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ETD Abstract Container

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On Constructing 'Our Home': North Korean Cinema and Symbolism

Cherry, Makayla
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2303-898X
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1649895092418827

Abstract Details

2022, Master of Arts, Ohio State University, East Asian Studies.
Researchers have utilized propaganda in various ways, whether to understand the ideology of governments or to examine the society that lies beneath such displays. Studies on North Korean propaganda follow a similar pattern. Propaganda is often cited as the educational tool for the population, and a never-ending machine for state power. Investigations of such literature, art, and film rely on this line of thought accompanied with the works' relevance to the leaders of the DPRK, Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Il, and Kim Jong Un. Of course, the state has the same narrative, often referring to the nation as 'home,' which can only be consoled by the leaders themselves. Often, researchers fall into the trap of only analyzing such works based on the national concept of 'home' rather than seeing past the regime's desired messaging. My study hopes to go in a different direction. By analyzing the history and the cinematic qualities of North Korean films from 2008 to 2016, I suggest that pictures of this period utilize compelling characters, inventive storytelling, and interactions amongst individuals to juggle the focus between this national conception of home and the sense of home found in the local community. In this construction, 'home' represents the love, comfort, and perception of belonging cultivated in groups of people. Additionally, these bonds are different from the 'national home' in which citizens work in a collective to benefit the nation instead of personal relationships directly. Films now portray how people work within these domains in their everyday life. For example, The Lieutenant of Those Days (Kŭnarŭi chungwi, dir. Pak Se-ung, 2008) features the dominant theme of camaraderie in the military unit, while Footprints of Military Service (Pongmuŭi chauk, dir. Kim Wŏn-ha, 2016) balances its focus between Chuch'e (self-reliance) led innovation and romantic subplot line. Other films like, The Story of Our Home (Uri chip iyagi, dir. Yi Yun-ho and Ha Yŏng-gi, 2016) is set in Kangsŏn, where the heroine must rely on her fellow townsfolk for support while teaching the children in her care the area's history with past production campaigns and the leadership. Though these works might center their narratives around the leaders, they provide an opportunity for viewers to witness the newest "production" of the North Korean state. This thesis will display how North Korean cinema embraces common themes seen in international pictures to show how propaganda in the DPRK is not just a simple tool of the regime and the great leaders but one of the many aspects that connect North Korea to the outside world. Thus, going against the myth that North Korean works of art are entirely centered around themes of dictatorship and the regime's professed principles. Finally, I conclude that the reproduction of 'home' may not be as straightforward as described in contemporary studies; rather than representing the nation, recent films frame 'home' as the personification of local communities.
Pil Ho Kim (Advisor)
Suzy Kim (Committee Member)
Mitchell Lerner (Committee Member)
106 p.
Asian Studies; Film Studies; Mass Media
North Korea; cinema; military-genre film; Kangson; Chollima movement; symbolism; representation of home; The Story of Our Home; Comrade Kim Goes Flying; Kangson Steel Mill; Footprints of Military Service; Soldiers

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Cherry, M. (2022). On Constructing 'Our Home': North Korean Cinema and Symbolism [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1649895092418827

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Cherry, Makayla. On Constructing 'Our Home': North Korean Cinema and Symbolism . 2022. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1649895092418827.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Cherry, Makayla. "On Constructing 'Our Home': North Korean Cinema and Symbolism ." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2022. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1649895092418827

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1649895092418827
618
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This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.