The North Korean Revolution, 1945-1950

Studies of the Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University

by Charles K. Armstrong

North Korea, despite a shattered economy and a populace suffering from widespread hunger, has outlived repeated forecasts of its imminent demise. Charles K. Armstrong contends that a major source of North Korea's strength and resiliency, as well as of its flaws and shortcomings, lies in the poorly understood origins of its system of government. He examines the genesis of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) both as an important yet rarely studied example of a communist state and as part of modern Korean history. North Korea is one of the last redoubts of "unreformed" Marxism-Leninism in the world. Yet it is not a Soviet satellite in the East European manner, nor is its government the result of a local revolution, as in Cuba and Vietnam. Instead, the DPRK represents a unique "indigenization" of Soviet Stalinism, Armstrong finds. The system that formed under the umbrella of the Soviet occupation quickly developed into a nationalist regime as programs initiated from above merged with distinctive local conditions. Armstrong's account is based on long-classified documents captured by U.S. forces during the Korean War. This enormous archive of over 1.6 million pages provides unprecedented insight into the making of the Pyongyang regime and fuels the author's argument that the North Korean state is likely to remain viable for some years to come.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

288 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

I find it very difficult to take scholarship by Armstrong seriously considering the ignominious way in which his career came to a close. That being said, The North Korean Revolution is not a horrible book. Though being slightly more readable and possessing better signposting of arguments, it functions much like Bruce Cumings's Origins if the Korean War - right down to having a relatively similarly thesis. I will say, however, that in his attempts to give agency to the early North Korean socialists, he essentially ignores the role that the Soviets played in the foundation of the DPRK, which is a pretty significant issue. Anyways, I'm still stuck on the ethics of even citing Armstrong, let alone liking his work, so I'll leave it at that.

[Benemint · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would give 3.5 stars. This is very informative, and probably the most detailed accounts on what was going on in 1945-1950 in the northern side of Korea available right now. Armstrong told us in class that he had to omit a chapter on Paek Namun's travelogue to the USSR, which sounds very interesting, and it's unfortunate that the publisher didn't want to include that chapter. This is a solid academic book on the period when Kim Il-Sung's personality cult had not seriously kicked in, so this is not for those who want to be entertained by eccentric stories. Some parts are very dry for good and bad: Someone has to offer nuts and bolts of politics and institutions before expanding it into more theory-heavy interpretations, I guess.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent history,extremely balanced in a world where scholarship on the DPRK is nearly non-existent.

[Ocean G · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is probably the best book I've come across detailing the period between the end of WWII and the beginning of the Korean War, from when North Korea was established to when it tried (and briefly succeeded) to invade the South. It was during this period that Kim Il-Sung set up North Korea as we know it today.

It was also very interesting to read about the Chondogyo religion and its spread during that time. I knew next to nothing about this before. Apparently it still exists in South Korea (with over 1 million followers!)

Highlighted passages:
"To this day, the language spoken by most Koreans in Yanbian is based on the Hamgyong dialect" (p. 18)

"In Germany as many as 2 million women were raped by members of the Soviet occupation forces". (p. 44)

"The state attempted to reverse the previous hierarchy and to put those of "good songbun", or the formerly "persecuted classes", on top." (p. 72)

"In Soviet-type economies, the state does not substitute for the working class, but rather for the exploiting class. The state then "creates" the working class, which is politically and economically dependent on the state and its officials" (p. 137)

"This helped the DPRK to remain viable after the Mongolian People's Republic, the one genuine Soviet Satellite in Asia, lost its legitimacy after the collapse of communist states in Eastern Europe" (p. 190)

[angel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect overview of North Korea’s Revolution

The book covers all important factors that were involved in North Korea. The relationship between the Soviet Union and North Korea is explained in great detail. The book allows the reader to understand where and how Kim Il Sung stood in the brink of the revolution

[Malachi]

Quite dry, repeats itself quite a bit, but the extensive details from archival research was great. I hate writing reviews of history books lmao

[KT · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting and informative book that examines the origins of the DPRK and the Soviet Stalinist and Chinese nationalist influence on the North Korean revolution and the DPRK

[J.C. Rhee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting and informative read. Good book on where post-war NK construction has originated and how it progressed. This book tries to appear to be very neutral yet critical of the authoritarian government, but, fair is fair and looks good enough for me.

[Rob · Rating 5 out of 5]

If it's not the best North Korea book I've ever read it's certainly up there.

[Dominic · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of Bruce's students' books.