What was Mao's Cultural Revolution?

[Stranger Than Paradise]

Just saw it mentioned somewhere so I thought I'd come here to get educated....

[AvanteRedGarde]

Even in a supposedly socialist society, both old ideas and outside influence as well as the solidification of unequal relationships breeds conditions in which a 'new bourgeoisie' will arise.

The cultural revolution, which mainly lasted from the spring of 1966 to the early 70's, was an attempt to rectify this situation and keep China on a socialist path.

The onset of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (GPCR) ignited the passion of the masses, whom in some cases and dependent on a balance of forces overthrew the the local party cadres. The GPCR was both spontaneous and controlled from above.

This power struggle also occurred within the highest reaches of the party machine. It was in many ways a struggle of how to arrange society post revolution. One line advocated production, specialization, division of labor and conditions between urban and rural, educated and uneducated, party members and non party members. This side was represented by Lui and Deng. The other side stressed mass mobilization, collectivization, mass political education and the elimination of the divisions between the rural and urban. This side was represented by Chen Bota, Lin Piao and Mao.

Unfortunately, in 1969, the Red Guards, rebel voluntary organization not officially connected to the party but operating under its auspices and cause, were directed to cede power to the 'revolutionary commitees' which were made up of Red Guard organizations, the army and party cadre. This put the intiative in the hands of the higher party officials.

Within the high parts of the government, the left was being purged with the support of Mao. First Chen Bota and then Lin Piao. It almost seems that Mao switched sides, going from a leftist during the onset of the GPCR to a rightist by its end. By 1973, the main aspects of the GPCR (i.e., continuing class struggle under socialism accompanied by the further transformation of society) had been dumped. After Mao died in 76, the Gang of Four, the last of the top leaders associated with the GPCR, were all arrested and tried and shortly thereafter Deng began rolling out his 'reforms.'

You might be interested to know how far the GPCR went in some places. Some places declared that they had reached communism, and therefor they didn't have to listen to a central state. Other places completey did away with money and operated completely through voluntary labor with a nearly equal distribution. Etc, etc.

[Stranger Than Paradise]

Even in a supposedly socialist society, both old ideas and outside influence as well as the solidification of unequal relationships breeds conditions in which a 'new bourgeoisie' will arise.

The cultural revolution, which mainly lasted from the spring of 1966 to the early 70's, was an attempt to rectify this situation and keep China on a socialist path.

The onset of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (GPCR) ignited the passion of the masses, whom in some cases and dependent on a balance of forces overthrew the the local party cadres. The GPCR was both spontaneous and controlled from above.

This power struggle also occurred within the highest reaches of the party machine. It was in many ways a struggle of how to arrange society post revolution. One line advocated production, specialization, division of labor and conditions between urban and rural, educated and uneducated, party members and non party members. This side was represented by Lui and Deng. The other side stressed mass mobilization, collectivization, mass political education and the elimination of the divisions between the rural and urban. This side was represented by Chen Bota, Lin Piao and Mao.

Unfortunately, in 1969, the Red Guards, rebel voluntary organization not officially connected to the party but operating under its auspices and cause, were directed to cede power to the 'revolutionary commitees' which were made up of Red Guard organizations, the army and party cadre. This put the intiative in the hands of the higher party officials.

Within the high parts of the government, the left was being purged with the support of Mao. First Chen Bota and then Lin Piao. It almost seems that Mao switched sides, going from a leftist during the onset of the GPCR to a rightist by its end. By 1973, the main aspects of the GPCR (i.e., continuing class struggle under socialism accompanied by the further transformation of society) had been dumped. After Mao died in 76, the Gang of Four, the last of the top leaders associated with the GPCR, were all arrested and tried and shortly thereafter Deng began rolling out his 'reforms.'

You might be interested to know how far the GPCR went in some places. Some places declared that they had reached communism, and therefor they didn't have to listen to a central state. Other places completey did away with money and operated completely through voluntary labor with a nearly equal distribution. Etc, etc.

I never knew of this.... that's really quite interesting. Why don't us Anarchists bring this up ever?

[Idealism]

The GPCR was both spontaneous and controlled from above.


Could you elaborate on that?

[rednordman]

This is interesting to say the least. I have to ask why it is usually refered to in the west as one of the largest catastrophes of the last 100 years?

