A For The Ruler Of A Essay Example

provided evidence for two disasters. One of these was the big labour shortage in China that the organisers of the First Five-Year Plan had already noticed at the beginning of the 50s. Despite an increase in food production, industrial output had not yet reached the desired level. The economy blamed peasants for overeating food reserves and this led to the implementation of collectivisation.

During the Second Five-Year Plan, also known as "The Great Leap Forward" from 1958-62, Mao partitioned China into 70,000 communes consisting of about 750,000 brigades each. However, this led to inefficiencies and the loss of freedom for peasants. The failure of the plan was not only due to the disruption of private farming, but also a useless program intended to introduce a revolutionary crop. Its creator, Trofim Lysenko, Stalin's chief scientist, claimed it would increase food production, but instead it had the opposite effect.

Despite the First 5Y-Plan's successes, China's agricultural output continued to decrease. Mao, however, was more focused on industrializing the country, believing that its enormous population was an advantage. To facilitate this, the "backyard furnaces" initiative required families to build smelting devices, which resulted in large factories losing their supplies of iron and steel. This disastrous decision was a major contributing factor to the "Great Leap Forward" tragedy. The famine that followed from 1958-1961 further weakened Mao's standing within the party.

Mao instructed CCP General Secretary Deng Xiaoping and President Liu Shaoqoi to restore economic stability. In response to being held accountable for the chaos that ensued, the two leaders consulted with the prominent CCP economist, Chen Yun. Their solution was to implement market forces and incentivize peasants to increase

food production. While this demonstrated the CCP's willingness to be adaptable in order to maintain power, it confirmed that the commune system had not lived up to expectations. Although economic policies were a significant factor in the CCP's reign over China, it was not the sole element that secured their authority.

One way to gain more support from the population of China was to improve living conditions. Improvement of the status of women in Chinese society was a key focus for Mao. Prior to the Communist Revolution in 1949, gender rights were unequal, resulting in women being considered inferior. This discrimination was exemplified by practices such as foot binding. After gaining power, Mao enacted laws aimed at improving the lives of millions of women. The Communist Marriage Law, published in 1950, was designed to end forced marriages and establish equal constitutional rights for women.

Mao's reputation began to recover again as he stopped practices like polygamy and the drowning of female babies in 1966. However, it is clear that maintaining power through political and military means was more important than the economy. On August 18th of the same year, a huge demonstration took place on Tiananmen Square with over one million people starting the Cultural Revolution to create a new society. Unfortunately, millions of young citizens will lose their lives or suffer severe damage over the next ten years.

The reason behind Mao's support for the revolution was his desire to regain power over China and the CCP, as he feared that the revolution could be corrupted by neo-capitalism and personal ambition. To combat this, Mao launched a poster campaign in 1966, encouraging students to

put up revolutionary posters that criticized the education system. However, when Xiaoping and Shaoqi sent work teams to maintain peace between teachers and students, it resulted in the students taking to the streets and causing chaos. The Maoists supported them by giving them red arm bands, which led to them being called the Red Guards.

The poster campaign effectively demonstrated Mao's political influence and his skill in utilizing it. Propaganda was another means by which Mao maintained control over his population. Youth viewed him as a heroic figure responsible for freeing China from foreign oppression and were enthusiastic about joining the Red Army to achieve revolution. However, this ultimately led to the radicalization of the Red Guard Movement with increased brutality.

Mao brainwashed a substantial portion of the population to follow him and used the PLA as the "defenders of China's revolution" to control the masses and redirect the revolution towards his desired direction. The West, particularly the USA, and anything labelled as "bad elements" were the targets of their revolt, resulting in vandalism that obliterated revered landmarks such as temples and shrines representing Chinese civilization. While a successful economic policy is a crucial aspect for a single party state leader's authority retention, it is not of utmost significance.

The case of China between 1949 and 1976 serves as a great example of how the control over both the people and army played a crucial role. While some may argue that Mao's rise to power was mainly attributed to his resolution of the economic challenges left behind by the GMD, his leadership could not have been sustained without additional policies. Mao's grip on power

was finally solidified by the devotion of the Red Army and effective propaganda during the Cultural Revolution, ultimately giving him full control of the nation.