Origins of North Korea's Juche

Colonialism, War, and Development

Edited by Jae-Jung Suh

Publication date:

06 December 2012

Length of book:

192 pages

Publisher

Lexington Books

ISBN-13: 9780739176580

For over five decades, North Korea has outlived many forecasts of collapse despite defects in its system. Origins of North Korea’s Juche: Colonialism, War, and Development, edited by Jae-Jung Suh, argues that it has survived because of Juche, a unique political institution built on the simple notion of self-determination, whose meanings and limits have been shaped by Koreans’ experiences with colonialism, war, and development amidst surrounding superpowers that have complicated their aspirations and plans. The authors in this volume collectively provide an historical institutionalist account of North Korean politics organized around the concept of Juche—commonly translated as self-reliance, but best understood as subjecthood or being a master of one’s own fate—focusing on its role as a response to North Korea’s experiences with colonialism, the Korean War, and economic development. The contributors further discuss how Juche circumscribes the evolutionary path that North Koreans can take as they negotiate contemporary challenges. North Korea, as it is now, is best understood in terms of Juche which embodies the cumulative effect of its historical experiences and responses, and its future potential and trajectory, as enabled and constrained by its conception of Juche. This collection provides fascinating insights into the politics and history of one of the world’s most mysterious nations.

Chapter One. Making Sense of North Korea: Juche as an Institution, Jae-Jung Suh
Chapter Two. Colonial Origins of Juche: The Minsaengdan Incident of the 1930s and the Birth of North Korea-China Relationship, Hongkoo Han
Chapter Three. The Making of the Juche State in Postcolonial North Korea, Gwang-Oon Kim
Chapter Four. The Suryong System as the Center of Juche Institution: Politics of Development Strategy in Postwar North Korea, Young Chul Chung
Chapter Five. The Rise and Demise of Juche Agriculture in North Korea, Chong-Ae Yu
Chapter Six. North Korea’s Internal Politics and U.S. Foreign Policy, Patrick McEachern

Jae-Jung Suh’s edited volume Origins of North Korea’s Juche: Colonialism, War, and Development, is a much welcome addition to the field of Korean studies. . . .This volume makes a very valuable contribution to the existing literature on North Korean history by introducing the work of Korean scholars who have made significant contributions to the Korean-language historiography on the postwar development of the North Korean political and ideological systems. For this fact alone, the volume should be on the reading lists of students of North Korea. . . .The editor should be commended in particular for assembling works by scholars who primarily write in Korean. The volume will be of interest to both political scientists and historians.