Govt 2284 - REFERENCE - Teiwes Mao Texts and the Mao of 1950s

8/3/2019 Govt 2284 - REFERENCE - Teiwes Mao Texts and the Mao of 1950s

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Contemporary China Center, Australian National University

Review: Mao Texts and the Mao of the 1950sAuthor(s): Frederick C. TeiwesSource: The Australian Journal of Chinese Affairs, No. 33 (Jan., 1995), pp. 127-149Published by: Contemporary China Center, Australian National UniversityStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2950091 .

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MAO TEXTS AND THE MAO OF THE 1950s

Frederick . Teiwes

The Writingsf Mao Zedong,1949-1976,Volume , September 949-December 955, edited yMichaelY. M. Kau and JohnK. Leung.M. E.Sharpe,Armonk,986.xli,771pp., ibliography,eparatendex.US$115.00(hardcover).Volume I, January 956-December957, editedby JohnK. LeungandMichael Y. M. Kau. M. E. Sharpe,Armonk,992. xlviii,863pp.,biblio-graphy,ndex.US$115.00 hardcover).JianguoyilaiMao Zedongwengao Mao Zedong's ManuscriptsincetheFounding f theState], volumesSeptember949-December959), ditedby Zhonggonghongyangenxian anjiushiDocuments esearch ffice ftheCCP Centre]. hongyang enxianhubanshe,eijing, 987-93. ,380pp.RmbY6.20-8.50ervolumepaperback).Theexplosion fsourcesmarkinghe 100thnniversaryf thebirthf MaoZedong eflectsbynowfamiliarituationhats both blessingnda cursefor tudents f Mao andChineseCommunistolitics theprovisionfinvaluable ewmaterialsor erious istoricalnquiryut nsuch uantitystotax ven hemost nergeticesearcher.'fparticularalue renew exts f* Special hanksredue oWarrenunfor is nvaluablessistanceithhe ubstances

well s the etails f his eview. nita han, imCheek ndJon ngerlsoprovidedhelpfulommentsn n arlierraft.In additiono the lood fwritingsoncerningaoappearinghroughout993, ix'importantooks'were nnouncednDecember993; eeZhonggongangshiongxun[CCPParty istoryewsletter],o.23, .'. These nclude:he irstwo olumesfMao


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128 THE AUSTRALIANJOURNALOF CHINESEAFFAIRSMao's writingsnd peeches, hich ad lreadyegun o appearn expandingnumbersuringhe1980s.These nclude oth fficialollectionsroducednthe eformraandthe urfacingn theWest f new' RedGuard ompilationsfromheCultural evolutioneriod.2ogether ith reviouslyvailableMaotexts,hese ew ources reatlyid the ursuitfthe ealMao.The twocollectionsnder eview dd significantlyo ourunderstandingofthehistoric aowhodominatedhePartyndregimen the1950s.Oneofthesebookprojects, he WritingsfMao Zedong,was undertakenn theUnited tateswith ubstantialooperationyscholarsnGermanyndJapan.It set out,at least nitially,o compile ll of Mao's statementsince thefoundingfthePeople'sRepublic nownutsidefChina n a single nglishtranslation.he second et ofvolumes,Mao wengao,s a Chinese anguageinternalneibu)collectionompiled ythemost uthoritativefficial odyresponsibleor ublishingarty ocuments,hich aspriorityccessto theCentral rchivesZhongyangang'anguan).3tpresentswide rrayfMaomanuscriptsumberingore han ,800mostly npublishedtems rom hefirst ecadeofPartyule. hese electedtems reatlyutnumberhe 50-oddpieces overedn TheWritingsfMao.4The two ollectionsverlap nly o amodest xtent, ithmerely 6-plus ercentof the temsn Mao wengaoappearingn theEnglishranslationsor1949-57.5 ignificantly,heChinese

