'Text Hip' is a trend popular among South Koreans in their teens, 20s, and even 30s. When I first encountered the term, I assumed it was a global phenomenon, but that wasn't the case. If you Google it, you can only get Korean search results.
Presumably, many youngsters were influenced by K-pop stars and Korean celebrities through social media, such as Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. Some icons represent their intellectual and cultural tastes online to show off. The tactics are super simple. They just hold a book, showing its cover or spine, or situate it somewhere in the frame. These books are usually sophisticated, such as classics or philosophers, not worldly or practical.
I remember once a Korean actor, Han So-hee, posting a public glimpse of her book The Book of Disquiet by Fernando Pessoa on her Instagram. After the posting, the book sold out in both online and offline bookstores. Since the book wasn't popular and was translated into Korean a decade ago, there might not have been enough stock.
Younger people aren't inspired by books recommended by experts and scholars. They seem to consider reading a kind of fashion. I don't think this is an insane phenomenon. In the past, people also used to read books in order to be seen differently. Culture is likely to inevitably have a desire to display intellectual vanity.
