China's One-Child Policy

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses China's initiatives to encourage a drop in fertility. It maintains that the policy is neo-Malthusian and is a human reproduction rights violation that discriminates against female children. The paper concludes, however, that the economic development, modernization and changes in China have perhaps rendered some of these birth control policies useless.

From the Paper:

"Mao Tse Zedong's policy of the 'Great Leap Forward" included the idea that China would be stronger with more people. In the first few decades after the Revolution of 1949, the central government encouraged large families and China's population grew exponentially. This policy turned out to be unsuccessful, bringing on famine among other problems. In the late 1960s China reversed its policy believing that overpopulation can hither their economic development and began to implement initiatives to encourage families to marry later in life, have less children and allow more time in-between children. Between 1970 and 1979 China did in fact experience a large drop in fertility. Only in 1979 did this initiative actually become a law."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Zhenming, X (2000). "Population Policy and the family-Planning Program". In P. Xizhe and Z. Guo, The Changing Population of China. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers Limited, 52-63
• Fong, V. (2004) "Great Expectations: Singletons as the Vanguard of Modernization". Chapter 2 in V. Fong, Only Hope: Coming of Age under China's One-Child Policy. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 69-86
• Wikipedia, Eugenics. 20. March 2007. Retrieved on 21. March 2007 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugenics

More papers on China's One-Child Policy:

• Analytical Essay # 135626 : "China's One-Child Policy"
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• Argumentative Essay # 102970 : "China's One Child Policy"

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