The Cultural Revolution
After Chairman Mao’s absolute failure with the great leap forward, his popularity among the citizens greatly decreased. This prompted Mao to launch the Cultural Revolution in hopes to regain his reputation with the masses and the Chinese government. Mao encouraged the youth all across the country to revolt against authority, and to wipe out old customs and traditions, but his real objective was to get rid of political figures that posed a threat to him. What ensued was a period of total chaos with an estimated 500,000 to 2 million dead (Phillips). The Cultural Revolution lasted from 1966 till 1976, and over the span of 10 years Mao Zedong shaped the country's youth into his own personal army of killers. The Cultural …show more content…
The political turmoil during Cultural Revolution allowed for many radical groups to rise to power and exploit the revolution to their own advantage, the most notorious group being the Gang of Four. The group was comprised of four radical political figures that had rose to power when the Cultural Revolution was reaching its peak, this included Mao’s third wife Jiang Qing, Wang Hongwen, Zhang Chunqiao, and Yao Wenyuan. The group was responsible for carrying out “the harsh policies directed by Chinese Communist Party chairman Mao Zedong during the Cultural Revolution” ("Gang of Four"). The Gang of Four used their influence over China's educational systems to manipulate, and take advantage of young Red Guard soldiers ("Gang of Four"). The corruption of the Chinese government during the Cultural Revolution extremely impacted China's youth and the educational system. Essentially brainwashing the masses into believing in the revolution and idolizing Mao Zedong. However historian Tang Tsou argues that the Cultural Revolution was mandatory in order for reforms to be made within China's government. Tang claims the revolution allowed the masses to assert their authority, thus weakening the hold that the government had over the people, and after the death of Mao the government was able to make the necessary reforms (Llewellyn & Thompson). Although poverty rates within China are quickly decreasing due to the new government, the immediate impact of the Cultural Revolution left a staggering 88.3% of the Chinese population in poverty, and the reformed China is still politically corrupt due to its communist party focusing more on profits than on the people (Cabestan). Ultimately the Chinese government is still full of corruption, and the decreasing poverty rates are only being addressed because the Cultural Revolution effectively destroyed
After Chairman Mao’s absolute failure with the great leap forward, his popularity among the citizens greatly decreased. This prompted Mao to launch the Cultural Revolution in hopes to regain his reputation with the masses and the Chinese government. Mao encouraged the youth all across the country to revolt against authority, and to wipe out old customs and traditions, but his real objective was to get rid of political figures that posed a threat to him. What ensued was a period of total chaos with an estimated 500,000 to 2 million dead (Phillips). The Cultural Revolution lasted from 1966 till 1976, and over the span of 10 years Mao Zedong shaped the country's youth into his own personal army of killers. The Cultural …show more content…
The political turmoil during Cultural Revolution allowed for many radical groups to rise to power and exploit the revolution to their own advantage, the most notorious group being the Gang of Four. The group was comprised of four radical political figures that had rose to power when the Cultural Revolution was reaching its peak, this included Mao’s third wife Jiang Qing, Wang Hongwen, Zhang Chunqiao, and Yao Wenyuan. The group was responsible for carrying out “the harsh policies directed by Chinese Communist Party chairman Mao Zedong during the Cultural Revolution” ("Gang of Four"). The Gang of Four used their influence over China's educational systems to manipulate, and take advantage of young Red Guard soldiers ("Gang of Four"). The corruption of the Chinese government during the Cultural Revolution extremely impacted China's youth and the educational system. Essentially brainwashing the masses into believing in the revolution and idolizing Mao Zedong. However historian Tang Tsou argues that the Cultural Revolution was mandatory in order for reforms to be made within China's government. Tang claims the revolution allowed the masses to assert their authority, thus weakening the hold that the government had over the people, and after the death of Mao the government was able to make the necessary reforms (Llewellyn & Thompson). Although poverty rates within China are quickly decreasing due to the new government, the immediate impact of the Cultural Revolution left a staggering 88.3% of the Chinese population in poverty, and the reformed China is still politically corrupt due to its communist party focusing more on profits than on the people (Cabestan). Ultimately the Chinese government is still full of corruption, and the decreasing poverty rates are only being addressed because the Cultural Revolution effectively destroyed