Menu
close
Heather ButlerKim Jong Il took a very different approach of “Military First” to ensure his regime survived, although he piggybacked it off of his father’s Juche policy. Rather than having the power to lie with politicians, he had it lie in the military because he felt that the military were already patriotic and dedicated to protecting the fatherland from imperialism. Through kangsong taeguk, “strong and prosperous great state,” Kim Jong Il hoped to create a new slogan for hope, prove to the world that North Korea was still surviving regardless of the multiple socialist systems collapsing, and to alleviate the misconception that that the regime after his father was on the verge of collapse. The “Military First” policy was supposed to revitalize the economy by providing a self-reliant and prosperous economic life for everyone in the nation. By following his father in succession, he was able to avoid the upheavals that a leadership change could cause. He replaced older individuals in the Korean Workers Party, military and government structure with younger members that he felt more comfortable with, and that were more amicable to the changes he was making. Even as the Soviets were pulling back political and economic support, because it was no longer necessary or justifiable, Kim Jong Il chose to open to foreign investments from the outside world.
The Sunshine Policy initiated by Kim Dae Jung helped to bring Kim Jong Il, the leader of North Korea and himself to engage in discussions for cooperation. It brought about conversations to ease tensions between the two countries and promoted economic cooperation and aid between the two countries. It brought North Korea to the table of International relations, as it brought in outside countries as well.
Heather ButlerLaura,
Your comparison to the division of Germany, didn't even occur to me. In reality, even the US tends to say they are pro-democracy, really they are anti-Communism, such as you pointed out with the backing of Rhee. We created our own enemy through the extensive use of napalm and bombing throughout North Korea, much like how the Versailles Treaty after WWI, which stripped so much from Germany contributed to WWII.
Heather ButlerMeghann,
I also find the arts that portray Kim Il Sung interesting in how it portrays him as this heroic father figure and the US and South Korea as evil villians. It makes me think a lot about WWII propaganda used by the Allies and Axis, where there are these heroic images of their side and monstrous views of "the other". And this proliferated from children's books to sporting events. I am curious how much the propaganda style has changed to current times, since the 90's children's books still held art styles similar to the Socialist Realism that occured decades before. Knowing how to use propaganda is a key technique for leaders trying to unite a group of people.
Heather ButlerKim Il Sung united the suffering of the people in North Korea after the Korean War through major social reforms and pushing towards economic recovery. Since so many had suffered such great losses during the war, he used glittering generalizations, such as “We are the General’s Family” and “comradely love” to create a sense of unity among the population, while creating distrust by vilifiying the United States and capitalism. He set up organizations that controlled all the information that the people received and set up land reform. His administration infiltrated every aspect of North Korean life from the bank notes reading “We have nothing to envy” to preventive healthcare to beginning every published piece of literature with a quote from his family. Since Kim Il Sung sat at the head of this family or body, it would only be natural that his descendants would follow in his leadership. By reinforcing the concept of Juche, North Koreans were led to believe through propaganda, that they could be taken care of through hard work and support of the leadership, that esteemed to protect them from the pollution of the US, who had decimated their homes, industries and infrastructure during the Korean War.
The Korean War basically placed North and South Korea at odds with each other because of where their support came from and due to the inability of leadership on either side to reunify at that juncture under one governmental format. Since the USSR and US were in the Cold War during this time, they were each pushing for their political agenda in divided Korea. Although the US was supporting South Korea economically, they were not willing to interfere with protests and government leadership, so that led to lots of violence and Anti-American stances. South Korean leadership was able to build up the economy through capitalism and industrialization
North Korea wanted to present themselves as being self-reliant in the areas of economy, politics and military, but in reality they were receiving backing from the USSR. So therefore when Soviet Union fell, they lost support causing their economy to stagnate. As a result of the Cold War, and the aftereffects of the Korean War, North Korea pushed towards ramping up the military and military industry while South Korea worked towards stabilization through an economic boom in industry. North Korea and South Korea seem to have very opposing results of the Cold War, but in reality, both are two sides of the same coin. Both sides suffered immensely during the Korean War largely due to the other countries that were backing them, but each side chose a different path to recover. In the meantime, there was loss of family and breaking of Korean identity.
Heather ButlerThis video was very informative. As someone who has been more exposed to the Korean Wave through K-pop and K-dramas recently, just this basic information, gave me more background to the K-dramas that I have been enjoying. I didn't realize how much power that Korean women held from history, especially in political positions. The infographic gave an excellent explanation of the two Korean flags, which would be great to use in my classes, to discuss how symbolism is used in designing flags, that makes connections to the story of the place. Also, I was unaware that Korean type predated the Gutenberg press, and that would make for a good discussion with students, how history has been taught in a very Western-centric and whitewashed manner in the US. In addition, bimbibap is one of my favorite dishes.
Heather ButlerHi! My name is Heather Butler. I am a high school Visual Arts teacher at Riverside High School in Williamston, North Carolina. I teach a mix of 9th through 12th graders, and I looking forward to give my students more context about North and South Korea in my classes. I only had one Asian Art History class in college and that only really discussed Indian and Chinese art. On a personal level, I enjoy K-dramas and K-pop music.
