ENA Thursday drama “Bora! Deborah” is under fire after its recent episode!
“Bora! Deborah” made a metaphorical comparison between a historical tragedy and the importance of appearance getting massive backlash from fans.
Recently, “Bora! Deborah” sparked controversy by using the Auschwitz concentration camp as a metaphor for improving one’s appearance. The dialogue in question occurred in the 9th episode when Deborah (played by Yoo In Na) discussed the importance of appearance management with Lee Soo-Hyuk (played by Yoon Hyun Min).
Deborah stated, “It’s about Auschwitz. When people were dying while lying on their own waste, someone received a cup of water and drank only half of it, using the other half to wash their face. They even shaved while looking at their reflection in a piece of glass behind a plate. And they survived. Grooming and beautification are matters of survival.”
In response, Lee Soo-Hyuk said, “Seems like you added some excitement to your reading. It’s from Viktor Frankl’s ‘Man’s Search for Meaning,’ right?” Deborah replied, “I saw it in a magazine.”
Following the broadcast, criticism emerged mainly from overseas. Auschwitz was the site where mass killings by the Nazi regime took place during World War II. The association of the efforts made by Jewish people in the concentration camp to maintain their dignity and survive with grooming and beautification was deemed inappropriate.
Korean netizens also strongly criticized the drama for trivializing such a tragedy with gossip-like dialogue. The backlash extended even to the actors who failed to recognize the issue despite receiving the script.
In the end, the production team of “Bora! Deborah” acknowledged their lack of caution in the dialogue. They stated, “We should have mentioned historical facts with a more accurate perspective, but we failed to consider it carefully. There was never an intention to trivialize the historical tragedy. We deeply apologize. In the future, we will exercise greater caution in our production.” The scenes containing the problematic dialogue were completely removed.
Source: (A)
