The Two Koreas

1. Set Focus
Pose this essential question: How did the Cold War shape North Korea and South Korea? 

2. List Vocabulary
Share some of the challenging vocabulary words in the article (see right). Encourage students to use context to infer meanings as they read.

• line of latitude (p. 19)
• dictatorial (p. 19)
• armistice (p. 20)
• martial law (p. 20)
• sanctions (p. 20)
• conciliation (p. 21)

3. Engage
Ask students to discuss what they know about North Korea and South Korea. Have them look at and discuss the photos on pages 18 and 19. 

4. Read and Discuss
Ask students to read the Upfront article about the Korean War. Review why the article is a secondary source. (It was written by someone who didn’t personally experience or witness the events.) Then pose these critical-thinking questions and ask students to cite text evidence when answering them:

• How did Korea come to be divided into two nations? What is the “38th parallel”? (Prior to World War II, Japan had occupied Korea. After Japan’s surrender, the U.S. and the Soviet Union agreed to temporarily occupy Korea to oversee the withdrawal of Japanese forces. The country was divided, with the Soviets taking the north and the U.S. taking the south. Due to the political and economic disagreements that drove the Cold War, the split became permanent. The “38th parallel” is the line of latitude at which the country was split.)  

• Why did war break out between North Korea and South Korea? Why did the U.S. get involved? (In June 1950, North Korea, in a bid to reunify the nation through military control, invaded South Korea and occupied its capital, Seoul. Because Communists in China had just won a civil war and taken over that country, President Harry S. Truman saw the invasion as another sign that Communism was spreading. He, along with other members of the United Nations, committed troops to fight.)

• How does the article compare and contrast North Korea’s and South Korea’s development after the war? (According to the article, in the years since the war, South Korea, as a nation, has grown richer and has become a cultural force. Its government has also been relatively stable. North Korea is an authoritarian state that has been heavily sanctioned. Outside of Pyongyang, the country is very underdeveloped.)

• How did U.S. relations with North Korea and South Korea shift during President Trump’s first term? (Signaling a change in America’s historically contentious relationship with North Korea, President Trump met with Kim Jong Un three times during his first term. He also scaled down joint military exercises between the U.S. and South Korea, and he has taken an unusually contentious tone with South Korea.)

5. Use the Primary Sources
Project, distribute, or assign in Google Classroom the PDF ‘We Have Prevented World War III’, which features excerpts from a radio address President Harry S. Truman gave about the Korean War after firing General Douglas MacArthur. Discuss what makes the speech a primary source. (It provides firsthand evidence concerning the topic.) Have students read the excerpts and answer the questions below (which appear on the PDF without answers).

• How would you describe the tone and purpose of these excerpts from Truman’s speech? (The tone can be described as serious. The purpose is to remind the American people, many of whom were skeptical of the Korean War, of why the U.S. entered the war. Truman also wants to explain why the war should remain limited and not be expanded.)

• Using examples from the speech, explain what Truman believes is the overall goal of the Korean War. (According to Truman, the goal of the Korean War is to defend the Republic of Korea from “Communist aggressors” who are “engaged in a monstrous conspiracy to stamp out freedom all over the world.” He believes the U.S. and other free nations would ultimately fall “victim” to “foreign conquest” by Communists, which would lead to World War III.)

• What does Truman mean when he says “It is easier to put out a fire in the beginning when it is small than after it has become a roaring blaze”? What historical event does he reference to support this idea? (Truman means that a threat, such as the spread of Communism, is easier to stop if you eliminate it before it becomes too powerful. In the next paragraph, Truman refers to the rise of Nazi Germany in the 1930s, which he argues the free countries did not respond to quickly enough and thus couldn’t prevent World War II.) 

• What does Truman mean when he calls the Korean War a “limited war”? (By a “limited war,” Truman means that the Korean War would not be expanded outside of Korean borders and would not use all of the U.S.’s possible military resources. He contrasts a “limited war” with a “general war,” such as World War II, which he hopes to avoid.)

• Based on this speech and the Upfront article, do you think Truman succeeded in meeting his stated goals in Korea? Why or why not? (Students answers will vary, but they may note that World War III indeed did not happen and that South Korea still remains democratic today. They may also note that the U.S. has never succeeded in eliminating Communism through military force.)

6. Writing Prompt
What do you predict about the U.S. relationship with North Korea and with South Korea during the second Trump administration? Explain in a brief essay.

7. Quiz & Skills 
Use the quiz to assess comprehension and the Analyze the Photo skill sheet to practice visual analysis.

8. Classroom Debate
Was the U.S. right to intervene in foreign conflicts to try to stop the spread of Communism?

9. Authentic Experiences
Have students listen to oral histories on the Korean War Legacy Foundation website or C-SPAN.org. Ask them to analyze and discuss what the oral histories add to their understanding of the war and its historical legacy, as well as the experiences of soldiers.