The word culture can sometimes be a complex word. According to Merriam-Webster (2017), the definition of culture can be defined as “the customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group; also: the characteristic features of everyday existence (such as diversions or a way of life) shared by people in a place or time.” In this essay, I will go over how, although, Korea are split into two separate countries, the culture in North Korea is still very similar to that of South Korea. I will also talk about the geography of North Korea and how it was split. Furthermore, this essay will go over the climate, the population and the economy of North Korea. I will conclude it with the type of power and …show more content…
The way of life in Korean culture is fundamentally based on the Confucian thought. In North Korea, it is said that they allow freedom of religion, however, they do not practice it. A belief they have gone by nowadays is based on the cult personality of Kim Il Sung. Through the education system, he and his family are the role models of the whole North Korea. North Korea is a country in East Asia that occupies the northern portion of the Korean peninsula. Its official name is Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. North Korea is mostly characterized by mountains and valleys. According to World Atlas (2017), “the highest peak is Paektu-san on the volcanic Baekdu Mountain and is located on its northern border with China, and rises 9,002 ft.” The capital of North Korea is Pyongyang. Kaesong and Nampo, along with Pyongyang, are considered special cities with independent juridical authorities and the rest of the country is divided into nine provinces. North Korea became its own country after the United States and USSR agreed to split the Korean peninsula. Kim Il Sung was given power over North Korea and claimed jurisdiction over all of Korea. That did not go well with the leader of South Korea at the time, Syngman Rhee, who also claimed jurisdiction of Korea. On June 25, 1950, Kim Il Sung tried to unify Korea under his rule through military force. This started
North Korea, officially the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, is a unitary singe-party state. There is only one political party: the Worker’s Party of Korea. North Korea was founded on August 5, 1945. The per Capita GDP for the country is $1,700. The country has a supreme leader (head of state); Kim Jong-un, who was chosen by the Supreme People’s Assembly. The premier (head of government) is Yon-rim. The national literacy rate is 99%. Also, the citizens’ roles are to follow laws and to be loyal to their country. Citizens cannot vote and have very little say in the government.
North Korea is ruled by a leader named Kim Jong II. North Korea is like an isolated country that are being brained wash by their one leader Kim Jong II. People are taken and are taught in a young age on who to rule and who are the bad people and have hate towards the US. North Korea has false fantasy about the US making
North Korea’s government is very similar to Anthem’s form of government. North Korea is a dictatorship, meaning one person has absolute power and controls everything. The people of Korea are under strict rules and if
I believe that North Korea is similar to the society in the book Anthem. I believe this for the reason that they are both collectivism societies and their leaders go to extreme ends to protect their collectivism (71). Firstly, they are both collectivism societies which means that the citizens are taught to work for the greater good instead of just themselves. If they aren’t contributing or making the culture better, than the leaders would not approve of their action. For example, in North Korea the citizens have to work for the greater good and are not encouraged to be individualized. Another example, is that in the book Anthem they are not allowed to speak the word “I” because that hints towards individualism which the society is not about
Propaganda, historic inconsistencies, and fear are what keep the most of the people of North Korea believing anything their government says. No one dares to speak out against Kim Il-sung or any of his heirs, and when they do they receive punishment. No one has an option on where to live or where to work, it is all assigned by the government. If a North Korean’s family has tainted blood, they become part of the lowest work class and are not allowed into the top colleges in North Korea. Few continue their education after high school.
Primarily, it is evident that North Korea carries a Totalitarian Authoritarian regime that has been upheld by its first president, Kim Il-sung. The official Supreme Leader of North Korea is Kim Il-sung grandson, Kim Jong-un, who took over after his father passed away in 2011. North Korea is under Democratic People’s Republic of Korea political power, which was founded in September 9, 1948. Overall, North Korea can be described has a country that is led a political system that is called totalitarianism. In other words, this describes a state that has a leader that creates repression by using propaganda campaign, cult personality, and extreme regulations. For this regime the ultimate goal is to diminish individuality and to obtain the ultimate political control by having authority over the public and private life. Additionally, Worker’s Party of Korea is the only political party that is made up of members that hold similar ideology beliefs as the Supreme leader of North Korea.
