Reimaging North Korea
A critical analysis of the work of Bruce Cumings
Correct understanding of historical and global dynamics is the foundation for politically intelligent social and political action in any nation. In order to understand the Korean socialist revolution and the other anti-imperialist revolutions that were born in the middle decades of the twentieth century (I refer to the Vietnamese, Chinese, and Cuban revolutions), we must know the fundamental facts, which are hidden from us by imperialist and capitalist ideologies and by our own natural inclination to not study sufficiently.
In The Korean War, published in 2010, University of Chicago historian Bruce Cumings teaches us the fundamentals. At the same time, some of Cumings’ interpretations could be critically analyzed, from a perspective grounded in consciousness of the four twentieth century anti-imperialist revolutions.
In today’s commentary, I review Cuming’s lessons concerning the fundamentals, and I also attempt to critically analyze his inte…