The documentary Crossing the Line, encompasses the life of James Joseph Dresnok, an American who defected to North Korea in 1962 and has made the totalitarian state his home. His dreadful childhood and the hardships he faced in life seem to be the driving factor in his decision to defect to North Korea. Director Daniel Gordon takes a neutral stand on Dresnok’s decision and this enables Dresnok to share his view of North Korea. Although this documentary does not provide a clear cut understanding of the unitary nation, as Dresnok has a very biased view of it, it is enough to conjure up prevalent political themes that are present in this documentary. Totalitarianism and realism, propaganda, and corruption, are significant political themes depicted
It provides citizens with misleading and biased views in the hopes to gain strong patriotism from it’s people. Joe Dresnok’s entire life is based upon propaganda; his survival, his lifestyle, and everything he has, is due to the mere fact that the DPRK used him as a propaganda tool to achieve their goal of notifying their citizens of the U.S as being a corrupt and evil nation. All the defectors are portrayed on magazines and newspapers, Dresnok is used to lure American soldiers, and defectors are also utilized as American villains in north Korean films. Propaganda is a vital factor for the North Korean government, as being a totalitarian state, it is the only way to keep their people engaged and obedient. As mentioned earlier, Dresnok’s life is stable in a nation where millions of people are malnourished and mistreated; his sons attend the most prestigious colleges and their life is pretty secure comparing to other Korean citizens. An interview with Dresnok’s two sons Ted and James posted on the Washington Post proves that they themselves are glorifying propaganda by agreeing to do these interviews in the first place and appearing on Korean shows as villains, just like their father had done. Anna Fifield states, “…But his sons were apparently trotted out to extol the glories of the “socialist paradise” into which they were born. Each
In my opinion this documentary does not adequately provide much historical and factual information about a nation, instead it seems to be a brain-washed narrative of a man who was beaten down by life and finally feels superior. His ignorance and comfortable lifestyle disables him to comprehend the real matter at hand, the hardships the citizens face, and a tyrannical rule in the
Blaine Harden, former national correspondent and writer for the New York Times, delivers an agonizing and heartbreaking story of one man’s extremely conflicted life in a labor camp and an endeavor of escaping this place he grew up in. This man’s name is Shin Dong-hyuk. Together, Blaine Harden and Shin Dong-hyuk tell us the story of this man’s imprisonment and escape into South Korea and eventually, the United States, from North Korea. This biography that takes place from 1982-2011, reports to its readers on what is really going on in “one of the world’s darkest nations” (back cover of the book), that is run under a communist state and totalitarian dictatorship that was lead by Kim Il-sung, Kim Jong-il, and currently lead by Kim-Jong un. In Escape from Camp 14, Shin shows us the adaptation of his life and how one man can truly evolve from an animal, into a real human being.
Susan Brewer brilliantly illustrates the historical facts of American government propagating violence. Scrutinizing the Philippine War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and the Iraq War the reader discovers an eerily Orwellian government manipulating her citizens instead of educating them. Brewer states, a "propaganda campaign seeks to disguise a paradoxical message: war is not a time for citizens to have an informed debate and make up their own minds even as they fight in the name of freedom to do just that." pg. 7 The Presidents of the United States and their administrations use propaganda, generation, after generation to enter into foreign wars for profit by manipulating the truth, which it is unnecessary for our government to do to her people.
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.
This documentary was a little slow at times, I do like documentaries, but this one got boring in the middle, around the beginning of part two. It started off well and all the info on George Wright got me curious, but once it pasted that and started just jumping around to different names I got confused and bored. I did get through it, just took me a couple breaks in between.
Rogue states under dictatorial rule threaten the fragile peace, which exists in our modern world. Constantly as a society Americans have always fought against these said foes. However all too often we pass a blind eye to the humanity of the enemies’ civilian populations. For more often than not, those who live within these systems are chronically oppressed. The nation of North Korea is no exception, with “Bing-brother always watching.” The government in North Korea pervades all aspects of life.
