North Korea is a country that seems to be defined by a few choice adjectives: "Stalinist," "communist," "pariah," "crazy," and "Confucian." Each of these descriptors is thrown around regularly in Western media, but what Dr. Myers' book shows is that these assumptions are largely incorrect. Yes, North Korea is a country born during the early Cold War and has been ruled by the same family for seventy years, but its worldview is not driven by a Marxist-Leninist view of history. Instead, North Koreans see the world through a lens of Koreans as the purest, most childlike race.
When this book arrived in the mail, my first reaction was surprise at the page size. Myers' book is formatted differently from the average dissertation reedited for mass consumption. As such, the type is slightly larger than average. It also includes numerous glossy photos (along with smaller black-and-white reproductions) of propaganda. The book is a quick read that does not suffer from the fault of so much academic writing in using jargon that makes it incomprehensible to laymen.
Myers, both through excerpts of North Korean propaganda and summaries in their voice, explains the North Korean worldview. Although the DPRK identifies as communist, Myers argues this was simply a tool to extract aid from fellow Eastern Bloc nations. The country with the greatest similarity to North Korea is fascist Japan. This is unsurprising because Korea was a colony of the Japanese Empire from 1910 to 1945. In its use of xenophobic, extremely nationalist language, North Korea is able to create a bunker mentality in which its citizens are constantly surrounded by hostile powers.
Even more important to its self-conception, however, is the DPRK's belief that Koreans are too pure, too spontaneous for this world unless they have a dear leader to rule them. This is how the Kim family justifies its stranglehold on power: yes, things are bad in North Korea now, but imagine what they would be like if the Yankee imperialists gained control. Kim il-Sung extracted loyalty from the nation through his role as national liberator and, in peace, by assuming a maternal role rebuilding the country. Kim Jong-il further emphasized his maternal aspects, alleged brilliance, and adopted a military-first stance that made the ability to strike out against any perceived opponents as the highest priority.
This attitude of racial superiority leads to some situations that might seem bizarre to outsiders. North Koreans have no problem accepting foreign aid because they perceive it as tribute. They will admit foreigners may be more intelligent or physically stronger, but the Korean people retain a superior morality. The North Koreans alternatively deny and hint that they possess nuclear weapons because chicanery is a way to fool their opponents. Even their acts of hostility, such as attacking foreign vessels or individual soldiers, come from the value the DPRK places on spontaneity.
Myers cautions that there is little likelihood of a peaceful resolution emerging from the nuclear tensions on the Korean peninsula. The North Korean propaganda apparatus looks with disdain at the U.S.S.R. for dissolving "without firing a shot" and barely tolerates its closest ally, China. The Kim family knows to allow political reform or meaningful contact with South Koreans will result in the collapse of their regime. Myers suggests the only way the DPRK might fall peacfully is if the people of North Korea slowly realize the southern half of the peninsula is content to not reunify so long as the Kim family remains in power.
This book is an excellent introduction to one of the most pressing geopolitical challenges of our time. There are only two limitations to the book, neither of which is the fault of the author. The first is many of his sources are not available in English translation. This is unsurprising; there is a paucity of material from Korean in general, let alone propaganda texts with almost no demand. The second is the passage of time. This book was published in the final full year of Kim Jong-il's rule. Although Myers briefly mentions Kim Jong-un, it was published before we were even certain what he looked like, let alone what policies he would pursue.
Nonetheless, this book would be a useful read for Donald J. Trump or any future president as they deal with the newest Kim. North Korea is a country that survives because it has embraced a very narrow worldview. Convinced of their superiority vis-a-vis any other people, compromise and concession is treated as polluting the people. It leaves the United States and other world powers with few options as they try to come to grips with this rogue state.
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