I think it is incredibly unfair to paint all Korean women with this same stereotypical brush. Please remember that we are talking about a large pool of actual human beings, and though the few women you may have come into contact with may, in your opinion, have expectations that are "too high," I'm sure there are a multitude of factors, personality traits, family issues, etc. that affect an individual Korean woman's decision to get married.
From my observations, and going off of the situations some of my Korean friends are in, a lot of time it wasn't necessarily up to them who they would marry. As one poster pointed out, he had a Korean girlfriend whose parents disapproved of the relationship, and therefore marriage was not an option. Family and filial piety is, in general, a lot more important here than back "home" (and of course this statement is also upon your individual background, family, country's customs, etc.). A marriage is a union of two families, and given that viewpoint it's understandable that women are expected to further their own family's standing by making a successful union. I'm not saying this is right or wrong, but it is a viewpoint to take into consideration before we all start saying the Korean women are stuck-up/picky/whatever.
And if they are picky, why shouldn't they be? No one wants to settle. As long as you're not being mean to anyone I don't see why you can't try and find someone who fits your own standards. The social framework in which Korean women operate is still very narrow, so I understand why a woman would want to find what she feels is the best possible marriage match. She's stuck with the guy for the rest of her life, after all. She's not going to be happy or at all content if she's with someone she doesn't respect (well, I wouldn't be, at any rate). Or, if because of her family's influence she is destined to be unhappy/not like the person she's going to marry, I could understand how she would try to find an outlet through other means, be they financial or whatever. Not that I'm saying one should choose a partner based upon financial gains as opposed to actual love, but if you're going to be stuck with someone who hate anyway, why not go for the gold? At least she won't be both destitute and completely miserable. I understand this is a completely cynical view, but it is reality for some women.
Korean girls have ridiculously high expectations considering their quality. I've met average, plain Jane's here who think a rich guy is going to come and sweep them off their feet. And I always think when I'm with them, "why would a rich dude want a girl like you when there are so many better ones." I think a lof the ego with the Korean chicks here in Korea is because of the gender imbalance and the fact that they can pretty much dictate things. Put them in another environment and they wouldn't stick out at all.
Yeah, it's pretty rediculous. I think they forget that the longer they wait, the chances of them finding a suitable man decreases since outer beauty is a depreciating asset. I think guys can stick out longer and accumulate wealth and thus find a suitable partner or find a foreign wife, but what are Korean women going to do? I think it's going to cause some social problems in the near future.
i'm not surprised...koreans tend to believe they are superior to everyone...especially korean women who are disillusioned about their own worth...
but truth be told...when a korean woman says she can't find anyone suitable enough...it means she can't find someone with money to burn on her to by designer bags, take expensive trips, and basically shower her with gifts (notice how i didn't say anything about genuine affection)...
