Abstract The paper looks at the ideas of Daniel C. Lynch in his article "Dilemmas of Thought Work in Fin de Siecle China", Gordon White in "Riding the Tiger" and Feng Chen in "Rebuilding the Party's Normative Authority." The paper discusses how these writers show that those who anticipated capitalism as the bringer of democracy did not understand the largely administrative but also intellectual role played by the ChineseCommunistParty (CCP) as well as the low expectations of the Chinese regarding the CCP. The paper explains how all three articles show signs of the CCP attempting to show its sovereignty, but is challenged by ordinary Chinese indifference.
Outline:
Introduction
Daniel C. Lynch
Gordon White
Feng Chen
Analysis and Conclusion
From the Paper "Daniel Lynch reviewed the nature of thought-work in the People's Republic of China (PRC) at the end of the 20th century and explained the failure of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to regain control over thought-work or to build the long promised socialist-spiritual civilization for which the Chinese masses were instructed to be patient, for so very long. Society and culture in the PRC have changed radically since the rise of Chinese capitalism in relation to the forces of Globalization. Gordon White wrote on ideological decay as one price of the Reform Era's economic and social changes, what seemed a mere shift to a mixed economy in 1978 taking on all sorts of mammoth changes through the later 1980s and 1990s to make much CCP ideology irrelevant. Feng Chen referred to the CCP as an institution that was under renovation and which described itself as the proper normative authority. However, as all three agree, the role of the CCP and Beijing has been more and more concerned with ordinary administration and laws and policies serving the all-important business sector."
Abstract This essay examines some of the events that took place in China since the middle of the 19th century and that led to the triumph of the ChineseCommunistparty after World War II. The essay focuses on the factors that led to the failure of the Chinese Nationalist party (Guomindang) to consolidate its support amongst the Chinese people. It also argues that the factors that led to the failure of the Guomindang government to maintain power include strong a nationalist sentiment, the importance of the peasantry and unsolved socio-economic problems.
From the Paper "The failure of the Chinese Nationalist Party"
Abstract This paper examines how the analysis of the social foundations of political support is of interest not only to democratic politicians but also to revolutionary leaders. It looks at how although movements such as Mao Tse tung's ChineseCommunistParty cannot be considered democratic in the western sense, the ChineseCommunists at least prior to 1949 depended upon mobilizing a mass base of support among the population for the movement's continuing survival.
From the Paper "The analysis of the social foundations of political support is of interest not only to democratic politicians but also to revolutionary leaders. Although movements such as Mao Tse-tung's Chinese Communist Party cannot be considered democratic in the western sense, the Chinese Communists - at least prior to 1949 - depended upon mobilizing a mass base of support among the population for the movement's continuing survival. "
This paper discuses two Chinese media articles about the agricultural situation in 1960 as examples of the ChineseCommunistParty's (CCP) use of propaganda.
Abstract This paper explains that, until the 1970s, sinologists and others studied the ChineseCommunistParty (CCP) media for clues as to what might be occurring in Mainland China of which there was much conjecture. The author compares the reports from two 1960 CCP media releases, which were prepared for the national Chinese audience by the People's Republic of China (PRC), with what is now known about the terrible Communist planning error in the agricultural sector during the late 1950s and early 1960s. The paper concludes that all media materials from Beijing were expected to be propaganda; therefore, the Chinese public became adept at discerning what really might be happening. The author stresses that this reflective habit is still practiced in the PRC, despite much liberalization of the mass media.
Table of Contents
Introduction
'Go to the First Line of Agriculture!'
'Advance Payment of Wages Every Month Stimulates Enthusiasm of the CCP'
Mao's Famine
Concluding Discussion
From the Paper "The article seems to fit with a great deal that appeared through the month of September 1960 to do with agricultural gains, work still to be done, the potential for China to become a kind of agrarian paradise, and general applause for the rural laborer. In the article discussed, rural toil is said to be very good for cadres who may still be bureaucrats or people otherwise not yet exposed to the soil. Readers in the cities, or for that matter in Hong Kong or Taiwan or wherever else refugees from the Communist state had fled, had reason to wonder what was meant by the "transfer of large numbers of cadres ..."
