North Korea in a Nutshell

Kongdan Oh; Ralph Hassig

doi:10.5771/9781538151396

Summary

Explore North Korea, one of the most secretive countries in the world.

This thoughtful book provides a concise introduction to North Korea. Two leading experts, Kongdan Oh and Ralph Hassig, trace the country’s history from its founding in 1948 and describe the many facets of its political, economic, social, and cultural life.

The authors illuminate a hidden nation dominated by three generations of the secretive Kim regime, a family dynasty more suited to the Middle Ages than the contemporary era. North Korea has a robust if outmoded military force, including a growing arsenal of weapons of mass destruction, to deter and defend against foreign attacks and to maintain independence and isolation from the rest of the world. The struggling economy, disconnected from the global marketplace, operates under harsh international sanctions. All North Koreans, from the highest party cadres to the youngest children living in prison camps, are essentially servants of the leader.

Despite Kim Jong-un’s despotic control, the authors argue that North Korea cannot continue on its current path indefinitely. Kim treats even his closest associates harshly, and the gap is widening between his elite supporters, numbering a million or so, and the other twenty-four million North Koreans. The economic and technological gap between South Korea and North Korea is increasing as well, and younger people are becoming disenchanted as they gradually learn more about the outside world.

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Bibliographic data

Copyright year: 2021
ISBN-Print: 978-1-5381-5138-9
ISBN-Online: 978-1-5381-5139-6
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham
Language: English
Pages: 265
Product type: Book Titles

1. Contents No access
2. Preface No access
1. Physical Geography: A Land of Great Potential No access
2. Cities: Few and Far Between No access
3. Korean History: A Shrimp among Whales No access
4. The North Korean State: Communism and Kim Come to Korea No access
5. The Korean War: A Disastrous Attempt to Unify the Country No access
1. Kim Il-sung: The Strong Kim No access
2. Kim Jong-il: The Secretive Kim No access
3. Kim Jong-un: The Young and Ruthless Kim No access
4. Guidance: An Exercise in Public Relations No access
5. Mansions: Living Like Kings No access
1. Governance: Riddled with Corruption No access
2. Social Control: Dominating the People No access
3. Crimes: Ordinary and Political No access
4. Prisons: Cruel and Usual No access
5. Corruption: The Currency of the Realm No access
6. Lies: Second Nature to the Regime No access
1. Political Class: Loyalty to the Regime No access
2. Defectors: An Exit for People without Voice No access
3. Human Rights Reputation: An International Disgrace No access
1. Weapons and Strategy: A Porcupine Defense No access
2. Soldiers: Wartime Cannon Fodder, Peacetime Slave Labor No access
3. Nuclear Weapons: The Pride of the Regime No access
4. Missiles: Power Projection No access
5. Threats as a Weapon: The First Line of Defense No access
1. Foreign Policy Principles: Independence First and Last No access
2. North Korea and South Korea: Deadly Competition No access
3. North Korea and China: Beware of the Dragon No access
4. North Korea and Japan: Age-Old Enmity No access
5. Japan’s Chosen Soren: A Fifth Column in Enemy Territory No access
6. North Korea and the United States: The Ultimate Enemy No access
7. Tourism: Cautious and Controlled No access
1. The Old Economy: Socialist in Principle No access
2. The New Economy: Capitalist in Practice No access
3. Industry: A National Rust Belt No access
4. Farming: Planting Seeds on Rocky Ground No access
5. The Local Economy: Taking up the Slack No access
6. International Trade: Not Easy for a Hermit Kingdom No access
7. Foreign Investment Inflow: Risky for Investors No access
8. Working Abroad: Hard Work for the Privileged Few No access
9. International Sanctions: The Price of Nuclear Weapons No access
1. Domestic Transportation: Slowed by Years of Neglect No access
2. Old Communication Channels: Government to People No access
3. New Communication Channels: People to People No access
1. Education: Ideological and Academic No access
2. Food: Living on the Edge No access
3. Housing: Substandard and in Short Supply No access
4. Health and Health Care: Victims of the Bad Economy No access
5. Religion: Totally Banned No access
6. Sports and Amusements: Simple Pleasures for the People No access
7. Life Events: The Same the World Over No access
10 Conclusion No access Pages 235 - 240
Notes No access Pages 241 - 254
Index No access Pages 255 - 264
About the Authors No access Pages 265 - 265