What is life in North Korea actually like? In the outside world, we mostly see pictures of goose-stepping soldiers in military parades, nuclear weapons and missile tests, and the supposedly eccentric leader Kim Jong-un speaking to frantically applauding audiences. But what about ordinary people?
In this course, we will attempt to demystify and understand North Korean society and everyday life beyond high-level politics. We learn the basics of how North Korea came to be, how its system works, and we will explore how the state’s system for social and political control interacts with what everyday life in this totalitarian society is like. Throughout the course, we will use the theoretical framework of totalitarianism – a system where the state is in total control of all spheres of society, including everyday life – as a lens to explore the topic.
Aside from academic texts, we will study witness testimonies, novels and other writings by refugees from North Korea, reading these materials in the context of what we know about North Korean society. The class also includes discussions with North Koreans who came to South Korea as refugees via ZOOM link. We will also compare North Korea with other totalitarian societies in history such as the Soviet Union under Stalin, Maoist China, East Germany and others.
Reading assignments generally consist of about 20–30 pages per week, with the suggested readings intended to give additional context and information on the topic. All mandatory readings will be available via Moodle.
In this course, we will attempt to demystify and understand North Korean society and everyday life beyond high-level politics. We learn the basics of how North Korea came to be, how its system works, and we will explore how the state’s system for social and political control interacts with what everyday life in this totalitarian society is like. Throughout the course, we will use the theoretical framework of totalitarianism – a system where the state is in total control of all spheres of society, including everyday life – as a lens to explore the topic.
Aside from academic texts, we will study witness testimonies, novels and other writings by refugees from North Korea, reading these materials in the context of what we know about North Korean society. The class also includes discussions with North Koreans who came to South Korea as refugees via ZOOM link. We will also compare North Korea with other totalitarian societies in history such as the Soviet Union under Stalin, Maoist China, East Germany and others.
Reading assignments generally consist of about 20–30 pages per week, with the suggested readings intended to give additional context and information on the topic. All mandatory readings will be available via Moodle.
- Teacher: בנימין-רפאל סילברשטיין