English 100 Spring 2019 Blogs

Everyone remembers their childhood. We hold on to the little moments, memories, and experiences (good or bad) that shape us into who we are today. In the novel “Nothing to Envy” written by Barbara Demick, we get to read and learn how the children living in North Korea grow up and how different their lives are compared to the life of an average American child. Some could say that the children of North Korea are “brainwashed” at an early age, learning to obey every rule, worship their leader, and even learn to snitch on one another.

“The children were never to forget that they owed everything to the national leadership. Like other North Korean children, they didn’t celebrate their own birthdays, but those of Kim Il-sung on April 15 and Kim Jong-il on February 16…When the time came, the children lined up in front of the portraits to express their gratitude. In unison, they would bend from the waist, bowing deeply, with feeling.” (Nothing to Envy, pg. 47)

It is said by defectors of North Korea that you could not trust anyone. Not even your own neighbor, sometimes not even your own family member. Everyone was taught to report anything that was against the rules. From a young age it is highly encouraged that it is okay to snitch on one another. There is even a group of young children called the “Socialist Youth League” and these young children and teenagers are taught to keep an eye on everyone and report any suspicious actions.

“One day after she’d changed clothes in a hurry, she ran out without her badge and was stopped by a teenager wearing an armband that identified him as part of the Maintenance of Social Order brigade. These were Socialist Youth League vigilantes who made spot checks to see if people were wearing their badges” (Nothing to Envy, Pg. 46)

https://1.cdn.edl.io/RLI7TmBJckgp3kNkFw1Pq6EJ2ZMnJY6vwSolLIHwK6iBXvuQ.pdf

In Chapter one, I am seeing a cultural perspective through North Koreans and the Hawaiian culture. The North Korean and Hawaiian culture had similarities. These similarities included the Kapu system, and an ondol system. The North Koreans segregated their men and women from eating together just like Hawaiians. This was considered the Kapu system. The North Korean women were only aloud to eat cornmeal, while men ate rice. Hawaiian women could not eat bananas, pork, red fish, and coconut. We also learn about the ondol system in the text. The ondol system seems similar to the ‘imu in Hawaiian culture. The ‘imu is an underground oven used to cook food, while the ondol was underfloor heating through wood smoke. It was also used to cook.

I served ten years in the U.S. Army, and I have been around the world twice. I grew up in the 50’s and 60′, and I remember there was a phrase “Better Dead Than Red” referring to Communism ideology. So when I read how the birth of her little brother, and the sexes became segregated in their household. It’s like looking into a mirror, women are second class here too. I mean Mi-ran questioned, “Why”? That was a good thing, but still the brother got the shoes. “Mmm” In my title, I was being witty, if not for women, man would not be.

Based on the first two chapters of Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick, I’ve noticed how oppressed the North Korean citizens were.

In the first chapter, it talks about how the byzantine system of social controls, or its ranking system, affected its citizens. For someone high ranking to affiliate themselves with someone who was bottom of the totem pole would be judged as unsightly. The quote below demonstrates how people of different rank would be affected if they were to simply date.

“To be seen in public together would damage the boy’s career prospects as well as her reputation as a virtuous young woman.”

(p. 5)

In the second chapter, it goes in depth how the propaganda blinded each and every one of North Korean Citizens by speaking of how great their dear leader was. Not only that but the “Official History” that the North Korean government provided and how it was taboo to speak of what really happened. Below is an example of how students may be educated.

“The children had been thoroughly inculcated in the North Korean version of history. The Americans were the incarnation of evil and the South Koreans their pathetic lackeys. They’d studied photographs of their country after it had been pulverized by U.S. bombs. They’d read about how sneering American and South Korean soldiers drove their bayonets into the bodies of innocent civilians. Their textbooks at school were full of stories of people burned, crushed, stabbed, shot, and poisoned by the enemy.

(p. 31)

While reading about Mrs. Song Hee-Suk, I was surprised to learn North Korean women were extremely independent. I admired that North Korean women did not take their husbands surnames, but rather kept their maiden names. It was extremely powerful to read about Mrs. Song birthing all four of her children by herself. I have given birth and could not imagine not having help during the process. It appears that the women are not only the backbone in the family system, but also in the work force. Women ran the factories which is extremely impressive. Even though, women appear to have independence in certain areas of life, they still remain second class citizens to men. This can been seen in the interaction with Mrs. Song and her mother in law. It was quite bizarre to think her family would stop talking to her and even shame her until she produced a male heir. I was outraged that she abused her daughter in law because her son was only shooting X chromosomes.

More times that I care to count, I cursed in disbelief, out loud while reading the assigned reading to pg. 56 in Nothing to Envy.