In a sense, the people have been “brainwashed” to think that the way they are living is the way life is supposed to be. In an online article, The North Korean Defector Living in London, Kim Joo Il tells his story about escaping North Korea. When describing his experience in schooling while in North Korea, he stated that “...at school, 30 percent of our studies had been about the Great Leader.” North Koreans are constantly told to worship their leaders and protect their country at all costs. He also described how depressed and mournful he was when he found out Kim Jong-il had died, questioning it because he thought Kim Jong-il to be “invincible.” In Anthem, citizens are also “brainwashed” to think that the World Council is all-knowing and superior. For instance, when Equality 7-2521 revealed his invention of the light bulb, Unanimity 2-9913 stated that “This would wreck the Plans of the World Council, and without the Plans of the World Council the sun cannot rise” (Rand 74). Unanimity is claiming that the invention of the light bulb will destroy the “plan” that the World Council has for them, when in all reality the invention will advance their society
After the Korean War, North Korea was devastated. The USA had dropped more bombs on their country than what they had during the Second World War. The capital city of Pyongyang was completely destroyed and the people’s moral was very low after the failed attempt to unite the north with the south. The leader Kim Il Sung needed a plan to give the people of North Korea a brighter picture of what the future had in store. Kim Il Sung also wanted to increase his influence in the workers’ party as well as starting a cult of personality, in order to do so he had to have the support from the people and so he set forth the Juche ideology. This essay will explore the nature of Juche ideology; its relationship to Korean society; the similarities and differences from Marxist-Leninist thought and how it helped to consolidate Kim Il Sung’s absolute power in North Korea.
Entirely different accounts of what happened are not shown in the film. This action lowers the credentials of the movie about the theme of history. It is not possible to understand the real intention of the creators of the movie. A movie based on real events is supposed to be educative as it represents events that took place a long time ago. The movie will be watched by numerous people many years after it was released. Whenever the events are wrongfully illustrated, false information will be passed to the viewers.
Andrei Lankov brings to light a new point, one that the world is overlooking. Whilst the foreign territories, such as the United States and South Korea, have thought about the effects North Korea could conceivably have on them, we forget the effects it’s having on itself. The Democratic People's Republic of Korea is not made up solely of military and politicians, but of people. Civilians. The real threat here is not North Korea as a whole, but the problems the North Korean elite are making.
“Radio and TV sets in North Korea are pre-tuned to government stations that pump out a steady stream of propaganda.” “...serve up a menu of flattering reports about North Korea’s leader.” “Economic hardship and famines are not reported” (North Korea Profile-Media). This quote explains that, North Korea, instead
How does the documentary contradict, support, and clarify, etc. your understanding of contemporary African culture, history and politics?
Governments all over the world have had to gained supporters in order to win a war with another country. “Working hours had been drastically increased in anticipation of Hate Week” (Orwell 138). Hate week is a week that is created to conjure up hatred for Oceania’s enemies of the party. During this week people are aimed to hate the enemy of Big Brother while they are at war. Just like in 1984, South Korea has been getting people on their side to help with the broadcastings that are being transmitted over to North Korea, “The propaganda broadcasts "are certain to infuriate authoritarian Pyongyang because they are meant to raise questions in North Korea..." (Kennedy). North Korea has used these broadcasts to push the North to the point where they are leaning towards declaring war. South Korea’s people have helped with the propaganda broadcast by using the music industry to display messages of love but then sometimes war. The Japan Times says, “Performers on Seoul’s propaganda playlist include a female K-pop bands...a middle-aged singer...and songs by a young female singer, IU, whose sweet, girlish voice might be aimed at North Korean soldiers...” (Seoul propaganda broadcasts may prompt war, North says). These groups or singers were asked by the South Korean government to create songs that would be aimed to North Korean soldiers to make them be angry. On the other hand, the South would
North Korea is known for it’s harsh dictatorship and punishments, but unlike America they do not have the luxury of freedom of speech and neither does the dystopian society in Anthem. A dystopian society is a society that is built on “what ifs” and creates conspiracy theories that are typically bad to the public. The reason North Korea and Anthem are mentioned together is because of the differences and similarities such as; in Anthem the word “I” doesn’t exist in their world and in North Korea there is no freedom of speech, the citizens in North Korea have to agree with anything and everything their ruler says and if they disobey they are sentenced to harsh punishment or worse. In North Korea and the dystopian society in Anthem there are many similarities in the rules or sense of morals; however, the two differ in their sense of government, and state of the people.
North Korea could be described as a dystopian society. For all of its citizens, the Internet is widely monitored and restricted, allowing only limited access. “One could speculate that it is more propaganda about the country, its leaders, or negative coverage about the US.... ... middle of paper ... ...
Cho, E. (2012). The thread of Juche: negotiating socialism and nationalism through science in North Korea.