Nothing To Envy Summary

As evident through the striking similarities between the totalitarian government of 1984 and the Communist regime of North Korea, it really is as if Kim Il Sung obtained an early copy of George Orwell’s 1984 and used it as a blueprint for his system (Hitchens n.p.). George Orwell had been exposed to various types of imperialism throughout his early life, leading to a realization of his resentment for authority. Orwell produced the novel with the intent of warning future societies of the dangers of totalitarian governments, yet North Korea epitomizes a flawless depiction of the very authority that Orwell yearned to avoid through providing a detailed illustration of the ramifications of submitting to a tyrannical government (Merriman n.p.).

1984 demonstrates a dystopian society in Oceania by presenting a relentless dictator, Big Brother, who uses his power to control the minds of his people and to ensure that his power never exhausts. Aspects of 1984 are evidently established in components of society in North Korea. With both of these society’s under a dictator’s rule, there are many similarities that are distinguished between the two. Orwell’s 1984 becomes parallel to the world of dystopia in North Korea by illustrating a nation that remains isolated under an almighty ruler.

Kim Jong-Un, the First Chairman of the National Defence Commission, an ambitious and arrogant guy. His ambitious identity could be exposed from: ‘Threatening to fire his increasingly capable missiles toward the United States’ and ‘By declaring war on South Korea’ [Inside the mind of

Cultures around the world are divide by their distinctive characteristic of people, and how people interact within their society. Most cultures are driven by the way their environment has been set for them. Many of cultures have to adapt to the way their environment are due to the conditions that are set for them and the amount of resources that they are provided. The biggest drive for culture are the historical custom. Most countries continue to carry their ancestor custom so that the tradition may stay with them throughout their years, in which making other countries distinctive from one another. One of the particular country that will be discuss in this report is North Korea. In this report, I will be discussing the North Korean culture, with describing their living condition in the country, common issues that they face with on a daily bases, and common threat that they pose on other countries.

In North Korea all aspects of life are ruled by the government, which essentially takes away human rights. North Koreans, rich or poor have this idea put into their head that their dictator is a supreme god. If someone had the idea of not worshiping the supreme leader in public, they would be sent to a labor camp. North Koreans who try to leave North Korea without permission may be shot on the spot or sent to a labor camp where they may never be released. In every house, no matter where you lived, there is a picture of the supreme leader that you pray to every day. When the supreme leader of North Korea, Kim Jong II, died recently, on December 17th 2011, there was a parade held that had mourners when the casket passed by. As the Supreme Leader’s casket passed by , the mourners were observed to see if they were actually crying. If they didn’t seem like they were sad enough they were sent to prison camps along with other North Koreans that didn’t join the parade. At these Labor camps imprisoned North Koreans are taught how important is to worship the supreme leader and sometimes kept there with their families for as long as they live.

The government structure of North Korea has its existence in one man, Kim Jong Un. It existed in his father, Kim Jong Il, before him, and in his grandfather, Kim Il-sung, before him. North Korea has one of the few successful hereditary dictatorships based on a personalistic regime where the leaders are worshipped as almost a deity (after Kim Il-sung’s death he was made “eternal president”) creating a dynastic transfer of power (Aoki, 2012). In China the one party of the Chinese Communist Party will rule as an Authoritarian body over the nation, but in North Korea the sole power rest dangerously in the arms of one person. Some of the reason for this dissimilarity between the two government structures lies in the country’s differing political cultures.

In this work, Kang’s family is living in North Korea when he and his family are sent to Yodok prison camp for the supposed crimes of his grandfather. It is important to note that Kang was only nine years of age at the time. He, his young sister, his grandmother, his father, and his uncle were sent to Yodok where they were placed in a cold hut and immediately forced to learn how to survive without the amenities they were accustomed to in

Family traditions are passed on from generation to generation, however they are not always static rules. Tradition is like a living organism that adapts to change over time. In order to understand modern North Korea’s family customs, it is important to consider the tradition of the past. Before North Korea’s liberation from Japan in 1945, North Korean families operated differently than they do today. Their ideology was founded on Confucius’s principles of family, including “only a country where family life was harmonious could be peaceful and prosperous” (Asia Society). The family is an integral part of society the same way a cell is important to a body (Suzy, 264). The government is even considered “one family” that everyone is a part of (Monday). Every individual in a family has a role and every family has a role in society. The ideal family is modeled from Kim Il Sung’s nuclear family (Suzy, 268). It is clear that family is a fundamental priority in North Korean society.

Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick follows the lives of six North Koreans who have experienced a great deal of hardship and turmoil living under one of the most notorious communist regimes. Throughout the years these North Koreans lived through the death of their great Kim Il-Sung, the rise to power of his successor Kim Jong-Il, and the horrific famine that has left many in despair. Although North Korea is constantly in the news globally it is surprising to realize little is known about the country itself. Communist dictatorship has shut out the North part of the Korean peninsula from the outside world and has ruled with an iron fist. In the years following WWII Kim Il-Sung and

In 2001 journalist, Barbara Demick, author of Nothing to Envy: Six Ordinary Lives in North Korea, moved to Seoul, South Korea as a correspondent for the Los Angeles Times, where she was to report over both North and South Korea. When she was in North Korea, Demick found it was immensely difficult to report anything as their trip was very closely monitored. They were assigned “minders” who would make sure that: no unauthorized conversations took place, that they visit specific monuments, and allowed no contact with ordinary citizens. While in South Korea, Demick began speaking with North Koreans who had defected and escaped to South Korea and China. As she spoke with the people who had defected, Demick uncovered what lied beneath the façade

After arriving in South Korea, people at the Database Center for North Korean Human Rights suggested Shin turn the diary he had been keeping as apart of therapy into a book. However, due to most of South Korea’s indifference to their northern neighbors, the memoir flopped and “about five hundred copies sold from a printing of three thousand” (Harden 169). Typically, as

The Secret State of North Korea offered a great look into what basic things North Koreans are lacking. Even within the realm of Communism. Lack of freedoms, lack of food, lack of community, lack of trust, lack of a social society, lack of programs for children, lack of equality, and a lack of information. When Kim Il-Sung created North Korea, the government was based on Marxism and Leninism, called “Juche.” Just as the Soviets, the North Koreans followed suite with massive inequality between the government officials and the common people. The documentary showed its viewers what the government is omnipresent in the everyday lives of its people, so much so that recordings of daily life are illegal, and “random” searches take place commonly.

Jun-sang was one of the interviewed defectors and was the son of two relatively wealthy Japanese parents, which leads to an issue of equality in terms of class. In an attempt for North Korea to be the “true” Korea, they tried to remove any foreign influence. As a result, there was a lot of hatred against Japanese collaborators. Japanese Koreans that were prominent in society were purged, which perhaps meant being sent to the gulag (Demick 35). As a result, Jun-sang’s family is already at a disadvantage socially as they are forced to remain in the lower class to

In his article on “Forced Labor”, Scott Johnson informs to the readers the terrifying truth about labor camps that reveals an estimated 80,000 to 120,000 families are kept as prisoners in these camps scattered in North korea, and there is only so much food to feed the people. With the intentions of punishing citizens of North Korean for what he thinks is necessary to stop protests against him, citizens of North Korean people have been rising up and choosing whether they want to expel Kim Jong Un from his throne, or be expelled by him.

Barbara Demick, an American journalist once wrote, “One of the ways the North Korea regime has kept power is by keeping its people ignorant of the living standards in the outside world. That's the underlying lie that supports the regime” (“Barbara Demick Quotes”). North Korean citizens do not believe their country is “normal”, instead Koreans believe their country is better off. At birth, North Koreans are oppressed into thinking their way of life is the best. If a citizen were to disobey these protocols their punishment would be atrocious. Hence, Frontline’s The Secret State of North Korea reveals how ordinary citizens are resisting one of the world’s most oppressive regimes. In the movie documentary, viewers are able to see North Korea in a way they have never seen it before. Likewise, viewers become aware of the way North Koreans are brought up from birth and many experiences they have throughout their lifetime.