Have you ever heard about wang-tta? Wang-tta is a phenomenon that is spreading in Korea, especially in elementary, middle and high schools. The word refers to the action of ignoring and excluding a person by other people. Also, we usually call a person who is shunned wang-tta, which means something like an "outcast". These days, there has been a lot of discussion wang-tta on TV news and in the papers. They say that it has caused social problems, especially juvenile problems including group bullying in school and suicide. When I was discharged from the army, several friends said to me, "Be careful not to become a victim of wang-tta after registration at school this semester." Then, I didn't understand what it meant, because I was in the army when this word, wang-tta, came into vogue. Later, when I came to know the meaning of wang-tta, it made me laugh. As far as I know, wang-tta is not as serious a problem in universities as it is in middle and high schools. Most of my friends use this word in conversation for fun, and then we laugh loudly.
　　　 Anyway, it is clear that juvenile problems caused by being left out are more serious than I thought at first. Being left alone without friends, especially in middle and high schools, often makes a student depressed about his or her school life, and sometimes leads a student to suicide. So, I could not help thinking over these problems when I think about what it would be like if I were a victim of wang-tta in school, or if my younger sister in middle school were alienated from her classmates.
　　　 I think that the students ignored by other students usually have some distinctive features. For example, they usually are rich, or they are poor, or they are handicapped students, or they are hard workers compared to other students, or they get good grades and are acknowledged as superior in school, and so on. There are a lot of reasons to make people feel left out. At this point, the clear thing is that the person left out is different in some way from other people. These special features often can cause envy, jealousy, or sometimes disgust in other people. I remember a scene of a drama for teenagers, "The parents don't know" on K.B.S. A few girls in middle school were talking about a classmate who was smart and better dressed than others.
　　　 "That girl always wears expensive clothes."
　　　 "Right, she makes me disgusted, and she receives all the love from the teacher just because she asks a lot of question and she is cute."
　　　 "I don't want to look at her face."
　　　 Also, we can see the fact that the people excluded are usually individuals or a very small group, but the main people who leave someone out form a big group. That is, usually, there are common features in a group, and if someone in the group has a special character, he or she may be called wang-tta.
　　　 However, we should change our thought. Each person has strong points. Let's suppose a student has a good ability to perform in a play, or a student is good at a presentation. Most students are afraid of performing or making a presentation in public. For this reason, it is possible for other students to ignore the talented students. This is absolutely wrong. The talented students in some fields find pleasure in their daily and school life by doing the best with their ability. So, we should recognize their ability and encourage them to develop their talents. I think this is real friendship between friends.
　　　 Also, we can learn strong points that we don't have from them. We can also give them knowledge and know-how that they don't have, for example, how to sing well, how to make a girl and boy friend easily, how to use a computer, etc. Therefore, in this process, we can respect others' special features and improve our weak points.
　　　 Modern society is characterized by marked personalities. We must not lose our precious personalities, and we don't have to be assimilated to a standardization of personality. Finally, we have to get rid of the thought that we are superior to other people, and we need to understand the depression of people who are left out.