Mao Zedongs Power in Historical Context - Essay Example

Mao Zedong’s Power in Historical Context The rise of Mao Zedong as the undisputed leader of the Communist Party is considered to be among the biggest turn of events in modern history and this is mainly because of the fact that Mao’s fate was completely tied with the rise of China as a world power. The ability of Mao as the chairman of the Communist Part ensured that many of the policies which were undertaken to develop the industrial base of China were implemented in a manner which can only be termed as exemplary (Raskin 46). Many of the ideas which are in common use in the modern Chinese Communist Party were developed by Chairman Mao and while many in the West consider him to be responsible for the deaths of millions of his people, in China, he is a man who is still greatly revered not only by the leadership but the people as well. It is mostly through the leadership abilities of this individual that China was not only able to fight off the Japanese occupation that had began to take place since the end of the First World War, but also put on the path towards the development of its domestic economy to what it has become today. Like most of the great leaders in history, some of the policies which were pursued by Mao turned out to be failures, not as a result of their lack of good intentions, but as a result of poor timing and planning. One of the biggest mistakes that Mao made during his rule was the purges that he conducted among some members of the Communist Party as a means of ensuring that his authority remained secure. Most of the people who were targeted and either killed or sent into labor camps were those who openly criticized his failed policies such as the second Great Leap Forward which resulted in the deaths of millions due to starvation from crop failure. It is a fact that Mao did not accept criticism well and it is because of this that he had a large number of individuals, who he perceived as a direct threat to his authority as well as counterrevolutionaries purged. Many of these individuals were taken to labor camps where they were forced to work for long hours without any food, and many of them ended up dying from fatigue and starvation. The system of agricultural collectivization as well as the breaking of the power of landlords that was initiated by Mao was devastating to the food production of China during the period where these policies were implemented (Bernstein 421). The breaking up of the large land holdings and their distribution to the peasants resulted in agricultural production being placed in the hands of peasants, who were not experienced enough to ensure that enough food was produced not only for subsistence, but for there to also be a surplus to be sold to other regions which faced starvation. This resulted in the development of a system where a large number of inexperienced people were placed in charge of the country’s food production while at the same time; the former landlords were either put to death or sent to labor camps, where their talents were wasted. It is a fact that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) under Mao Zedong attempted to create a balance between economic development, and the creation of a communist society, which would ensure equity within it (Selden 681). It is because of the need to create such a balance that Mao encouraged the development of soviet style was within China so that it could be able to compete with the industries of other world powers. One of the factors which contributed to the development of the Chinese economy under Mao was the Party’s support for those individuals, both men and women, who wanted to get into the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. This was an instance that was still quite uncommon in the rest of the world and because of this, China under Mao’s leadership can be said to have been at the forefront of gender balancing within its economy. This ensured that most of the ideas concerning industrial development were created on an equal basis within the economy, especially in those areas which had been traditionally dominated by men. To increase the diverse pool of the country’s industrial workforce, the Chinese government under Mao tended to adopt policies which encouraged its people to have an interest in the technological fields while still young so that when they got into institutions of higher education, they would be able to effectively compete in matters of economic development with the rest of the world. Even after Mao’s death in 1976, most Chinese companies, with very few exceptions, have continued to display a high capacity for being able to manage and develop their brands to a high quality level that many of their rivals have rarely been able to match (Mahoney 136). This skillful management of their brands in different countries has enabled Chinese companies to become highly successful, as those who work for them receive a high level of training to ensure that the quality of their products was retained. While it is true that the Chinese economy is based on the policies that were adopted under Mao, to encourage its people to concentrate on the development of industries, this vision has yet to be completely achieved. This is due to the fact that there are still some areas of the Chinese economy where there is a complete lack of government interest and funding, and this has created a situation where the products made from these areas are not suitable for consumption in the global market (Zheng 1760). In order to change this, the Chinese government has put policies in place to work towards ensuring that there is equitable development of its economy so that government funding is not only based in certain areas of the economy, but in the whole of it. This has been done with the aim of creating a balanced economy where all the sectors within it are able to produce those products of the highest quality for both the domestic and the international market, hence ensuring that the economic growth of China continues at greater heights, as was Mao’s dream. In conclusion, it can be said that life in China is heavily dependent on the main ideas of Mao concerning the way the ideal society should be exist. Furthermore, the fact that China is the world’s second largest economy can be attributed to some of the policies that sought its development that were put in place during Mao’s leadership of the CCP. However, as has been discussed above, one of the biggest mistakes that Mao made during his rule was the purges that he conducted among some members of the Communist Party as a means of ensuring that his authority remained secure. It is also a fact that the CCP under Mao Zedong attempted to create a balance between economic development, and the creation of a communist society, which would ensure equity within it. In addition, even after Mao’s death in 1976, most Chinese companies, with very few exceptions, have continued to display a high capacity for being able to manage and develop their brands to a high quality level that many of their rivals have rarely been able to match. It is therefore important to give credit to Chairman Mao for laying the foundations upon which China has risen from being a local, third world power, to the second largest economy as well as one of the most influential political powers in the world. Women’s Power in China Women in China have come a long way from the period where they were completely excluded from any meaningful roles within the society. The seclusion of women from public life and their being relegated to domestic roles while the men decided everything concerning their lives has come to be relegated to the past. This is mainly because of the liberating role that has been played by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) since its founding in the improvement of the lot of women within the society. The women in Chinese society, through the various initiatives in their support that were spearheaded by Chairman Mao, have developed from being the