-Seriously, even on the BBC, when they do documentories from China, they always manage to fit in a very bad reference to the cultural revolution, without even mentioning what it actually was.

On that note, does anyone know of good literature on the subject?

[AvanteRedGarde]

I'm in a hurry.

Donping Han's the Unknown Cultural Revolution is a good short recent book on the topic. That the GPCR was a catastrophe is the line of the Chinese "Communist" Party today.

Anarchists are too busy attacking people and movements because they never lived up to the revolutionary ideal. They don't care about historical analysis or material realities. Thus, they don't actually look for solutions, in the context of the real world, for ways to enact their ideals.

Sorry to be so brief and vague.

[Blackscare]

The cultural revolution just makes me sad because of all the priceless ancient artwork, literature, monasteries, etc that were destroyed :(


It's political impact and whatnot I'll leave to others to discuss (as they likely know more than me), but damnit they destroyed some awesome shit!


Edit

@ 18th May 2009 22:42 AvanteRedGarde (http://www.revleft.com/vb/../member.php?u=18629) You care more about old pices of artwork than the direction of society?


All I said was that it was unfortunate that that artwork was destroyed. I didn't say that the political elements of the cultural revolution were bad or good, I was neutral.

Since when is it required to destroy ancient historical pieces to drive out the reactionaries from government?

Grow a fucking brain and stop making assumptions about what I mean next time.


(included this message I left on his visitor board thingy to clear up any misconceptions)

[BobKKKindle$]

The cultural revolution just makes me sad because of all the priceless ancient artwork, literature, monasteries, etc that were destroyedActually, it was always the government's line to discourage the destruction of cultural artifacts, in the same way that they encouraged reactionary officials to be dealt with through argument and persuasion, instead of violence, and so if large numbers of artifacts were destroyed then it would be unfair to hold the government responsible, because it was the outcome of a movement from below, and not something the government would really control to any meaningful degree. The reality, however, is that the Cultural Revolution did not simply involve the destruction of artifacts, as there were in fact some important cultural and archaeological discoveries during the period, and many of these were preserved at great expense by the government, and promoted as examples of China's heritage. For example, the Terracotta Warriors were discovered in Shaanxi province in 1974, and today are widely considered one of the most outstanding tourist attractions in China, as you are probably aware from seeing them on television programs and so on, as well as a case study of a key archaeological site being preserved effectively, despite its rural location, and the underdeveloped condition of the country in which the discovery took place. A further example is the Mawangdui tombs which were discovered in 1972 in Hunan province, which have also been preserved, with many of the cultural artifacts that were unearthed at that site now being shown in Hunan Provincial Museum. It was also Mao who had argued in 1958 that Chinese traditional medicine was a treasure house that needed to be exploited, and during the Cultural Revolution it was the official policy of the government to encourage the use of these remedies, including acupuncture-induced anesthesia, which was witnessed by many foreign visitors for the first time at the height of the Cultural Revolution. These examples and others demonstrate the the most commonly accepted narrative of the Cultural Revolution - that a bunch of angry teenagers went around smashing stuff - is seriously misinformed and far too simplistic.


It's political impact and whatnot I'll leave to others to discuss (as they likely know more than me), but damnit they destroyed some awesome shit!This strikes me as a very strange thing to say. Are you suggesting that the cultural sphere is not political? I would have to disagree - culture reflects the values of the society from which it originated, and in turn the kind of culture people are exposed to can have a big impact on the way they view the world, and interact with their fellow human beings. Culture is intensely political because it involves questions of power.

[mykittyhasaboner]

GPCR? I would recommend reading this (http://www.mlmrsg.com/attachments/049_049_CRpaper-Final.pdf).

[Blackscare]

Thank you BK.


I'd like to add though that you're also reading a bit too far into what I said. I never said that the government was complicit in the destruction of artwork, simply that it happened and I felt it was a shame and a waste.

And I meant that I am basically unaware of the happenings of the cultural revolution outside it's impact on art and historic sites (that's the only place where my interests have intersected with Maoism), so I'd leave any comment on the aspects of the cultural revolution not related directly to the destruction of art to others (although yes, you are correct that culture and politics are closely linked, so I should have phrased it differently).

