Unit 2: What was the impact of the people's communes after 1958? Flashcards
Why did Mao launch the communes?
To maximise food production and accelerate industrial growth.
Ideologically, to prevent the revolution losing impetus.
The first Commune was Sputnik, established in the Henan province in April 1958.
What was the vision of the communes?
Instead of following the Marxist ideology, Mao wanted to build communism in the countryside first, forcing peasants to live in the communes.
He would create industry by developing the communes and making them become more self-relliant.
How were the communes organised?
Production of steel and grain were given equal priority. General grain would produce the food and general steel would turn China into a modern economy.
The communes provided education, public health, childcare in creches and canteen facilities. Happiness homes cared for the elderly.
The communes allowed the community managers to deploy peasants in civil engineering projects such as the Water Conservancy and irrigation schemes.
All able-bodied citizens between 15 and 50 years of age belong to the commune militia who served as a police force to enforce rules of the communes = for example, preventing people from taking too much food from the canteen.
Women were forced to carry out harsh physical labour as both men and women worked the fields
Parents lost influence over the raising of their children.
Production still did not rise enough.
How were the communes organised?
Production of steel and grain were given equal priority. General grain would produce the food and general steel would turn China into a modern economy.
The communes provided education, public health, childcare in creches and canteen facilities. Happiness homes cared for the elderly.
The communes allowed the community managers to deploy peasants in civil engineering projects such as the Water Conservancy and irrigation schemes.
All able-bodied citizens between 15 and 50 years of age belong to the commune militia who served as a police force to enforce rules of the communes = for example, preventing people from taking too much food from the canteen.
Women were forced to carry out harsh physical labour as both men and women worked the fields.
Parents lost influence over the raising of their children.
Production still did not rise enough.
What was the Great Leap Forward?
May 1958
May be referred to as walking on two legs.
This meant that agriculture and industry would develop at the same time which would cause China to overtake Britain as an economic power.
What was Lysenkoism?
An 8 point programme drafted by Mao based on Lysenko’s ideas, which farmers had to follow.
Some features include developing new farm tools, close planting, deep ploughing and increased fertilisation which was potentially dangerous if used together, which was Mao’s directive. For example, the deep fertilisation of the soil led to the destruction of peasants homes.
However, his theories were fraudulent, as he manipulated his research in order to gain political influence.
What was the Four Pests Campaign?
March 1958
Aimed to eradicate mosquitoes, sparrows, flies and rats because they were blamed for destroying the grain.
People were encouraged to bang pots and pans to scare the sparrows and remove bird nests.
With no birds to control them, the insect’s population increased so they ate and contaminated all the grain. This led to a huge ecological disaster and the great famine.
Inspired by Lysenko
What was the harvest figure for the year in 1958?
The published figure was 375 million.
The real figure was close to 200 million tonnes.
Describe the Great Famine.
1958-62
About 45 million dead.
Tibet had 25% of its population killed by the famine. This was deliberate as the government forced Tibetans to grow crops not suited to local conditions.
People resulted to prostitution, selling children and canablism.
What are the five main cause for the Great Famine?
Mao was too ambitious
Mao insisted Lysenkoism be applied in full
Mao was dismissive of experts
Cadres were afraid to speak out when things went wrong
Mao’s owns perspective on China’s priorities
Why was Mao’s ambition a cause for the Great famine?
He expected peasants to produce food, supervise backyard furnaces and work on water Conservancy projects at the same time which was not possible.
Mao thought the communes would work because private ownership had ended. But some communes had poorly developed transport and communication systems to move food to where it was needed.
Why was Lysenkoism a cause for the Great Famine?
Lysenko claimed that his super crops could produce yields 16 times greater than those produced by conventional methods.
Mao accepted this even though Lysenko’s theories were fraudulent and did not suit the needs and conditions of China.
Why were the cadres a cause for the Great Famine?
The cadres gave optimistic reports of how much their communes were producing.
These reports then encouraged the planners to set even higher targets.
This prolonged the delusion that food supplies were plentiful.
Why was Mao’s perspective on China’s priorities a cause for the Great Famine?
Mao prioritised industrialising China rapidly and convincing the rest of the world that Chinese communism was a success instead of the importance of the lives of peasants.
What was the emergency directive?
November 1960
The emergency directive in November 1960 allowed villages to keep their private plots of land and to engage in side occupations such as farming and restored local markets.