Abstract The modern Chinese history under Mao Zedong is often perceived as a one-dimensional, iron-fisted rule by the ChineseCommunistParty (CCP) led by Mao. The truth, of course, is not so simple or one-dimensional. It is true that Mao was a larger-than-life figure who was raised to a godlike status through the personality cult built around him. The paper points out that, at the same time, Mao was an incorrigible revolutionary, which in itself ensured that there would never be a dull moment as long as he was in power. Although defying Mao's thoughts in China was a hazardous occupation while he lived, differences of opinion and expression of alternate visions within the CCP about how the country should be governed were not totally absent, even during Mao's lifetime. This paper examines some of the major policy campaigns launched by the CCP during 1949-1980, the difference of opinion or alternate visions expressed by a few, and the consequences they had to face.
From the Paper "In order to understand the dynamics of Communist China, it is worthwhile to briefly examine the background of the Communist movement and see how it came to China. China was a formerly great continental empire ruled by a weakened monarchy in the early part of the 20th century. A republican revolution in 1911 brought an end to the monarchic rule but the country remained beset with internal troubles and foreign interference. Japan, with its imperialist ambitions, sought to make China its protectorate, while local warlords in the country all but made a central government, irrelevant. China entered the World War I on the side of the Allies, hoping to halt the Japanese ambitions on its territory, but was badly let down at the Treaty of Versailles. In such a political environment, a group of Chinese intellectuals?inspired by the October 1917 Communist revolution in Russia, formed the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in 1921. Initially, the Communists joined the Kuomintang nationalists (KMT) who led a fight against the warlords to reunify the country."
Abstract This paper discusses the ChineseCommunistParty's (CCP) policy toward women in the 1920s and 1930s and how it evolved over time. The paper specifically discusses the Provisional Constitution of 1931, which was the first document to outline the CCP policy towards women, the Marriage Regulations of 1931, the Marriage Law of April 8th 1934, and CCP policy towards women relating to economic production, as well as why and how these policies were implemented. The paper also looks at how, in spite of the CCP's commitment to pushing forward a radical program for women which would ensure their equality, attention to marriage and land reform regulations was neglected or subordinated to the main task of the military and revolutionary struggle of the Soviets.
From the Paper "The Marriage Law of April 8th 1934 abolished the regulations of 1931 and differed quite strikingly. For example, instead of the man having to support the woman in cases of divorce like in the Regulations, the marriage law stated that only if a woman lacked the capacity to work or did not have a definite occupation was the man to support her and if the man lacked that capacity then the provision would not occur. Notions surrounding motherhood and parenting seemed to have changed during the three years between these pieces of legislation, in that the woman now, unless she stipulated otherwise was obliged to raise the children. This probably arose out of the need of the CCP who needed men to join the Red Army and so could not have men in the soviets tied down with the responsibility of bringing up children. "
This paper reviews the book "Engendering the Chinese Revolution" by Christina Gilmartin, which provides a portrait of the women active in the ChineseCommunist and Nationalist parties in the 1920s.
Abstract This paper discusses the book "Engendering the Chinese Revolution: Radical Women, Communist Politics, and Mass Movements in 1920s" by Christina Gilmartin which shows that despite the efforts of various Chinese feminists, both male and female, the patriarchal nature of society created a gender system within the ChineseCommunistParty, which ultimately reinforced traditional roles. The author states that the book focuses on Xiang Jingyu, one of the most well known women in the era fighting for reform in education and other facets of social equality. The paper explains that this book also deals with the extreme revolutionary period of 1925-27 through the First United Front, the alliance between the Communist and Nationalist parties.
