Conventional wisdom holds that the people of North Korea are trapped in a world of rigid conformity, totalitarian discipline and complete isolation from the rest of the world.
But increasingly another picture is emerging: North Koreans are far more aware of the outside world, according to evidence provided by North Korean refugees, South Korean humanitarian aid workers, Chinese traders and others.
It is rare for an American to travel to North Korea, and even rarer for an American to spend much time there. Steven Linton has done both.
"In general I think North Koreans are clearly growing in their awareness of the rest of the world. I think there's no question about that," Linton says.
Linton has been going to North Korea for many years. He is engaged in a campaign to combat tuberculosis there, and he says North Koreans are soaking up information about the rest of the world.
One of the most underrated realities about North Korea is its very dynamic relationship with China, and the amount of information that flows across that border. Students, business people, it's a continuous stream of traffic.
"One of the most underrated realities about North Korea is its very dynamic relationship with China, and the amount of information that flows across that border. Students; business people; it's a continuous stream of traffic," he says.
With that traffic come thousands of DVDs, CDs, cellular telephones, used computers and videotapes — many of them from China and South Korea.
Vocabulary
| Conventional (adj.) Holds (v.) Totalitarian (adj.) Emerging (v.) Engaged (v.) Soak up (v.) |
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What did you think about North Korea before reading this article?
Did your opinion change?
Have you ever lived in a 'totalitarian' society?
Do you think information about the outside world will help North Koreans?
Have you ever been ignorant about something but when you found out the truth it changed your life?
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