“All those years of sleep deprivation, all those lectures and self criticisms-the very same tools used in brainwashing or interrogations-had wiped out any possibility of resistance.”

pg. 43

My heart goes out to the people in North Korea that are depicted in this book and to those whose stories go untold. The sheer magnitude of the burdens the families carry and do so without argument, had me shaking my head in anger. Mrs. Song was introduced to in chapter 3 as an inminban  (an informant) and revered for her devotion to the fearless leader, Kim Il-sung.  She was proud of what she learned and was happy to oblige in all that was expected of her. Not only was she to work 8 hours in factories that women were expected to keep going because 20% of the working age men were in the armed services, she then had to spend SEVERAL hours in “ideological training” in the factories auditorium. Reading that I instantly thought “BRAIN WASHING Venue”?? From there, her day was no where near done. She would then go home and prepare food and do her chores and do it all over again in the morning.

What really had me going was the fact that each household had to have portraits of Kim Il-sung & Kim Jong-Il in their homes with NO other portraits of even family hung on the same wall. I could not believe I was reading that a special Public service was in charge of random inspections to make sure the portraits were clean and kept tidy.

“…every song, film, newspaper article, and billboard was designed to deify Kim Il-sung.” “Who could resist?”

pg. 46

I guess when you are taught from infancy that he is to be celebrated, honored and loved as one of your own family and that you owe everything to him, who could resist??

• 

From the assigned reading (up to page 36/ chapter 3) I noticed a variety of different things. Especially the facts of how unfamiliar the environment and lifestyle is between North Korea and America.

America is literally the land of the free, being the country with most to all of the freedom. We have the rights of bearing arms, to even having the freedom of speech. North Korea on the other hand, is s completely different story.

North Korea’s environment in general is completely different! They have no electricity. They use fire/ to heat up or make food. At night, it is completely dark and you can’t see that much far from your face (obviously). Fact: they did once upon a time, but they have fell back to having no source of electric energy after supposably reneging promises with President Bush. All things of metal, and what had electrical energy has all turned to rust. This issue had caused the country to have very little food. But that isn’t the only upsetting factor.

Lifestyle wise, North Koreans are highly controlled. Contact from and to the outside world is permitted, visitors that get to step a foot on territory are carefully placed in selected monuments and spies also known as “minders” made sure no unauthorized conversations are made. Meaning, you are allowed to just talk story about whatever you want, whenever you want. Housing is very small, no matter the size of your family and mostly everyone are raised and live, sleeping on mats during the night. Everyone keeps tabs on everyone, meaning they keep an eye and report anything that is banned to do. Everyone is ordered to follow rules, and they are punished if they are to disobey. Most people are required to labor, if they are not to fulfill the requirements of high school: smart, athletic, good looking, being well liked by peers and teachers, and being talented. Not only are students are judged, but females are put on spot also. The North Korean standard of beauty for women are to have a pale face (the whiter, the better), rounded faces and a bow shaped mouth. If a female were not to fall under these features, they are discouraged that they will not find a husband.

From mandatory school ( Korean elementary) citizens of North Korea are taught that every other country is against them. They are forced to be grateful for their leader, and everything they have, although it is miserable coming from the outside world. Blaming the US for their fall, they preach claim that we are the incarnation of evil. Children are shown terrible photographs of their country after being bombed by the US, and read about how Americans and South Koreans killed innocent North Koreans. Textbooks tells stories and shows illustrating North Korean people getting stabbed, crushed, burned, shot or even poisoned by any and all enemies.

As you can see, the atmosphere between the US and North Korea is very different. That in the US, you are free who you want to be, and as for being North Korean, well.. You are made into who you will be.

I found it interesting that Mi-ran continued to dream of her first love Jung-sang and felt remorse about leaving abruptly and not saying good-bye. She expressed that he was her “best-friend” and that she loved him dearly however she would never talk with him about defecting incase he turned on her. She was surrounded with the idea that friends denounced friends, family denounced family and that spies were all around. Im sure that Mi-ra wanted to tell him in her heart but she had to think with her brain and abstain from letting him into the deepest parts of herself in order to survive. Sometimes it is curtail to follow your brain and not your heart so that you can attain your goals. One would think that it is easier for the person who chooses to leave a relationship but in all actuality its more painful. The person who is left is able to blame the one who leaves them and the individual who leaves has to take full responsibility for their actions. Even though Mi-ran did the right thing for her it still is a loss she must grieve.

• I think that what stood out to me the most in the first two chapters of Nothing to Envy was that from an outsiders perspective of North Korea we think that it sucks and that the people there must be miserable, but on the contrary, some North Koreans continue to proclaim Kim II-sung’s and Kim Jong-Il’s greatness. They proclaim their greatness while their economy is in ruins. Not everyone is lucky enough to have electricity and they have almost no communication.