[KS] Koreanstudies Digest, Vol 103, Issue 13--reply on treatment of Kim Jong Un

[Bruce Cumings]

             I wonder if scholars and other folks who follow Saudi  
Arabia or Iran or Afghanistan or Egypt, wring their hands and get all  
worked up about thieves getting their hands cut off, or Ayatollahs who  
declare American “spies” to be “corrupter[s] on Earth waging war on  
God,” or Taliban who cut off the ears and nose off a teenager who  
would not marry on octogenarian, or Salafis who want women to be  
blanketed in the streets and otherwise shut up in the home. There is  
nothing surprising in what the North Koreans are saying about Kim Jong- 
eun. In fact, so far  it is not nearly as obnoxious as the unmitigated  
blather about Kim Jong Il being a “genius,” getting straight A grades  
at Kim Il Sung University, being the pulsating “heart” of the “Mother  
Party,” etc. that went on for years in the 1980s. Most important,  
perhaps, is the anachronism of people getting “deeply depressed” about  
a practice that is now 65 years old, and which mimics in “modern” form  
the paeans of glorification laid down for a millennium of successive  
Korean kings. Yes, North Korea should democratize tomorrow morning  
(and so should Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia). But in the meantime, try  
not to be so ahistorical. Below is an excerpt from my 1990 book  
(Origins of the Korean War, vol. 2, Princeton University Press):

In an important interview in 1947 with Kim's first biographer, an  
unnamed member of his guerrilla unit promoted a Kim Il Sung line that  
remains the official history today. Kim set the following sort of  
example:

      This sort of person naturally has an extremely strong power of  
attraction to others.... And it goes without saying that a guerrilla  
organization with such a person at the center is incomparably strong.  
The sublime good fortune of our guerrilla detachment was to have at  
our center the Great Sun. Our general commander, great leader,  
sagacious teacher, and intimate friend was none other than General Kim  
Il Sung. Our unit was an unshakeable one, following General Kim and  
having General Kim as the nucleus. The General's embrace and love are  
like the Sun's, and when our fighters look up to and receive the  
General, their trust, self-sacrifice and devotion are such that they  
will gladly die for him.

The detachment's "philosophy of life" was their willingness to follow  
Kim's orders even to the death; "its strength is the strength deriving  
from uniting around Kim Il Sung ... our guerrillas' historical  
tradition is precisely that of uniting around Kim as our only leader."

      Kim loved and cared for his followers, and they responded with  
an iron discipline for which "a spirit of obedience is needed, and  
what is needed for that is a spirit of respect . . . above all, the  
spiritual foundation [of our discipline] was this spirit of respect.  
And the greatest respect was for General Kim Il Sung. Our discipline  
grew and became strong amid respect and obedience for him.

This officer then went on to recommend the guerrilla tradition as a  
good principle for party and mass organizations; he might have added  
that it would be the principle for the organization of the entire  
North Korean state. ["General Kim Il Sung is the Leader of the Korean  
people," Podo, no.3 (August 1947), pp. 18-21.]

     The language used by this man is fascinating. It is all moral   
language, bathing Kim in a hundred virtues, almost all of which are   
Confucian virtues--benevolence, love, trust, obedience, respect,  
reciprocity between leader and led. It is a language of circles: the  
phrase "uniting around Kim" uses a term, chuwi, that literally means  
circumference; in a neighborhood it means living around a center or  
chungsim, which literally means a "central heart." Synonyms for this,  
widely used in the North Korean literature, are "core" and "nucleus."  
The Party center was also a euphemism for Kim and his closest allies,  
just as it became the euphemism for Kim's son in the 1970s when the  
succession was being arranged.

    This is also a language with religious resonance, both Shamanist  
and Christian. The term that the North Koreans translate as "to hold  
[Kim] in esteem," urôrô patta, literally means "to look up to and  
receive," and is used religiously for receiving Christ. It is also  
used in the sense of esteeming one's father. The term "Great Sun"  
resonates with Western usages placing a king in communion with the Sun  
[as in “Sun King”], or by extension with God, and with Japanese usages  
regarding the Emperor. To my knowledge, the first statue of Kim  
erected in the North was unveiled on Christmas Day 1949, something  
that suggests a conscious attempt to present him as a secular Christ,  
or Christ-substitute. [See for example E.M.W. Tillyard, The  
Elizabethan World Picture (New York: Vintage Books, 1942). On the  
statue, set up in Hûngnam, see Sun'gan t'ongshin, no. 3 (46) (January  
1950), daily record for December l949.]

