Derived from the English expression that refers to those born into privilege "with a silver spoon in their mouth", a geumsujeo , a "gold spoon" is someone from the top 1% of high-income households in South Korea. It's often used to refer to the children of super-rich families.
The term "dirt spoons" represents the other end of the spectrum.
Films and TV dramas like Parasite and Squid Game have highlighted the "gold spoon-dirt spoon" divide.
Korean millennials, like their peers in many developed countries, are bearing the brunt of increasing class inequality.
These days, it's near impossible for a young Korean to buy a home on an average company salary.
A growing number no longer trust that hard work will deliver dues; many instead believe that success in life depends on the family you're born into.
Education is also no longer the great social leveller, when some 70% of school-leavers go on to university. People's faith in the university system has also been tarnished by nepotism scandals.
"We're now at the point where some people genuinely believe that Korea does not offer social mobility," Se-Woong Koo, the editor of Korean Exposé, a newsletter focusing on contemporary Korea, said.
"The only way to be well-off is to have rich parents or to marry money. And as a result, many people aspire to belong to that 'gold spoon' generation who appear to have it so easy."
Single's Inferno: Why 'fake' rich girl Song Ji-a enraged South Korea - BBC News
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