[dogfromthesea]

the cultural revolution was a perfect example of the catastrophic consequences of mob hate and mob mentality in general. though mao's original sentiment to keep china on a socialist path may have been noble enough the means he employed to achieve this were in my opinion much too flawed.
the red guards were children who were given too much a sense of empowerment and they acted in the only way one can expect from not responsible, committed, rational people but rather hot-blooded kids out on a mission.

true enough the alleged catastrophe is maximized to ridiculous levels by the capitalist western media (much like anything mao ever did) but to deny the bad aspects of that period of china's history is i think both silly and counterproductive to the socialist cause.

[scarletghoul]

The GPCR was quite an anarchic movement, and I think most anarchists would like it if they actually read about it and didnt just dismiss everything Mao done as stalinist

[Sendo]

the real problem would be youth going overboard, looking for blood and getting it. But you have to expect this stuff. I'd rather open the floodgates and see some innocent families die than endure the thoroughly violent and dehumanizing rule of capitalists.

If you're squeemish about this stuff give Fanshen a read. After that check out The Battle for China's Past for a reclamation of the CR's true history.

The Western synopsis is ignorant, racist, anti-historical, sexist, and hero/villain based. Forget what you know and what you think you know. Becoming a commie means turning all your existing paradigms upside-down.

[RedHal]

This is interesting to say the least. I have to ask why it is usually refered to in the west as one of the largest catastrophes of the last 100 years?

-Seriously, even on the BBC, when they do documentories from China, they always manage to fit in a very bad reference to the cultural revolution, without even mentioning what it actually was.

On that note, does anyone know of good literature on the subject?

cuz they probably still have nightmares of having their beourgious intellectual asses sent to the countryside :thumbup:

[dogfromthesea]

the real problem would be youth going overboard, looking for blood and getting it. But you have to expect this stuff. I'd rather open the floodgates and see some innocent families die than endure the thoroughly violent and dehumanizing rule of capitalists.

If you're squeemish about this stuff give Fanshen a read. After that check out The Battle for China's Past for a reclamation of the CR's true history.

The Western synopsis is ignorant, racist, anti-historical, sexist, and hero/villain based. Forget what you know and what you think you know. Becoming a commie means turning all your existing paradigms upside-down.
The cultural revolution took place in the sixties and seventies, decades after the violent and dehumanizing rule of capitalism had been overthrown. If we can't separate the message of communism from the way it has been implemented in practice by its adherents, the movement is bound to repeat the same mistakes over and over again.
Great part of the way the party, Mao and the red guards tried to bring forward the CR was horribly flawed, and not only was it very unfair and intolerant but it was ultimately quite futile, not decades after, China gave up most of its principles and began to whore out to the West once more again.

[scarletghoul]

The cultural revolution took place in the sixties and seventies, decades after the violent and dehumanizing rule of capitalism had been overthrown.Capitalism was returning to China, this is the whole point. There were still remnants of bourgeois society left and they were growing. and some fuedal


the real problem would be youth going overboard, looking for blood and getting it. But you have to expect this stuff. I'd rather open the floodgates and see some innocent families die than endure the thoroughly violent and dehumanizing rule of capitalists.This is true! let me find the right Mao quote to go here...
"A revolution is not a dinner party, or writing an essay, or painting a picture, or doing embroidery; it cannot be so refined, so leisurely and gentle, so temperate, kind, courteous, restrained and magnanimous. A revolution is an insurrection, an act of violence by which one class overthrows another."

[Stranger Than Paradise]

the real problem would be youth going overboard, looking for blood and getting it. But you have to expect this stuff. I'd rather open the floodgates and see some innocent families die than endure the thoroughly violent and dehumanizing rule of capitalists.

If you're squeemish about this stuff give Fanshen a read. After that check out The Battle for China's Past for a reclamation of the CR's true history.

The Western synopsis is ignorant, racist, anti-historical, sexist, and hero/villain based. Forget what you know and what you think you know. Becoming a commie means turning all your existing paradigms upside-down.

Yes this is exactly why I came here. I knew I could not trust the mainstream media to provide me with a true analysis of it.

