Mao Zedong is one of the most cruel rulers not only of China, but of the whole world. No wonder he is often put on a par with Stalin. In addition to adherence to the Marxist-Leninist doctrine, they are related by the incredibly harsh government of the country. Under his rule, China was completely transformed into a socialist state, and this transition was far from painless. He interpreted Marxist ideology quite creatively, which led to the fact that its Chinese version was called Maoism. The quotes of Mao Zedong, published as a separate book during his lifetime, give a complete picture of the personality of this ruler and his view on the communist way of organizing the state.
The beginning of the way
Mao Zedong was born into a family of a wealthy peasant in 1893. He received classical Chinese education at school. Then he served in the army during the 1911 revolution, after which he entered the pedagogical school. In 1918, Mao created the New People Society. His goal was to find ways to transform China. It was at this time that the future Great Helmsman met with the Marxist-Leninist ideology that determined the fate of Mao Zedong and the whole country.
Thanks to his active work, Mao Zedong is quickly becoming an influential political figure. In 1921, he became the main delegate of the Chinese Communist Party, and in 1923 adjoined the Kuomintang Nationalist Party. Throughout his journey to coming to power, Mao had rather conflicted relations with this organization: almost immediately, he had political disagreements with its leader Chiang Kai-shek, and soon Mao Zedong separated from the Kuomintang and joined the extreme leftist movement of the CCP. However, the Japanese invasion of China in 1936 forced the warring parties to reconcile themselves for a while.
Rise to power
During the war with Japan, Mao Zedong paid much more attention to strengthening his political position among the peasantry. He actively led the purge program, wrote a series of articles in which he determined the orientation of the Chinese version of communism to the peasantry, and not to the urban working class. With the end of the war, the ceasefire with the Kuomintang also ceased. Fierce clashes between the parties resulted in a bloody civil war, which ended in the defeat of the Kuomintang, its flight to Taiwan and the proclamation of the People's Republic of China in 1949.
Mao Zedong (PRC): the path to happiness on the beaten track of the USSR
The United States, which supported Chiang Kai-shek, refused to recognize the new republic of Mao Zedong, unlike the Soviet Union. Between the countries an agreement on mutual assistance and friendship was signed in 1950. Purges, collectivization, five-year plans, “catching up and overtaking” - all that was characteristic of the period of Stalinist repressions in the USSR, has now visited China. Mao Zedong after the death of Stalin became the most influential communist leader in the world, in every possible way encouraging the increasingly developing cult of his personality. However, it soon became clear that the policy of the forced Big Jump did not produce tangible results. The peasantry's standard of living fell sharply, inflation intensified, and production volumes declined. Famine began in the country.
Cultural revolution
In the 60s, China began active persecution of dissidents. According to the worked-out scheme, Yao Wengyun's article “On the new edition of the historical drama“ Demanding Hai Zhui. ” The audience’s goals are immature youth, from which the detachments of the Hungweibins formed. Thousands of people were killed as a result of this “cultural revolution”, hundreds of thousands were expelled from the country, and even more fled. e they were forced to commit suicide and it was at this time comes the famous "Quotations." - a book in which Mao Zedong most fully reveals his views on the state administration, and more.
The New Bible for the Communists
A collection of key statements by Mao Zedong was released by the government in 1966. Its circulation was so great that it can only be compared with the circulation of holy books - the Koran, the Bible or the Torah. In fact, the almost religious worship of this publication was not only welcomed, but also implied by Mao supporters. The first translation from Chinese into Russian by Chairman Mao Zedong of quotations was made in 1967. It contains excerpts from articles and speeches of the Great Helmsman. In a Western translation, this work has the somewhat ironic name “Little Book”, since the pocket edition is most widely used - so you can always carry it with you. The translation from Chinese into Russian sounded much more detailed: "A collection of excerpts from the works of Chairman Mao Zedong." The book has even been translated into Esperanto.
Quotes by Mao Zedong - to the masses
To study this collection, special circles were organized, which gathered even during working hours. It was believed that after such classes the employee will be much more effective in coping with his duties. At every step, posters were hung depicting people holding the “Quote” in their hands. In the guide to reading this book the leitmotif sounds two words - to study and apply. It was recommended to memorize the main statements. It was necessary to regularly include quotes of Mao Zedong in newspaper articles, and to mark them in bold so that no one doubts their authorship.
The most vivid statements
Mainly quotes Mao Zedong touch on the political struggle of socialism with capitalism. He considered American imperialism to be the main opponent of free humanity. Calling him a paper tiger, Mao called on the peoples of the whole world to unite in the fight against him. His theory is interesting about the third world war. He makes it clear that, despite the condemnation of the possibility of unleashing another world conflict, he will only win if it arises. After all, after the First World War, the Soviet Union was born with a population of 200 million people, after the Second - a whole socialist camp, and this is 900 million. After the Third, he hoped that the whole world would come to socialism.
Also in the "Quote" you can find statements of a more general nature, although their share is much smaller than attacks against imperialism. For example, such a philosophical proposition: “That which is conceivable exists” is a rehash of Descartes’s famous aphorism. Or a perspicacious opinion that politics is a war without bloodshed, and war is a politics with bloodshed.
In general, quotes from Mao Zedong, given in the "little red book", give a fairly complete picture of what kind of person the Great Helmsman was. You will not find any special revelations in it, but, perhaps, from a historical point of view, it will be interesting to get acquainted with them.