From the Paper "The Communists adapted Soviet models of propaganda, cultural symbols, and organization to mobilize the worker population, both male and female, in assisting the formation of a new nation-state in full equality- at least that is what the posters, articles, and orators exclaimed. The urban and rural student populations were especially targeted as both recruiting areas and distribution systems for party literature. The propaganda during the Northern Expedition against the warlord factions was particularly graphic; it detailed the horrific acts the troops carried out against women."
Abstract This paper studies the reasons behind as well as the effects on society of the ChineseCommunistParty's (CCP) land reform policy of the early 1950s. It examines how, when the CommunistParty came to power in China in 1949, it became evident that there would finally be a complete overhaul of government policies. It also analyzes how land reform in a predominantly agriculturally based economy was essential to the creation of a new social order and the eradication of the previous Qing and Guomindang elements.
From the Paper "The living conditions and quality of life for many peasants before land reform, or Liberation were certainly very low. This gave the Communist Party a distinct advantage; most peasants had nothing to lose, and the idea of a society that would empower the exploited classes should prove immediately popular. However, there were setbacks. Although the peasants had nothing to lose, landlords, wealthy peasants and people related to the Guomindang were extremely worried, and this resulted in many people fleeing, to Hong Kong in particular. Many peasants were reluctant to join the revolution, being fearful of retribution should the Guomindang come back into power. They had never been involved in political life before, did not understand Marxist ideology, and could not perceive the class struggles within which they were told they were caught up. For this reason it was necessary to raise their class consciousness, a daunting task since peasants were mostly badly educated. Educated people who might be able to understand the Communist Party's social policies were often unwilling to wait around and find out the outcomes of these policies."
Abstract In the wake of the intellectual revolution in China, one major political event developed as a result of the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia in 1917, namely, the rise of the CommunistParty, which played a major role in shaping the course of the contemporary history of China. This paper looks at the challenges faced by the ChineseCommunistParty (CCP) and the Kuomintang (KMT). It examines the influence of Mao Tse Tung and the international influences of Mao and the CCP. The paper includes a full introduction and conclusion.
From the Paper "Though deeply committed to international communism, Mao and the CCP were national communists at heart and were keenly aware of China's place in the international arena. Most importantly, the Soviet Union promoted China's interests by allowing her to play a major role in the affairs of Asia, one being Peking as the site for the Asian and Australasian Trade Union Conference in 1949. China's relations with other Asian states also reflected her intense drive for leadership in Asia in such countries as Korea and Vietnam. In regard to non-communist states such as India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Burma, Laos and Cambodia, the CCP attempted to neutralize them by expressing a mutual respect for each other's territory and sovereignty, mutual non-aggression, mutual non-interference in each other's domestic affairs, an equality of relationships and mutual benefit and peaceful coexistence."
The ChineseCommunistParty soon came to power after years of exile and puppet rule that Pu Yi had experienced in the ever changing political and gove...
1,350 words (approx. 5.4 pages), 6 sources, 2005, $ 53.95
Abstract The ChineseCommunistParty soon came to power after years of exile and puppet rule that Pu Yi had experienced in the ever changing political and governmental landscapes of China. In 1950 Pu Yi was forced to leave his Soviet township and soon became a prisoner of the new CommunistParty politics.
