Comment by Rok on Ja-y JTBD

Comment on ReplyJa-y JTBD
·6 months ago(edited)
Ch. 2
@Ja-y JTBD You're greatly misunderstanding something. In my 3 years of trying countless manhwa, black characters are EXTREMELY rare, and when darker-skinned characters do appear, their features often lean heavily toward "eurocentric features".

Almost no information is given when this happens, so it's hard to say what race the characters actually are. This may be so that the race is ambiguous or generalized for the audience since black people and dark skin are perceived as "ugly" and "uncomfortable".

I've seen black people portrayed 2 times in manhwa in the 3 years I've been reading, and I'm sure they're black because as I said before, the portrayal is to the point where it's pretty racist. They didn't do that here. I haven't read all of the chapters(bc this story is terrible), but from what I have read, they haven't explicity stated or implied that the characters are black, but from experience and cultural context, it's highly unlikely that these characters are black. If it turns out that they are, then that's another problem, but I've already addressed that.

Anyways, that's what I meant when I was pointing out the features. I know that not all black people don't share the same look and I’m very aware of the diversity in black features(ex. blue eyes, blond hair, straight hair, light skin etc etc). We're the most genetically diverse people on the planet. If anything, they're putting blk people in a box by always leaning toward "eurocentric features" instead of having a more balanced representation.

2 Replies

·6 months ago(edited)
@Rok first and foremost it sounds really bad for you if the only times you've identified characters as black is when it was racist.

Next. In my time of reading manwha for more than 3 years, I've seen several black character (I don't know how many because I don't count my black people). Some with affros some with straight hair. Main thing all of the time they are drawn to fit the art style of the story.
Real people don't actually have single point noses, but they do in manwha because it's easier and prettier the less details there are in someone's face. The only time to add more detail is for a joke, dramatic effect or to make someone older/uglier except for the occasional distinctive detail like scars (which normally ended up fading away).

In most manwha I've read, they don't mention specific real life race at all. This is just commonly how the genre functions. There's no Asians, there's people from the empire, there's no Americans, there's blue eyed, blonde haired people from a foreign nation, there's no black people, there's darker skinned people of the desert. Basically everyone is drawn from the same basic style with superficial differences 

You're purposely ignoring the obviously intended implications and somehow, according to your comment, only acknowledging someone as black "where it's pretty racist". You've got to understand how bad that sounds. I'm not calling you racist but that sounds like someone with internalised racism, and yes black people can get that, I had that when I was a teenager.

Also, don't bring culture into this because that doesn't actually support your point unless you go with the surface level, one-note view of ignorance common in racists.
On a more serious note.
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