[rednordman]

cuz they probably still have nightmares of having their beourgious intellectual asses sent to the countryside :thumbup:He he. They REALLY could not accept that. But that is what Western Democracies are all about...people aspiring in the hope that they can one day sit on their arses so everyone can do work for them and they can take the money from their hard work. And then pay the workers pittance. Long live freedom and liberty!!:rolleyes:

[AvanteRedGarde]

Fanshen is something like 500 pages. It's a good book, but more than most people can sit through. Also because of its length and the way the book was written, it requires a lot of attention to fully grasp what is significant over the course of the narrative. Fanshen also takes place during the land reform in the late 40's and 50's, not the Cultural Revolution.

As I said earlier, I would recommend Donping Han's The Unknown Cultural Revolution, Life and Changes in a Chinese Village. Unlike Hinton's Fanshen (or Shenfan which deals with the GPCR), Han's work has the benfit of hindsight. It is also much shorter, around 200 pages (and smaller pages). While it certainly has it limitations and a constrained focus, it nonetheless will provide a much better understanding of the Cultural Revolution that the bourgeois media and or most people here can provide. I highly suggest you read it.

Both books deal will life in rural localities; Han's with Jimo County and Hinton's with the village of Long Bow. I would recommend both as they both cast a great understanding as to the on the ground changes in the life of rural Chinese. Fanshen is focuses more on individuals and their collective challenges over the course of a number of years. The Unknown Cultural Revolution deals more with the political aspects and is more analyical, though nonetheless draws from compelling real world examples.

Perhaps the biggest fault of the Unknow Cultural Revolution is that is does not connect the struggle over how to arrange production and society itself (one leading to further division and one towards greater equality and communalism) to the struggle within the party (though it does touch on this a bit).

[el_chavista]

This is all about de Chinese cultural revolution:

http://mikeely.wordpress.com/2008/12/29/mao%E2%80%99s-cultural-revolution-pt-9-summing-up-the-revolution/

http://mikeely.wordpress.com/2009/01/08/mlmrsg-evaluating-chinas-cultural-revolution-and-its-legacy-for-the-future/

[ZhuxiWansui]

The cultural revolution was what Chairman launched to get his power back in the party to help the people. That traitor and scab Liou Shaqoi and capitalist roader Deng Xiaoping took a lot of his power and influences. Jiang Qing and Lin Biao caused murder of millions during it.

[Chow Foo]

The Cultural Revolution was just a way for Mao to regain his powers. He told the young Chinese to find Bourgeois 'behaviors', well what is Bourgeois behavior? If you didnt like someone you simply turn him to the police and claim he is an enemy of the proletariat.

Mao hated Confuciusm, Confuciusm emphasize education. Mao didnt like that, he wanted people to go farming instead of teaching.

[Kukulofori]

The Cultural Revolution was just a way for Mao to regain his powers. He told the young Chinese to find Bourgeois 'behaviors', well what is Bourgeois behavior? If you didnt like someone you simply turn him to the police and claim he is an enemy of the proletariat.

Mao hated Confuciusm, Confuciusm emphasize education. Mao didnt like that, he wanted people to go farming instead of teaching.
http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/o_rly.jpg

[scarletghoul]

The Cultural Revolution was just a way for Mao to regain his powers. He told the young Chinese to find Bourgeois 'behaviors', well what is Bourgeois behavior? If you didnt like someone you simply turn him to the police and claim he is an enemy of the proletariat.

Mao hated Confuciusm, Confuciusm emphasize education. Mao didnt like that, he wanted people to go farming instead of teaching.
This is maybe the lamest post of this thread.

It was not just for Mao to "regain his powers". It was a way of restoring and enhancing socialism in China, which had started to take the capitalist road. It was a mass based movement of the people who wanted socialism.

And he never made people "go farming instead of teaching", he actually got the educated population to go to the countryside so that they could educate as well as learn from the peasents. It was important to mix the practical with the theory, to mix the educated with the common people, to avoid creating some educated bureaucracy that is out of touch from the people.

[NecroCommie]

I'd say the western world needs its own cultural revolution.

[scarletghoul]

Yeah, definately. It is a great idea that should be adopted by all socialist movements in a revolutionary society, as a way to wash away reactionary elements and ensure the success of socialism

[Kukulofori]

Not even just socialist ones. Absolutely every society needs a good uprising every decade or so.

[spiltteeth]

I actually learned a great deal by reading this thread : http://www.revleft.com/vb/chuck-morse-and-t86387/index2.html?highlight=gonzalo

It's basically anarchism vs Maoism, but the 2 people debating are very insightful and knowledgeable. I learned alot.