YOUR TOY

This is my senior project. Your Toy is a critique of the K-pop industry. I am a fan of BTS, so I bought their dolls and began to feel put off about having a doll of real people. Then I got into a fight with some k-pop fans over the summer, over something I didn't even think was a big deal, but they certainly thought it was a big deal. I think the industry has deluded people into thinking they have a form of ownership over their idols. Fans often freak out when their idols date someone, when someone criticizes them, or when they drink alcohol, despite the fact that many idols are twenty-somethings and these are perfectly normal things for young adults to do. It's perpetuated by their agencies, as idols are encouraged to say that their fans are their "girlfriends/boyfriends". Parasocial relationships are a tricky thing, fans may feel like they know their idols, but in reality, they don't.