submissive individuals who were kept in the background of the society, into those who are well able to take care of themselves and actively advocate for their interests. The ability of women to gain power and a voice in Chinese society has largely been through following the example of Mao, whose wife, despite having been born and raised in a relatively conservative period, was often at the side of her husband during most of the state events. It has been speculated that the various women in Mao’s life may have had tremendous influence on him and this is the reason why he managed to stay at the helm of Chinese society for as long as he did. One of the most important ideologies of the CCP is that all the people in society are equal, irrespective of their age, status and gender. This doctrine gives many freedoms to women and it is perhaps the basis upon which quite a number of women have managed to gain positions of authority in China through the party. While this may be the case, however, it has been found that in China, men have a tendency to treat women with disrespect (Parish, Das and Laumann 411). This has led to the development of a male dominated culture, especially in many parts of the official establishment, where women have to go through differential expectations from their male counterparts. This has worked towards that perpetuation of stereotypes and isolation which has been found to be harmful, not only to women, but also to those men who are involved with them emotionally. It is therefore necessary that this subject be addressed in China because this is the only way through which the issues can be understood and addressed. Most of the works of Chinese writers concerning women provide a small picture of the biases that women undergo in the society and one would state that the issues that these works discusses are just the tip of the iceberg. It is most likely that future research will make more revelations concerning the treatment of women in the society and this might spark a movement towards a change in the attitudes that put them in such different situations from their male counterparts. One of the greatest achievements of the Chinese government is to ensure an end to forced and arranged marriages. This was done mainly because of the fact that most women who were forced into these marriages had no say in the matter, with many of them being married off against their will. The strictness of Chinese laws concerning this matter has raised the status of women in the country, so that they are no longer being seen as trophies which the men in their live can do whatever they want to. Instead, there has developed an attitude where it has become common for women to be seen striving for the same achievements as their male counterparts (Seth 273). In addition, the institution of the one child policy in China has ensured that all children are valued and treated the same, no matter their gender. It is for this reason that many women have been allowed to get involved in sectors of the economy which were traditionally dominated by men (Hardee, Xie and Gu 70). The empowerment of women through the acceptance of their new role in the society as well as favorable government policies has created a situation where women in China have more independence as well as opportunities to do whatever they would like when compared to their predecessors. One of the results of the empowerment of women in this country is that there has been not only been an increase in the number of women who participate in political life, but also in the economic life as well (Ma). This can be attested to through the increasing number of Chinese women who are successful business people and have become billionaires in the process. There have been continued instances of spousal abuse in China despite the laws which have been enacted to deal with the issue. It is a fact that a significant number of Chinese women are abuse by their spouses and this abuse normally occurs because of the ignorance that many of the women who undergo it concerning their rights (Tsui 378). Most of the abuse which occurs against women takes place in the rural areas, where women tend to be only partially conversant with their rights. The Chinese government has worked towards the ending of such abuse through the enactment of laws which give women the freedom to initiate divorce if they are not satisfied with their marital circumstances. Furthermore, in case a divorce takes place, it has now become the norm for all the joint property of the partners to be split evenly and in cases where it is revealed that a spouse has withheld some of the property, he has to face some severe penalties. The development of laws which protect the interests of Chinese women has worked a great deal in ensuring that these individuals are given equal opportunities within the society; and this is despite the resistance from rural men and conservative elements in China. The circumstance where women were judged through whether they brought honor or shame to their families are currently becoming a thing of the past except for a few cases where women are guided by their parents in making decisions concerning how to live their lives. It is yet to be seen in the coming years whether the power of women in China will increase significantly enough so that they can be able to live their lives in full equality to their male counterparts. As has been discussed above, the empowerment of women in China is an ongoing process through which there is much both the government and the society can do to improve their lives and status. It has been found that women in China have come a long way from the period where they were completely excluded from any meaningful roles within the society. Moreover, one of the most important ideologies of the CCP is that all the people in society are equal, irrespective of their age, status and gender. Furthermore, one of the greatest achievements of the Chinese government is to ensure an end to forced and arranged marriages. In addition, the empowerment of women through the acceptance of their new role in the society as well as favorable government policies has created a situation where women in China have more independence as well as opportunities to do whatever they would like when compared to their predecessors. In spite of the numerous laws that have been put in place to protect Chinese women, there have been continued instances of spousal abuse in China. It has therefore become necessary for the Chinese government to take active measures to ensure that the rights of their female citizens are protected, although this is a process which has, for several decades, been led by many of the empowered women in the country. Works Cited Bernstein, Thomas P. "Mao Zedong and the Famine of 1959-1960: A Study in Wilfulness." The China Quarterly.186 (2006): 421-45. Hardee, Karen, Zhenming Xie, and Baochang Gu. "Family Planning and Womens Lives in Rural China." International Family Planning Perspectives 30.2 (2004): 68-76. Ma, Suzanne. "Affluence Prompts More Women in China to Light Up." Canadian Medical Association Journal 182.12 (2010): E557-8. Mahoney, Josef Gregory. "Ideology, Telos, and the "Communist Vanguard" from Mao Zedong to Hu Jintao." Journal of Chinese Political Science 14.2 (2009): 135-66. Parish, William L., Aniruddha Das, and Edward O. Laumann. "Sexual Harassment of Women in Urban China." Archives of Sexual Behavior 35.4 (2006): 411-25. Raskin, Jonah. "Mao Zedong Chinese, Communist, Poet." Monthly Review 61.1 (2009): 46-9. Selden, Mark. "Jack Gray, Mao Zedong and the Political Economy of Chinese Development." The China Quarterly.187 (2006): 680-92. Seth, Sanjay. "Nationalism, Modernity, and the "Woman Question" in India and China." The Journal of Asian Studies 72.2 (2013): 273-97. Tsui, Ming. "Intimate Politics: Marriage, the Market, and State Power in Southeastern China." American Anthropologist 109.2 (2007): 378-9. Zheng, G. "Mao Zedong and China in the Twentieth-Century World: A Concise History." Choice 48.9 (2011): 1760. Read More