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13. Changing Global Landscape (Milestones of Century)

Chinese-style communism

China also recovering
decades of civil war
struggle against Japanese imperialism
under direction of Chinese Communist Party and Mao Zedong
emergence from century of imperialist humiliation and semi-colonial rule
development of distinctive Chinese approach to modern development
return to position of prominence in world
began “building socialism” very differently from USSR
Russian Bolsheviks faced hostile capitalist world alone; Chinese communists had Soviets as neighbor and ally
Chinese revolutionaries had governed parts of country for decades
Chinese communists firmly rooted in rural/peasant populations, compared to Russians in cities
economically, China had more daunting prospects than Soviets
greater population
smaller industrial base
limited agricultural land available
less-developed literacy, modern education

Building a modern society

China initially tried to follow Soviet model of socialist modernization, but with variations

Collectivization of agriculture

collectivization of agriculture was generally peaceful (unlike Soviets)
because of relationship between CCP and peasantry
China pushed collectivization even more than USSR (
Great Leap Forward
⁠
)

Industrialization

industrialization modeled on Soviets
emphasized:
large-scale heavy industries
urban-based factories
centralized planning by state and party authorities
mobilization of women for development
impacts
impressive economic growth
substantial migration to cities
emergence of bureaucratic elite
planners
managers
scientists
engineers
like USSR favored urban over rural and privileged educated, technically trained elite
Mao did not accept these inequalities, unlike Stalin
launched recurrent effort to combat these tendencies
hoped to revive and preserve the revolutionary spirit that had animated the Communist Party

Great Leap Forward (late 1950s)

Reasoning

by mid-1950s, Mao and some others believed that Soviet model of industrialization was leading China away from socialism
instead towards:
new forms of inequality
individualistic and careerist values
urban bias favoring cities
Great Leap Forward was Mao’s first response to these distortions of Chinese socialism
second five-year plan implemented by Mao for simultaneous growth in agriculture and industry
mobilize China’s enormous population for rapid development
move towards more fully communist society with even greater social equality and collective living

Practice

promoted small-scale industrialization in rural areas rather than focusing solely on large enterprises
tried to foster widespread and practical technological education for all
hoped for immediate transition to full communism in “people’s communes” rather than waiting for industrial development to provide material basis for transition
created “people’s communes”
no private ownership
citizens encouraged to create backyard furnaces for steel production
all services (education, healthcare, etc.) provided by state

Failure

led to national catastrophe and unprecedented human tragedy
poor-quality steel and industrial goods broke
crop failures led to starvation and massive famine
30 million or more between 1959 and 1962
administrative chaos
disruption of marketing networks
bad weather
temporarily discredited Mao’s radicalism
caused Mao to step down from head of state
remained party chairman

Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (mid-1960s)

launched by Mao to combat capitalist tendencies
capitalism believed to have penetrated even highest ranks of Communist Party
sought to replace party leadership with member more faithful to Mao
widespread changes to cultural, educational, healthcare systems
efforts to bring healthcare and education to countryside
wanted to reinvigorate earlier attempts at industrialization under local control
enlisted Red Guards
high school and university students organized into groups
⁠
sought out those who opposed Mao’s goals
⁠
⁠
destroyed pre-communist artifacts
burned books
committed acts of violence, especially against teachers/school officials

Eliminating enemies

starting 1950s: caught up in gigantic search for enemies (like USSR)
much more public
unlike Soviet Union, which was clearly under control of state authorities
escaped control of leadership
particularly during Cultural Revolution
Mao called for rebellion against Communist Party
convinced that many had been seduced by capitalist values
self-seeking
materialism
millions of young people responded (
Red Guards
⁠
)
sought to rid China of those who were “taking the capitalist road”
gigantic, ecstatic rallies in Beijing
fanned out across country and attacked those they defined as enemies
local party and government officials
teachers
intellectuals
factory managers
etc.
fates of enemies
many “sent down” to countryside
hard physical labor
“learn from the peasants”
humiliated, beaten, sometimes killed
rival revolutionary groups soon began fighting
violence erupted throughout country
civil war threatened China
Mao forced to call military to restore order and Communist Party Control
badly discredited idea of socialism (like Soviet Terror)
contributed to ultimate collapse of communist experiment at end of century
Building a modern society
Collectivization of agriculture
Industrialization
Great Leap Forward (late 1950s)
Reasoning
Practice
Failure
Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (mid-1960s)
Eliminating enemies
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