The six important factors to consider about South Korea’s culture is their values, norms, religion, education, social mobility, and American influences. South Korea was built up by many core values, however the most important being Confucianism. Confucianism was founded over 2000 years ago in the fifth century BC and was the official ethical system of China (Hill, Rihcardson, & McKaig, 2009). The value of Confucianism was profound in the Korean culture and it still continues to pervade amongst South Korean’s consciousness today. Confucianism shapes the Korean moral system, national laws, and business culture by placing an obligation towards
An impoverished country of more than twenty five million people, North Korea, also known as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) was founded by the revolutionary leader Kim IL Sung after the end of World War II. North Korea began as an independent kingdom for much of its long history. Both North and South Korea were under Japanese control in 1905 until the country was split after the end of World War II. Located in eastern Asia in the northern half of the Korean Peninsula, bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, North Korea sits in a strategic location bordering China, Russia, and South Korea. North Korea is slightly larger than the state of Virginia, but slightly smaller than the state of Mississippi and is mostly comprised of large mountains and steep hills separated
The current government that North Korea has in place in its country is a communist state. Communism can be defined as advocating class war and leading to a society in which all property is publicly owned and each person works and is paid according to their abilities and needs. North Korea’s major political party is the Korean Workers’ Party (KWP) and has been governed by the Kim dynasty since 1946. North Korea also has minor parties such as the Chondoist Chongu Party and the Social Democratic Party (Both run by the KWP). All political parties are controlled by the “Supreme Leader” and appoints members to political positions as needed. The people of North Korea refer to whoever is leading the government as “Supreme Leader.” Currently, North Korea’s “Supreme Leader” is Kim Jong Un and he was elected, unopposed, in December 17, 2011. The biggest concern with North Korea’s government is that they do not possess any diplomatic representation in the United States, nor does it posses any diplomatic representation from the United States.
Understanding how North Korea as a country defines itself in a changing world. Where do they derive their customs and practices, political standings and military power? Define North Korea’s history leading into the modern age and define its culture and characteristics and how they interact with the world today. Understanding a subject as broad as the term culture begins where the culture began with the birth of civilization and the people that influenced it. There are many factors that play a role in the shaping of a nation none so much as turmoil and conflict and the Korean peninsula saw its fair share for the better part of a millennia. A complete statistical breakdown of North Korea shows a struggling nation that strongly depends on
The country of Korea has been in turmoil for centuries and was founded on its turmoil of being unified and separated. Several objects stand in the way of them being unified once more the DPRK prefers communism while the ROK prefers Democracy both sides want to be united but can’t due to different morals, beliefs, and political views. And the history of Korea hasn’t always been pleasant due to wars and the attempted colonization of Korea by the Japanese.
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.
North Korea is a country that is ruled by a dictator and has a communist government. A communist government rules all the land and gives the same amount of money and supplies to all the people in the country. “Daily Necessities were obtained from the Public Distribution System (PDS)” (95,Hassig). The PDS shut down in 1995 because foreign aid was cut off expect for Pyongyang, the capital city. In rural areas, a lot of the children were born as “no-count” meaning that when they were born they weren’t counted as part of the existing society and didn’t have supplies given to them. North Korea was once a unified country with South Korea until September 9, 1948 when it became a separate country. From 1910 to 1945 Japan had ruled
Kim Il Sung created this “dangerous belief system” so that North Koreans would always obey him. Before Dictatorship North Korea was an independent nation, it was a colony full of Christians. Kim Il Sung noticed how Christians worshipped the Japanese ruler who ruled Korea. When North Korea declared as a country, Kim Il Sung changed the form of Christianity and he declared himself as a God so that North Korea will always praise and pray him. Christians revolted against this, so Kim Il Sung annihilated most of them because he did not want his own people suspecting him of Juche and put lots of people in concentration camps and they still reside there. (Juche Religion) Juche originated from Marxism-Leninism. Marxism-Leninism was created by Karl Marx, some of the main points in this ideology are that a communist party should be able to perform and play major roles in society. Some other beliefs in Marxism-Leninism are that modern capitalism should turn into imperialism. (Piskunov) North Korea gained inspiration from Marxism-Leninism, which is why this ideology is one of the main ideologies that Juche originated. Some other ideologies that Juche originated were Confucianism. Confucianism was developed in China by a man named Kong Qiu (Confucius). Kong Qiu travelled across the country to spread his teachings, but at that time his beliefs was not popular and some of his beliefs were how to do the right things in life. He
North Korea (officially named the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, or DPRK) is a single-party Communist state in south-east Asia, ruled since 1949 by the Korean Workers' Party (KWP). Regarded by many in the international community as a pariah state (meaning that it is an outcast), North Korea has in recent years become increasingly poverty-stricken, with many of its citizens having barely enough food to survive.