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Inside North Korea

Inside North Korea Heinz Insu Fenkl Special Feature Democratic People's Republic of Korea is a mythic anti-Shangri-La assembled from stereotypes, a police state modeled on images from works like 1984 and any number of Hollywood films (which have regularly used North Korea as an easy source of villainy after the collapse of the Soviet Union). Meanwhile, Kim Jong-il has become an icon more easily recognized than many American political figures. High school students recognize the Dear Leader's trademark hairstyle, they joke about his taste in films, and they turn him into a caricature of evil--all without knowing anything significant about North Korea or its history. North Korea periodically makes the TV news for its nuclear threat, its lack of cooperation in peaceful efforts at reunifying the Korean peninsula, and for its ongoing droughts and famines. But despite the apparent coverage, the DPRK has been the real "Hermit Kingdom" in modern times. Recently, with the New York Philharmonic's visit, there has been a dramatic turn in American media coverage of the DPRK. The visit to Pyongyang not only made major headlines, but was also the subject of a special documentary by Christiane Amanpour, CNN's chief international correspondent, who was even permitted a http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Azalea: Journal of Korean Literature & Culture University of Hawai'I Press

Inside North Korea

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Publisher
University of Hawai'I Press
Copyright
Copyright © 2008 President and Fellows of Harvard College
ISSN
1944-6500
Publisher site
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Abstract

Heinz Insu Fenkl Special Feature Democratic People's Republic of Korea is a mythic anti-Shangri-La assembled from stereotypes, a police state modeled on images from works like 1984 and any number of Hollywood films (which have regularly used North Korea as an easy source of villainy after the collapse of the Soviet Union). Meanwhile, Kim Jong-il has become an icon more easily recognized than many American political figures. High school students recognize the Dear Leader's trademark hairstyle, they joke about his taste in films, and they turn him into a caricature of evil--all without knowing anything significant about North Korea or its history. North Korea periodically makes the TV news for its nuclear threat, its lack of cooperation in peaceful efforts at reunifying the Korean peninsula, and for its ongoing droughts and famines. But despite the apparent coverage, the DPRK has been the real "Hermit Kingdom" in modern times. Recently, with the New York Philharmonic's visit, there has been a dramatic turn in American media coverage of the DPRK. The visit to Pyongyang not only made major headlines, but was also the subject of a special documentary by Christiane Amanpour, CNN's chief international correspondent, who was even permitted a

Journal

Azalea: Journal of Korean Literature & Culture – University of Hawai'I Press

Published: Jan 28, 2008

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