Mao topic 3- cultural revolution Flashcards
In what way was the CCP divided?
Ideologues and pragmatists
Which division of the Party did Mao belong to? Why is that?
Ideologues, he was uncomfortable with the measures taken to alleviate the problems of the Great Leap Forward since it was against his ideology
Which division of the Party were Liu and Deng a part of?
Pragmatists, the restoration of private trade and dismantling of the communes are more pragmatic
Even with the eradication of the ruling class, why was Mao still concerned?
Their attitudes are still aparent in the assumptions and behaviours of people in general due to their views having embedded to the education system, arts and culture
How did Mao view the people with capitalist attitudes?
He believed he needed to eradicate all of them in the Party, even if other officials are willing to tolerate a broader Party membership with intellectuals
What was held on January 1962?
7000 cadre conference
What did Mao intend to do with the 7000 cadre conference and how did the reality differ from his intentions?
He wanted to try to rally support inside the CCP against further drift from socialist ideas, but Liu hinted at Mao’s mistakes, which eventually led to his withdrawl from public
Which event led to Mao’s withdrawl from public?
70000 cadre conference
Which 4 members of the CCP advocated a shift from socialist ideology to solve the economic crisis?
Liu Shaoqi, Deng Xiaoping, Chen Yun, Bo Yibo
What did the pragmatists in the CCP criticse? (Mao’s thinking)
That mass mobilisation was more harmful than beneficial, technical experts should be put in charge and policies should be imposed from above
What did the pragmatists advocate in terms of foreing policy?
To come to peace with countries like USA or USSR, since they couldn’t afford any confrontation from either of those countries with a dreeadfull economic state
Who did Mao believe should be the ones in control of change in the rectification campaigns?
The peasantry
Why did Mao keep stressing on mass mobilisation?
It was key to continue and protect the revolution by having people getting involved in campaigns to fight to defend the changes
What was launched in 1963 to preach the virtue of collective economic approach?
Socialist Education Movement in 1963
What did Mao hope for by launching the Socialist Eduation Movement?
REnew a sense of class struggle among peasants and to allow them to identify and attack corrupt Party officials in struggle sessions
What was the role of Liu in the Socialist Education Movement?
The campaign was centrally controlled with Party work teams restoring discipline, many were executed for economic crimes
How would mass mobilisation help continue revolution throughout the new generation?
The younger members of the Party did not go through Long March, so they had to get directly involved and experience the revolutionary struggle to make them identify with it
Why was Mao concerned about the bureaucrats?
The new bureaucrats had been created to run Communist China, and they were becoming self-satisfied elite, motivate only by the privilege of pwoer
Why did Mao keep the bureaucrats despite their threats?
They were the only ones educated enough to run the country
How did the bureaucrats threaten the revolution?
They were most critical of the Great Leap Forward and Cultural Revolution
Who did Mao want to be at the centre of the revolution?
the peasants
What had to be done to root out corruption within the Party ranks?
a new rectification campaign
Who were Mao’s main supporters?
Lin Biao (leader of PLA), Jiang Qing, Kang Sheng and Chen Boda
Who were Mao’s main opposition?
Liu Shaoqi (head of state), Deng, Chen Yun and Bo Yibo
What was the first step of the Cultural Revolution?
To get rid of the pragmatists
At what point was Liu seen as Mao’s opposition?
after the 7000 cadre conference, he was accused of choosing the ‘capitalist road’
What was Deng accused of doing?
trying to run an independent kingdom
Why weren’t Liu and Deng purged at the start?
They had too much support in the Politburo and the wider Party
When was the attack of Wuhan launched?
1965
Why was Wu Han’s play so significant?
The play is a parallel of the Lushan Conference, Wu Han’s boss was Peng Zhen, one of closest allies, and was responsible for culture, which makes it possible for Mao to discredit Liu for association
When did Mao attack Peng Zhen?
March 1966, when Liu was absent from the Politburo, his supports, Zhou and Deng abadoned Peng due to their fear of losing their positins
What was set up in May 1966 to direct the Cultural Revolution? Who was it dominated by?
Central Cultural Revolution Group set up, mostly dominated by Mao’s supporters and the Gang of Four
What was launched in May 1966 to target the counter-revolutionaries in the Party?
wall posters campaign
Who directed the wall posters campaign?
Kang Sheng
How was the wall poster campaign a failure for Liu and Deng?
Their efforts to moderate the criticisms did not work
How was the wall poster campaign a failure for Mao?
He wanted the attack to be from below but not the imposition of discipline from above
Why did Mao focus on the young people during the Cultural Revolution?
Since it would help ensure long-term survival of communism and young people were very enthusiastic, as showcased during the antis campaign and Great Leap Forward
What did the personality cult of Mao establish?
Mao as the heroic figure who led the revolution in contrast to the Communist Party who supervised and suppressed the people, the Party was portrayed as a threat to Mao’s achievements
Where and when was the first rally by the Red Guards held?
18 August, in Tiananmen Square 1966
In what ways were the mass rallies helpful in accumulating enthusiasm towards the revolution?
It made the students feel important because they were given the responsibility to direct the revolution themselves, and also due to the fact that Mao claimed he needed their support to defeat the reactionary elements
What is an example of the successes of accumulating support from the young people?
In August 1966, his call to students to ‘Bombard the Headquarters’ was greeted enthusiastically by them
How did joining the Red Guards benefit the young people?
More youngsters from middle-class backgrounds were given the chance to prove thier loyalty and therefore deserved better job opportunities
How did the unpopularity of the Party encourage the young people to join the Red Guards?
They were treated poorly by the Party when they were pressurised to relocate from the cities to the countryside after the Great Leap Forward, so they saw it as a chance to get back at Party cadres
What happened in the first rally in Beijing in 1966?
Mao wore an army uniform to demonstrate his closeness to the PLA, and Liu, Deng and Zhou stood from a considerable distance from Mao in civillian clothes
Who addressed the crowd during the first rally?
Lin Biao
What happened after the first rally?
The Red Guards started to attack the ‘four olds’, identified targets were attacked, and the students were given official approval for whatever action they took
What was used in this rally to launch the Red Guard into action?
the hyterical hero-worship of Mao, and having staged the rally on such a colossal scale created a sense of unity
How many Red Guards attended the eight rallies? What did it prove?
Millions, proved the enthusiasm of the young people and the active organisation role of the PLA
Who instructed the Red Guards to attack the ‘four olds’?
Lin Biao
What were targeted during the attack of the ‘four olds’?
Anything that represents past values (Confucius and Co.), fashion trends that were influenced by the West, religion, traditional families
What did the Red Guards do in the attack of ‘four olds’?
Houses were ransacked in search of bourgeois possessions, and were destroyed, books written by bourgeois authors were burned
How did Mao managed to get the Red Guards to attack traditional families?
Young people were urged to treat Mao and the newly cleansed CCP as their true parents, childre would inform the Red Guards of parents who clung on to old attitudes