From the Paper ABSTRACT TOO SHORT
Film Studies: Analyzing Three Films within the Context of South East and Asian Historical Perspectives Essay 1: Understanding the Premise of Vietnamese Communism within the Film: Full Metal Jacket The film Full Metal Jacket (1987), directed by Stanley Kubrick, offers an American point of view of a Vietnamese conflict that depended heavily on the communist (NLF) National Liberation Front. The communist resistance to American pressure to abdicate to the puppet regimes of older leaders, such as Ngo Dinh Diem, resulted in the NLF being called the "Viet Cong" or a "Democratic Dictatorship" within military and governmental propaganda. The reason for this is reflected in the film, as the Tet Offensive becomes the symbolic part of the movie where the Americans begin to lose the war, marking the American military's last real ground-based initiative to take the country. In this manner, a historical perspective of the NLF can be analyzed, but
Abstract This paper discusses Ronald J. Hill and Peter Frank's book "The Soviet CommunistParty" which attempts to introduce the West to the finer points of CommunistParty rule in the Soviet Union. It examines the book topic by topic and looks at how the authors manage to put across details of the organizations, institutions, legal structures and personnel of the Communist system. It evaluates how the authors link much of their discussion directly to historical events and time periods, giving the reader a sense of how their topic relates to the real world.
From the Paper "Under "Party Membership" the authors give attention to the details of party membership, including seeking such membership, the documents involved, the assessment of candidates, and the significance of achieving party membership. Membership involved certain obligations as well as benefits. Among the obligations were learning the principles of "communist morality," including identification with the concept of the collective, with respect for the working man, with comradely cooperation, patriotism, and the struggle against bourgeois ideology. The member was also expected to set an example to others, fulfill obligations to the party, and remain devoted to the cause."
Abstract This paper explains that the ChineseCommunist uprising in Canton in 1927 was put down by Nationalist forces under Chiang Kai-Shek, but it remains a seminal event in the development of China's present government. The author points out that the novel itself is a meditation on the revolutionary spirit, embodied most clearly in the main character, Ch'en, who sacrifices his life for his cause in order to achieve in death the unity with humanity that he missed in life.
Abstract This paper examines how, given the central role played by the CommunistParty in the history of China in the 20th century, the analysis by the Communist leadership of the social foundations for the party s political support would clearly be of great interest to scholars and students of Chinese society and culture during this period. From this perspective this paper attempts a comparative analysis of two documents written by Mao Tse tung while still a young revolutionary in the 1920s.
From the Paper "Given the central role played by the Communist Party in the history of China in the 20th century, the analysis by the Communist leadership of the social foundations for the party's political support would clearly be of great interest to scholars and students of Chinese society and culture during this period. From this perspective, this paper will attempt a comparative analysis of two documents written by Mao Tse-tung while still a young revolutionary in the 1920s."
Abstract The writer looks closely at the events that began in May 1958, when the leader of the ChineseCommunistParty (CCP), Liu Shao-ch?i, announced a "Great Leap Forward" (dayuejin) in which China would "overtake Britain in iron and steel and other major industrial production in fifteen or more years". The paper traces the disastrous effects of this decision.
From the Paper "The movement launched as the Great Leap Forward did not have the backing and support of the whole Party, but was initiated and promoted by its chairman, Mao Tse-tung, with the blessings of a largely radical faction within the Party. Because of the opposition he had encountered from his own colleagues within the Party leadership, Mao had spent January of 1958 travelling around China gathering the support instead of provincial party secretaries and cadres. The leading provincial cadres of East China met in Hangchow and, at the end of the month, those of South China met in Nanning. At both conferences Mao gained support for his "Sixty Points on Working Methods" and was followed in March by a similar demonstration of support for his line at a conference in Chengtu."
Abstract This paper examines domestic as well as international factors to argue that the CCP is on its last leg. Arguments ranging from ancient cultural facets of Chinese society to increased desire for democracy in the populous (due to the western pop culture influx) bodes badly for the strict communistparty.
From the Paper "Despite the urgency of the aforementioned hindrances, the most general and yet most important amongst the obstacles facing communist China today is the lack of credibility and trust the government has with its citizens. The abovementioned corruption and discord, combined with a tendency to deceive and forcefully repress, causes a lack of confidence in the government: "China ruthlessly maintains a single-party dictatorship ...there is very little wiggle room for critics of the system, and no toleration of advocates of Western-styles freedom and democracy...[and it plays] the "nationalism card" to buttress flagging legitimacy"7. "