      The style is also paternal, with Kim depicted as the benevolent  
father of the nation, and the nation compared to one large family. The  
strongest of emotional bonds in Korea is that of filial piety, and Kim  
and his allies sought to weld the nation together by drawing on vast  
reservoirs of duty and obligation toward one's parents, seeking to  
have them transferred to the state through Kim's auspices.

     The process of burnishing Kim's image and uniting around him also  
suggests an element of chivalry, of men and women bound together by  
oaths of fealty, duty, obligation, and possessing amongst them  
uncommon virtues of courage, daring and sacrifice. It is the language  
of feudal warlords, and indeed Kim in the early period always used the  
title changgun, translated as "General," but using the same characters  
as the Japanese term shogun.[Kim Jong Il was also called changgun, a  
usage especially noticeable after he died.]

      The dynamic of this politics is centrifugal-centripetal,  
concentric circles radiating outward from the core, embracing first  
the Manchurian guerrillas and their families, then the Party  
hierarchy, then the Army, then the people; it then falls back upon  
itself as each outer circle returns trust and loyalty to the center.  
Somewhere in between there arose a plodding, dense bureaucracy that  
does the day-to-day administration. But at the commanding heights this  
was a charismatic politics, its legitimacy resting in an overblown  
history and a trumpeted mythology about men with super-human qualities.

      It is so characteristic of the North Koreans, then and now, that  
they simultaneously paper the walls with hagiography and mythology  
about Kim and his guerrillas, while caring little to provide any  
evidence that would convince an independent observer. This speaks to  
another characteristic of the Kim leadership, a profound solipsism,  
indeed a national solipsism that is also connected to the theme of  
concentric circles.  Kim's legend and mandate would seem to stop at  
the national border; non-Koreans cannot be expected to appreciate its  
virtues. Even pre-war Japan did not try to sell kokutai to the gaijin  
(foreigners). But the circles keep on extending, to encompass  
foreigners and get them to see the virtues so obvious to North  
Koreans. This is far more pronounced today, when the regime organizes  
and funds "Juche study groups" all over the world, treating group  
leaders like heads of state, but it existed in the 1940s in a  
solipsism which seemed to think all eyes were on Korea as the Kim  
leadership blazed a trail for post-colonial revolution, providing a  
model to emulate. It is a Korean microcosm of the old Chinese world  
order, radiating outward from the Middle Kingdom or central source.

      Another interesting element in the 1947 interview is implicit,  
the suggestion that Kim Il Sung is being put forward as "Kim Il Sung,"  
a figure larger than life, as an example for all to emulate. If all  
are to emulate him, he cannot put his pants on one leg at a time like  
anyone else, he has to be perfect. But in the conjuring of that  
perfection, the real man Kim Il Sung, nee Kim Sông-ju, runs the risk  
of being himself a symbol of power rather than holding it, being put  
forward by shadowy figures as the source of everyone's legitimacy.  
There is a hint of an Emperor system here, a figure being created who  
would have to be mysterious and remote [something Kim Jong Il  
practiced much more than his father, who was always out pressing the  
flesh].

  Bruce Cumings, January 12, 2012





On Jan 12, 2012, at 12:00 PM, koreanstudies-request at koreaweb.ws wrote:

