[Nancy Marvel]

I found this to be an interesting questions. My go to answer was that North Korea is usually seen as the “bad guy”, the country of major human rights abuses, a dictatorship, a place where propaganda rules, and a place whose citizens have limited freedoms. And while those may be true, it is not all that North Korea is and I need to reflect on my own understandings of North Korea. The reality is that before this class, my understanding was very limited. I started thinking about the culture of North Korea, and what I realized wasn’t that I had necessarily made up my mind about it, rather I hadn’t really ever thought about it other than what we see on television or read in papers and social media. I certainly never thought of a movie industry, I just assumed if there were films, they were for indoctrination purposes. I never thought of North Korea as a nation of music. From girl bands to the North Korean Orchestra, there is music. Although the music may be nationalistic in nature, that by no means lessens the beauty of it.

If you change the focus from Kim Jong-Un and the politics and all the negatives (poverty, hunger, repression, human rights abuses), then you can look a little deeper. Despite all the issues and friction between North and South Korea, it does seem that they try to humanize North Koreans and not portray them as monsters and villains. North Korea is also a country with beautiful landscapes, a strong people, art, literature (I have ordered The Girl With Seven Names from Amazon as I want to know the rest of the story), music, poetry and more. We need to find a way to see the people and culture as separate from the regime because would we really want to be judged solely on our current leadership, Donald Trump? No, there is far more to us as a people and our country -that’s what we need to remember.  

[Nancy Marvel]

I find society and culture in South Korea today really interesting and complex. South Korea is a nation that has bounced back after the challenges of the Korean War, it has gone from a country receiving aid to being one of the leading nations in the global world. It is interesting to learn the diversity of culture beyond K-Pop and BTS. From the film industry to esports leagues, South Korean culture seems  very much like that of the US- and with that comes the good and the bad. I think I had always thought about South Korea as being a more "traditional" country so the focus on aesthetic surgery was really surprising, especially that there are so many ads for the clinics that they are being banned in the next 2 years. I also didn't expect to learn that the birth rate was one of the lowest in the world.  I have been surprised (in a good way) with the amount of agency that women have in South Korea.  It is quite mindboggling that a country where the women have a voice and speak out #MeToo movement and Escape the corset movement, is also the country that brings in foreign brides who they expect to transition quickly into becoming Korean. However, there are obvious areas that still need improvement. With the #MeToo movement, laws are being changed. Women who are now sexually attacked can press charges and their assailant may serve up to 10 years? What was the amount of time before this law that the perpetrator would serve? How many were actually ever convicted? I realize this is positive movement, even here in the US, the treatment of women who have been sexually attacked is horrific and the arrest and prosecution rates are awful. What percentage of women actually report? It seems no matter what the level of the society, women are still victims of sexual abuse. I also wonder what percentage of LGBTQ people actually are open about their sexuality. Although there has been a Queer Culture Festival and Pride Parade for 20 years, there are no laws protecting members of the communuty and there is still abuse and misunderstanding. Do they feel safe in their country? Ultimately, I think it is a society and culture that is growing and changing, and facing the challenges that come from that, but there is far more to it than K-Pop and cell phones.

[Nancy Marvel]

How did Kim Il Sung establish a communist monarchy? I think that Kim II Sung was able to establish a communust monarchy through control and fear. He would purge rivals and those who dared question him and kept close those loyal to him. Once he got his foot in the door as premier in 1948, that was it -he wasn't going anywhere. It is interesting that he tried to "legitimze" his role and his regime by making the change from premier to president, given that there were not true, free elections and there was no option for another person to try to become the leader. 

 

How did the Korean War and Cold War shape the two Koreas through 1994? The Korean War and Cold War each helped create separate and distinct sections of Korea. Instead of one strong nation, Korea was divided into North and South Korea each with its own strengths and challenges. South Korea would be allied with the US and would suffer the loss of 217,000 soldiers in the war. Although, South Korea would go through a series of political regimes and constitutions, they do move back and forth on the path toward democracy. However, I had no idea how authoritarian/dictatorial many of the leaders of South Korea actually were. Economically, South Korea was able to go from a country dependent of foreign aid to catching up to North Korea's economy in the 1970s and then surpassing it to become a major player in the international markets. North Korea became allied with the Soviet Union and China and while Kim Il Sung stated he was not shaped by those allies, they did have an impact on North Korea. North Korea accepted aid from the Soviet Union which helped solidify their economy. The focus for Kim Il Sung and North Korea was economic sustenance, military self defense, and political independence. Kim Il Sung created his communist monarchy which he would pass to his son upon his death. Each of these wars had the effect of keeping the two Koreas apart instead of bringing the country and its people back together. 

[Nancy Marvel]

I really found that 10 minute video to be quite interesting and very informative. I know some basic information; however, I didn't have a clue how far back the establishment of Korea was or how economically powerful South Korea is. I also assumed (incorrectly) that the women in society played a supporting role to the males and the rule of primogeniture was custom; thus, it was incredibly enlightening to find out the reality of the power that woman have. I am curious if the woman's ability to marry/divorce/remarry and have financial control of the family's monies is the reality in North Korea as well?

[Nancy Marvel]

Hello, I am Nancy Marvel from Newark, Delaware. I teach high school World History, Civics, and Economics. My students are primarily 9th and 10th graders. I am truly looking forward to this course so I can understand more about the Koreas and really develop much better lessons for my students.

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