CULTURAL REVOLUTION AND CONTRIBUTION OF MAO ZEDONG

CULTIRAL REVOLUTION REVOTION

Cultural Revolution was Mao Zedong's attempt to keep the revolution and the
Great Leap Forward on a pure Marxist-Leninist course. In the early 1960s, when the
success of the Great Leap was by no means certain, opposition to Mao grew. The
Right-wing members of the party demanded an increase in the wages, private
ownnership and use of experts instead of cadres in the field of industrialisation. Mao
feared that the Right-wing influence would result in the formation of classes and lead to
the exploitation of the proletariat.
Mao, using his position as Chairman of the party to rouse the young people,
launched a desperate campaign to 'save' the revolution. In this Great Proletarian
Cultural Revolution, as he called it, Mao appealed to the masses. His supporters, the
Red Guards (mostly students), toured the country arguing Mao's case, while schools,
and later factories were closed down. It was an incredible propaganda exercise in which
Mao was trying to renew revolutionary fervour.
Unfortunately it brought chaos and something close to civil war. Once the
student masses had been roused, they denounced and physically attacked anybody in
authority, not just critics of Mao. Teachers, professional, local party officials, all were
targets. Millions of people were disgraced and ruined. The army had to be called in to
control the situation. Mao blamed the Red Guard leaders and the Defence Minister, Lin
Biao for the failure of the revolution. Mao, privately admitting that he had made mistakes
formally ended the Cultural Revolution in 1969.
The Cultural Revolution caused great disruption and ruined million of lives, and
probably held up China's economic development by ten years. And yet in spite of that,
there was some economic recovery in the mid-1970s and China had made great
progress since 1949.

CONTRIBUTION OF MAO ZEDONG

Mao Zedong was perhaps one of the most controversial leaders that the world
has ever seen. His leadership and philosophy will always be an integral part of China's
history. Mao Zedong born in 1893 is also known as Mao Tse Tung and sometimes
Chairman Mao. Mao was one of the founding members of the Chinese Communist
Party (1921).
It was under Mao's leadership that China got rid of the warlords and the
Kuomintang (KMT). The Communists under his aegis defended Chinese sovereignty
when the country was attacked by the Japanese. His efforts gave birth to unified China
which continues to function according to the Communist doctrines. The Great Leap
Forward introduced by him solved the problem of food shortages and unemployment.
The inflation was brought under control. The status of women improved. Education
standard was bettet. Infant mortality rates were down. Under his leadership China took
the first steps to becoming the global super power that it is today.
Mao was a controversial figure. He ruled China on an autocratic and totalitarian
regime. He is responsible for vast numbers of deaths. Supporters of Mao have credited
him with transforming China from a semicolony to a powerful sovereign state, with
increased literacy and life expectancy.