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> <<------------ KoreanStudies mailing list DIGEST ------------>>
>
>
> Today's Topics:
>
>   1. KCTV's hour-long paean to Kim Jong-un yesterday can now be
>      seen in full by all (Michael Rank)
>   2. Re: KCTV's hour-long paean to Kim Jong-un yesterday can now
>      be	seen in full by all (????)
>   3. Re: KCTV's hour-long paean to Kim Jong-un yesterday can now
>      be seen in full by all (Charles La Shure)
>   4. Re: KCTV's hour-long paean to Kim Jong-un yesterday can now
>      be	seen in f... (Afostercarter at aol.com)
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Wed, 11 Jan 2012 19:11:39 +0000
> From: Michael Rank <rank at mailbox.co.uk>
> To: koreanstudies at koreaweb.ws
> Subject: [KS] KCTV's hour-long paean to Kim Jong-un yesterday can now
> 	be	seen in full by all
> Message-ID: <C64812CD-FA11-49DF-BD27-A2DA506A788D at mailbox.co.uk>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed; delsp=yes
>
> I have heroically viewed the entire thing, and found it a deeply
> depressing experience. One of the bizarre things about it is that it
> is in effect silent, and we never hear the voices of the three
> geniuses. If they are so brilliant why won't the govt let the people
> to hear them impart their wisdom at first hand? I believe KJI's voice
> has only been heard a couple of times, once during the Albright visit
> and once on an official tape, can anyone confirm? But coming back to
> the above paean I noticed that it includes a genuine (insofar as
> anything is genuine in DPRK) KJE (or KJU if you insist) quote, at
> 22.04, his very first I think. Could anyone be so kind as to translate
> his words of wisdom? For what it's worth I also spotted Supreme
> People's Assembly head Choe Thae Bok at 33.51, he has visited UK  
> twice.
>
> Best wishes,
>
> Michael Rank
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 2
> Date: Thu, 12 Jan 2012 19:04:09 +0900
> From: ???? <joe.litt83 at gmail.com>
> To: Korean Studies Discussion List <koreanstudies at koreaweb.ws>
> Subject: Re: [KS] KCTV's hour-long paean to Kim Jong-un yesterday can
> 	now be	seen in full by all
> Message-ID: <7ABE09BE-48BC-4A81-AB5D-C82B2EE75D68 at gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain;	charset=us-ascii
>
> Michael,
>
> KJI's voice was also recorded during both inter-Korean summits. The  
> last recording was when he met Dmitry Medvedev in August of last  
> year. I'm sure there a couple of other times I'm missing.
>
> Here's the final recording:
>
> http://www.reuters.com/video/2011/08/24/kim-jong-il-medvedev-meet-in-russia?&videoId=218631784
>
> Best,
> Joe
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> On 2012. 1. 12., at 4:11, Michael Rank <rank at mailbox.co.uk> wrote:
>
>> I have heroically viewed the entire thing, and found it a deeply  
>> depressing experience. One of the bizarre things about it is that  
>> it is in effect silent, and we never hear the voices of the three  
>> geniuses. If they are so brilliant why won't the govt let the  
>> people to hear them impart their wisdom at first hand? I believe  
>> KJI's voice has only been heard a couple of times, once during the  
>> Albright visit and once on an official tape, can anyone confirm?  
>> But coming back to the above paean I noticed that it includes a  
>> genuine (insofar as anything is genuine in DPRK) KJE (or KJU if you  
>> insist) quote, at 22.04, his very first I think. Could anyone be so  
>> kind as to translate his words of wisdom? For what it's worth I  
>> also spotted Supreme People's Assembly head Choe Thae Bok at 33.51,  
>> he has visited UK twice.
>>
>> Best wishes,
>>
>> Michael Rank
>>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 3
> Date: Thu, 12 Jan 2012 21:29:15 +0900
> From: Charles La Shure <clashure at gmail.com>
> To: Korean Studies Discussion List <koreanstudies at koreaweb.ws>
> Subject: Re: [KS] KCTV's hour-long paean to Kim Jong-un yesterday can
> 	now be seen in full by all
> Message-ID:
> 	<CANguMmw5vAMvR_M1ZjmdtPgQsC2yr9RT42CF1r8eQ83WNnOaNw at mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>
> Alas, the words of wisdom are not as profound as one might hope. I  
> humbly
> offer a quick and rough translation:
>
> "I am accustomed to working through the night and so am not bothered  