Zedongwenji Collected orksf MaoZedong], hichreeventuallyo cover heentire 921-76eriod; aoZedong ianpu,893-1949ChronologyfMaoZedong,1893-1949];ndMaoZedongwaijiaowensuanSelectedWorks f MaoZedong nForeign elations],hich ontains any ewly ublishedtems ot overedn thevolumesndereview.2 Such Cultural evolutionollectionsormedhebasisof the mportantranslatedcollection, he Secret peeches fChairmanMao: From heHundred lowers o theGreat eapForwardhereafterS),editedyRoderickacFarquhar,imothyheek,andEugeneWu Cambridge:arvardouncil n EastAsian tudies,989).For nanalysisf these ourcesogetherithearlier' ed Guardollections,eeTimothyCheek,The Genius" ao:ATreasurerove f23Newly vailableolumesfPost-1949Mao ZedongTexts',TheAustralian ournal fChinese ffairs,os 19&20 1988),pp.311-44.ll23volumesf hesematerialsave een ublishedsphotocopiesy heCenteror hineseesearch aterialsOakton,irginia)or S$700.3 Onthe elationshipf he entralocumentsesearchfficend he entralrchives,see Frederick. Teiwes,InterviewsnParty istory',CP Research ewsletter,os10&1 1992), p.6-7.4 Thestrictlyelevantomparisons betweenhe 51itemsnd1,563 ages fMaodocumentsincludingditors'otes)n he wo olumesfTheWritingsfMaoZedong(hereafterM) nd he ,227temsnd ,062 ages fdocumentsincludingotes)nvols1-6 fMaowengaooveringhe 949-57eriod.S Theproportionfnewlyvailable aterialabouthree-quarters)nMao wengaos essthan he 3-84 er ent ot verlappingithWM ince ome tems otncludednWM


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MAOTEXTSANDTHEMAOOF THE 1950s 129collection oes not reflect n official olitical genda, nd the editorialcommentarys bothrich n detail ndless explicitlynterpretivehan hatprovided ytheAmericanditors.Inwhat ollows will first escribehese wo mportantollections,otethevaryingssumptionsf their espectiveditors,nd assess theutilityndlimits f these ources n furtheringurunderstandingf Mao and Partyhistory.willthen oncludewith nassessmentf Mao for he rucial 956-59 period,whichaw dramaticevelopmentsnhisthinkingnd ctions, ithprofoundonsequencesor heChinese ation.TheTranslatedWritingsfMao ZedongMichaelKau and John eung, heir ollaboratingditors nd other rojectcontributorsaveput n enormousffortntoTheWritingsfMaoZedong.ntheir successful f still incomplete ffort o establish unprecedentedbibliographicoverage f Mao's writingsnd speeches s well as toprovidetranslationsf a high tandard,he ditors ave scanned huge mount fmaterial o identify ao's published tatements:he coverage ombinesofficial ublicationsf theperiodwhenhespoke r wrote; ources rom heCultural evolution,articularlyed Guard ollections;ndpost-Maofficialpublications.6he collectionhus ncludes hegreat ulk ftheMao materialsavailableprior o theappearance f Mao wengao.7t includes peeches,

have een ublishednother hineseources,nd lso nview f ignificantumbersfalreadyvailable ed Guard exts or he 1958-59 eriod ot overed ytheWMvolumes, hichremirroredy ocumentsnMaowengao.6 Amoreefinedreakdownf temsy ourcess:contemporaryources54 per ent;RedGuardmaterial9 per ent;fficialulturalevolutionources less han percent;the mmediateost-Mao fficial electedWorks fMao TsetunghereafterW)(Peking: oreign anguagesress, 977) 5 per ent; he eformraMaoZedongshuxin uanji Selected etters f Mao Zedong, ereafterX] (Beijing:Renminchubanshe,983),which ompiled umerousettersyMao withoutheeditorialdistortionsoundnthe electedWorks 16per ent; therost-Maofficial aterialless han per ent; oreignources 4 per ent;ndmore han ne ource 11per ent.7 The riginaloal f ncludingll Mao texts asbeen vertakeny he xplosionfnewdocuments;ome electivityasalready eenforcedn the ditorsy productionschedules,ithtems ot ncludedlongwith hose navailableo the ditorss theearlier olumes entopress rojectedor ublicationna volumefsupplementarytexts nce he hronologicaleriesscompleted.he ditorseeminglyhose o gnoreseveralmid-1980s ollections uch s Mao Zedong inwen ongzuowenxuanSelectedWorks f MaoZedong n.Newspaper ork]Beijing: enminhubanshe,983) nfavourf themorenterestingX note ) while reparingolume, norhave heyincludedtems romuch ourcesnVolumeI. See WM, , pp.xxviii,xx, I, pp.xx,818-21.More erious asbeen he pparentailureo can he ey arty istoryournal


