North Korea under communism : report of an envoy to paradise / Erik Cornell ; translated by Rodney Bradbury.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 187-193) and index.

Print version record.

After the collapse of the Soviet world, North Korea alone has continued on the rigid communist way, in spite of its economic consequences leading the state beyond ruin to famine. What are the reasons behind this peculiar choice of direction? Why did the leaders in Pyongyang pursue a policy abandoned not only by the Soviet Union, but also by China and Vietnam? The author of this book spent three years as head of the embassy of Sweden in Pyongyang. Until a few years ago, it was the only Western embassy in North Korea. His unique experiences are related with descriptions of day-to-day life and with analyses of economic, political and ideological conditions. A picture is drawn of a society and a political order that defy both human nature and common sense.

BOOK COVER -- TITLE -- COPYRIGHT -- CONTENTS -- 1 Historical review -- 2 To Pyongyang -- 3 Diplomacy in the twentieth century -- 4 Day to day life in Pyongyang -- 5 The Song of Paradise a musical about the social order -- 6 Juche ideology -- 7 A meeting of the parliament -- 8 About North Korean justice -- 9 Australian intermezzo -- 10 The smuggling crisis -- 11 The road to the smuggling policy -- 12 Between Beijing and Moscow -- 13 The reunification issue: an assessment of the situation in 1977 -- 14 Back to Pyongyang -- 15 Carnival in Pyongyang -- 16 1988 a year of afflictions -- 17 The equations of reunification: an assessment of the situation in 1988 -- 18 The ideological issue -- 19 Confucianism and communism: an attempt at orientation in North Korean ideology -- 20 Kim Il Sung's Marxism -- 21 As long as the game goes on -- 22 A summary of the doctrines of Marx and Engels -- 23 The Lenin epoch the theories are confronted with the practice -- 24 The Stalin epoch theory subordinated to practice -- 25 After Stalin can theory and practice be united -- 26 The road to ruin -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index.

English.

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