> by it.
> The most joyous and happiest moments for me are when I can bring joy  
> to the
> comrade supreme commander. Thus, though I have stayed up several  
> nights, I
> have worked without knowing weariness. Even when I work through  
> several
> nights, once I have brought joy to the comrade supreme commander, the
> weariness vanishes and a new strength courses through my whole body.  
> This
> must be what revolutionaries live for."
>
> -C. La Shure
>
> On Thu, Jan 12, 2012 at 4:11 AM, Michael Rank <rank at mailbox.co.uk>  
> wrote:
>
>> I have heroically viewed the entire thing, and found it a deeply
>> depressing experience. One of the bizarre things about it is that  
>> it is in
>> effect silent, and we never hear the voices of the three geniuses.  
>> If they
>> are so brilliant why won't the govt let the people to hear them  
>> impart
>> their wisdom at first hand? I believe KJI's voice has only been  
>> heard a
>> couple of times, once during the Albright visit and once on an  
>> official
>> tape, can anyone confirm? But coming back to the above paean I  
>> noticed that
>> it includes a genuine (insofar as anything is genuine in DPRK) KJE  
>> (or KJU
>> if you insist) quote, at 22.04, his very first I think. Could  
>> anyone be so
>> kind as to translate his words of wisdom? For what it's worth I also
>> spotted Supreme People's Assembly head Choe Thae Bok at 33.51, he has
>> visited UK twice.
>>
>> Best wishes,
>>
>> Michael Rank
>>
>>
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> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 4
> Date: Thu, 12 Jan 2012 04:53:22 -0500 (EST)
> From: Afostercarter at aol.com
> To: koreanstudies at koreaweb.ws, baks at jiscmail.ac.uk, members at asck.org
> Cc: rank at mailbox.co.uk, coyner at gol.com, Philip at londonkoreanlinks.net
> Subject: Re: [KS] KCTV's hour-long paean to Kim Jong-un yesterday can
> 	now be	seen in f...
> Message-ID: <a066.60cd10d.3c400792 at aol.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>
>
> Adam Cathcart (again) has now kindly provided
> an annotated commentary/guide to the whole  programme:
> _http://sinonk.wordpress.com/2012/01/09/songun-tangun-son-of-paektu-etc-kim-
> jong-un-documentary/_
> (http://sinonk.wordpress.com/2012/01/09/songun-tangun-son-of-paektu-etc-kim-jong-un-documentary/ 
> )
>
> I've seen posts on sayings by KJU, but can't immediately find  them.
>
> Cheers
> Aidan FC
>
>
> Aidan  Foster-Carter
> Honorary Senior Research  Fellow in Sociology & Modern Korea, Leeds
> University, UK
> E: _afostercarter at aol.com_ (mailto:afostercarter at aol.com)
> _afostercarter at yahoo.com_ (mailto:afostercarter at yahoo.com)    W: _www.aidanfc.net 
> _
> (http://www.aidanfc.net/)
> W in Korea:
> _http://web.archive.org/web/20090202080126/http://aidanfc.net/index.html_
> (http://web.archive.org/web/20090202080126/http:/aidanfc.net/index.html 
> )
> Address/mail: Flat 1,  40 Magdalen Road,  Exeter,  Devon,  EX2 4TE,
> England,  UK
> T: (+44, no 0)     07970 741307  (mobile);     01392 257753 (home)
> Skype:  Aidan.Foster.Carter                          Twitter:   
> @fcaidan
> _____________
>
> In a message dated 1/12/2012 09:41:28 GMT Standard Time, rank at mailbox.co.uk
> writes:
>
> I have  heroically viewed the entire thing, and found it a deeply
> depressing  experience. One of the bizarre things about it is that it
> is in  effect silent, and we never hear the voices of the three
> geniuses.  If they are so brilliant why won't the govt let the people
> to hear  them impart their wisdom at first hand? I believe KJI's voice
> has  only been heard a couple of times, once during the Albright visit
> and once on an official tape, can anyone confirm? But coming back to
> the above paean I noticed that it includes a genuine (insofar as
> anything is genuine in DPRK) KJE (or KJU if you insist) quote, at
> 22.04, his very first I think. Could anyone be so kind as to   
> translate
> his words of wisdom? For what it's worth I also spotted  Supreme
> People's Assembly head Choe Thae Bok at 33.51, he has  visited UK  
> twice.
>
> Best wishes,
>
> Michael  Rank
>
>
>
>
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> End of Koreanstudies Digest, Vol 103, Issue 13
> **********************************************

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