Mao's Cultural Revolution

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the events, context and consequences of Mao Zedung's Cultural Revolution. The first part of this paper examines the events that paved the way for the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution. The next part then examines how the Cultural Revolution started and its degeneration into violence and destruction. It also studies how the excesses of the Cultural Revolution began and Mao's culpability for these abuses. In the conclusion, the paper examines the long-term consequences of the Cultural Revolution on Chinese society.

Table of Contents:
Gearing for Revolution
Chaos and Violence
Enduring Effects of the Cultural Revolution
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"Throughout these excesses, Mao's hand remained evident. In 1966, he reveled in his god-like status as he received millions of Red Guards at Tiananmen Square in Beijing. During this speech, Mao exhorted his followers to "smash the four olds," referring to old ideas, old culture, old habits and old customs (Jiang and Ashley 2000). When the Red Guard began to destroy ancient artifacts and books, Mao did nothing to stop them. On the contrary, he used his influence to ensure that political rivals were exiled or otherwise removed from power."
"Furthermore, by forcing intellectuals to labor camps, Mao was quelling resistance from the more critical segments of the population. This helped ensure that he had a pliable foundation for his revolutionary goals. In essence, Mao was establishing a new intelligentsia, one composed of peasants and workers who were fiercely loyal to him and his ideals."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Jiang, Yarong and Ashley, David. 2000. Mao's Children in the New China: Voices from the Red Guard Generation. New York: Routledge.
• Li, Shu and Krebs, Edward. 2005. On Creativity in History and RElated Issues. Chinese Studies in History 38(3-4): 18-37.
• Smith, SA. 2005. A Bitter Revolution. The English Historical Review. 120(2): 805-807
• Zhu, Lisheng. 2000. "The problem of the intelligentsia and radicalism in higher education under Stalin and Mao." Europe-Asia Studies. 52(8): 1489-1513.

More papers on Mao's Cultural Revolution:

• Essay # 64619 : "The Cultural Revolution"
• Analytical Essay # 143407 : "The Effects Of The Cultural Revolution In China"
• Analytical Essay # 142432 : "The Cultural Revolution in China"
• Analytical Essay # 133546 : "The Individual and the Cultural Revolution"

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