A study on speeches of Kim Jong-un, north Korean leader: Changes detected from imitating Kim Il-sung to shaping his own voice

Abstract

In North Korea, the socialist regime is trying to establish a solid foundation for its third generation leader Kim Jong-un. Among the trials and efforts to do so, Kim Jong-un himself has given several speeches in public, where we can find some interesting characteristics through analyzing speech features. In some speeches, he tried to imitate his grandfather Kim Il-sung, the first generation leader, who established the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in 1948, since Kim Jong-un aspired to continue the faint recollection and the absolute legacy of his grandfather's title to the people of North Korea. This paper analyzes the speech of Kim Jong-un at the recent military parade to examine the similarities and differences between speeches given by these two supreme power leaders in North Korea. The paper also compares the speeches given by Kim Jong-un in two different events to detect any changes between them concerning whether he continued to imitate Kim Il-sung or he presented his unique characteristics. ©2016 International Information Institute.