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North Korea Chuch'e and Contemporary Social Values
Chuch'e is a significant break with the Confucian
past. Developed during the period of revolutionary struggle
against Japanese imperialism, chuch'e is the product of
Kim Il Sung's thinking. Chuch'e emphasizes the importance
of developing the nation's potential using its own resources and
reserves of human creativity
(see
Political Ideology: The Role of Chuch'e, ch. 4).
Chuch'e legitimizes cultural,
economic, and political isolationism by stressing the error of
imitating foreign countries or of becoming excessively
"international." During the 1970s, Kim Jong Il suggested that
chuch'e ideology be renamed Kim Il Sung Chuui (Kim Il
Sungism). Kim Il Sungism, epitomizing chuch'e, is
described as superior to all other systems of human thought,
including (apparently) Marxism.
Chuch'e thought is not, at least in principle,
xenophobic. P'yongyang has devoted considerable resources to
organizing chuch'e study societies around the world and
bringing foreign visitors to North Korea for national
celebrations--for example, 4,000 persons were invited to attend
Kim Il Sung's eightieth birthday celebrations.
The government opposes "flunkeyism." Kim Jong Il, depicted as
an avid student of Korean history in his youth, was said to have
made the revolutionary proposal that Kim Yushin, the great
general of the Silla Dynasty (668-935), was a "flunkeyist" rather
than a national hero because he enlisted the aid of Tang Dynasty
(618-907) China in order to defeat Silla's rivals, Kogury and
Paekche, and unify the country. Chuch'e's opposition to
flunkeyism, moreover, is probably also a reaction to the
experience of Japanese colonialism
(see The Legacy of Japanese Colonialism
, ch. 1).
Apart from the North Korean people's almost complete
isolation from foreign influences, probably the most significant
impact of chuch'e thought and Kim Il Sungism with regard
to daily life is the relentless emphasis on self-sacrifice and
hard work. The population is told that everything can be
accomplished through dedication and the proper revolutionary
spirit. This view is evident in the perennial "speed battles"
initiated by the leadership to dramatically increase
productivity; another example is the bizarre phenomenon called
the "drink no soup movement," apparently designed to keep workers
on the factory floor rather than going to the lavatory
(see Budget and Finance
, ch. 3). Moreover, chuch'e provides a
"proper" standpoint from which to create or judge art,
literature, drama, and music, as well as a philosophical
underpinning for the country's educational system.
Data as of June 1993
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