Kim Il-sung

The Crossings and Encounters of Kim Jong-suk: “And did those feet in ancient times…”

By | April 09, 2015

The second piece in a three-part series, Robert Winstanley-Chesters looks in detail at the de- and reterritorialization of charismatic authority in the story of Kim Jong-suk, the so-called “Mother of Military-first Chosun.”

Footsteps and Deterritorializations: “And did those feet in ancient times…”

By | March 22, 2015

Rodong Sinmun reports on a wintery children’s pilgrimage to North Korea’s northern border, the place where, four score and ten years ago, Kim Il-sung crossed the Yalu. Political geographer Robert Winstanley-Chesters investigates the implications of their reenactment.

Hagiography of the Kims & the Childhood of Saints: Kim Il-sung

By | January 31, 2015

In this essay Christopher Richardson explores the childhood hagiography of Kim Il-sung, “the master narrative from which all others derive,” and in so doing locates the origins of regime durability and state legitimacy.

Communist Normalcy: How Authoritarian Leaders Disappear and Return

By | October 21, 2014

Kim Jong-un has now made a handful of public appearances since ending his 40+ days out of the public eye, and it appears clear that the young leader’s health was a major cause of his absence. This came as no surprise to analyst Nick Miller.