean Cultural Adaptation of Our Bodies, Ourselves

In June 2005, The Alternative Culture Publishing Company of South Korea released the Korean cultural adaptation of Our Bodies, Ourselves.  Alternative Culture, in the vanguard of the Korean women’s movement for two decades, conceived of the idea to publish a Korean edition more than a decade ago, but due to a lack of resources the project did not get underway until 2001.

With the goal of reaching the next generation of feminists, a group of over 50 women from the fields of women’s studies, social sciences, and nursing participated in making the cultural adaptation a reality. Headed by Alternative Culture and the Korea Sexual Violence Relief Center, the translation team included a group of young graduate women. In the words of the coordinators at Alternative Culture Publishing Co., the book “provides South Korean women with the wisdom and knowledge necessary to be informed medical consumers and feel empowered about their bodies. It is also an invaluable resource for medical professionals in developing gender sensitivity in the field.”

The adaptation team was called Tomoon Momsalimter, tomoon meaning ‘alternative culture’ and momsalimter meaning ‘saving our bodies’.  In addition to translating the original text, Tomoon Momsalimter also collected anecdotes and data from Korean women on issues of self-and body-image alternative therapies, health conditions and gender issues.  A major challenge was to replace commonly used medical terms that are based on gender stereotypes and male-centered sexuality with women-centered language and experiences.   

In adapting from the English language version, the editing team chose to eliminate some U.S-based content, such as sections on racism in the U.S., but to retain other American-specific examples that could serve as references or models. Although the topics of homosexuality and abortion are not very familiar to  Korean readers, the editors chose to leave them in to increase awareness of the issues. They also expanded the content in chapters on sexual violence, domestic violence, and ecological movements, because of the strong women’s movement around these issues in South Korea.

Since its publication, the Korean OBOS adaptation has been sold through conventional and on-line bookstores. Alternative Culture Publishing Company has  promoted the book at the 9th International Interdisciplinary Congress on Women in Seoul; the 2005 Women, Medicine and Health Expo; the Seoul International Bookfair 2005; the 1st Seoul Wow Book Festival; and the 7th Mense Festival. The book has been featured in several newspaper articles and a radio show and, to close the year, Alternative Culture is collaborating with the Mapo Lifelong Learning Center to hold a weekly forum where women can discuss the book and their own personal experiences.