Decolonization, the Cold War, and the Third World : Re-evaluation of Origins of the Korean War Vol. 1 & Vol. 2 Written by Bruce Cumings

This article re-evaluate Bruce Cumings’ books, The Origins of the Korean War, focusing on the relationship between decolonization in the Third World and the Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union. Cumings emphasized the political and social trends within Korea that pursued decolonization immediately after liberation in 1945. He finds the origins of the Korean War in the conflict between the revolutionary nationalism of Koreans pursuing decolonization and the counter-revolutionary policies of the United States.

Therefore, even compared to recent the Cold War studies which emphasized much on the subjectivity of the Third World, it can be said that Cummings’s work is pioneering in highlighting Third World subjectivity during the Cold War. However, when he describes US policy toward Korea, he emphasizes the diversity within the US, but not so much the diversity within Koreans. He also does not emphasize Korean leadership, political parties, and social organizations much, and sometimes describes them inaccurately.

Therefore, it can be pointed out that he did not sufficiently portray Koreans as subjects who would carry out the task of decolonization and actively respond to the Cold War. Also, his description that overemphasizes the peculiarity of North Korea and that simplifies North Korea as a victim is problematic.