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130 THEAUSTRALIANOURNALF CHINESEAFFAIRSwrittenirectives,etters,ecords fconversations,nscriptions,oems ndformaliplomatic essages, ith irtuallyll areasofpublic olicy ouchedupon.While theinclusion f protocolmessages undoubtedlyraftedyothers ut hecked nd signed yMao) inflateshenumberfentriesnthecollectionyroughly5 per ent, hevolumes rovidenglish eadersccessto many f themostmportantf theChairman'snowntatements,ith hemost riticaltems peeches atherhanwrittenocuments.heWritingsfMao,moreover,rovidesontinuoushronologicaloverage, ith naverageof seven tems ermonthndnomonthor he ntire 949-57 eriodackingan entry. ll in all, theeditors re producing superb ollectionnd aninvaluableesourceor ll studentsfChinese olitics.There re,however,omeproblems ithhe electionnddatingftexts,despite ery arefulourcenotes ndcomparisonsfall available ersions.8This s inevitable ith edGuard ources. hese revaluablen revealingheflesh-and-bloodao but ubjecto naccuraciesytheir outhfulditors,ottomentionhevagariesnherentnusing rivaten-the-spotranscriptionsfMao's speeches. These problems re largelyunavoidablegiven theinformationtKau andLeung'sdisposal, ut na few ccasions heyrebothavoidablend erious. yfar hemostmportantase npoint oncerns ao'sdamningttack n thePeople'sDailyfor tsJune 956 editorialriticizing'rash dvance', n tem ated1956' inoneRedGuard ollectionut ctuallymadebyMao in January958.9 heerror,fcourse,spoliticallyital ince tconcernshekey ssueofwhenMao turnedgainst he anti-rashdvance'(fanmaojin)olicies, developmenthich,s I shall how nthis ssay, heevidence uggests idnotoccurbefore all 1957.An evenmore mportantweakness, utone seeminglyeyond hecontrol f theeditors,'0 as thefailure o includemportanted GuarddocumentsortheFebruary-April1957 period.These includethe originalversionof the late February'Contradictionsmong hePeople'speech," longwith omeofMao's mostrevealingommentsromheHundredlowers eriod.2

DangdewenxianThe arty'socuments],hich,incets naugurationn 1988, aspublishedomeignificanttatementsyMao.8 Thegreatare akensfurtherhownn he ombiningfdifferentextsf singletem,the nnotationfdifferencesmongeveralersions,r,whereheyre oodisparate,the ull roductionf eparateersions.9 Thetext f the1956'documentorrespondsirtuallyord orwordwith January1958Mao statement,hile ontextualvidencelearlyointsotheater ate. eeSS,p.395n;nd TheConfessionfWuLeng-hsi',hineseaw ndGovernment,inter1969/70,.72.10 They idnot ave ccess o he extsn uestion: M,I,pp.xxix,xxi.

l Seethe nalysisf he ifferencesetweenhisnd heubsequentcleansed'ersionnMichael choenhals,Original ontradictionsOn theUnrevisedextof Mao


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MAOTEXTSANDTHE MAOOF THE 1950s 131Less defensiblere shortcomingsnhandlingfficial exts. articularlyimportants that he ollection's ating fMao's two rucial ebruary-March1957 peeches,On theCorrect andling fContradictionsmong he eople'and his address o the national ropagandaonference,istorts istoricalreality ince both f these peeches n their fficial ormwereheavily e-edited uring he ost-mid-Mayeriod: hats, after heHundred lowerswasperceivedo begettingutof hand. he correct ating or Contradictions's19 June 957,when hisheavily dited ersion as publishedn thePeople'sDaily.Kau andLeungwere learly acedwith reater ifficultiesoncerningthe12 March ropagandapeech ince tdidnot ppear n print ntil 964 ndlittlewas known bout herevisions ntil ery ecently,utthefact hat omention as madeof the even-yearapbetweeneliveryndpublicationnthe xtensiveource ote s causefor isquiet.'3 lso difficultounderstandsthe nclusion f eightPeople's Daily editorials ver the April-June957period s beingMao's writings erelyn thegroundshatmany cholarshave attributedthem] o Mao'. As amply emonstratedn theMao wengaocollection,heChairman idkeep tightein n editorial oliciesn this ndother eriods nd therean be little oubt hese articularditorialseflectedhis views, ut heres no evidence fhisdirect nput part romlteringhe

tidlefone ofthe ditorials.14iven hat hewhole urposefthe rojects tocompile definitiveollection fMao's works,t is of dubiousvalue toinclude temsimplyn the asisof cholarlypinionutside hina.The editors f The Writingsf Mao, in addition o extensive otes ndannotationsn theproductionf individual exts ndthevariationsmongthem, providevaluable historical, iographical,inguistic nd Marxisttheoreticalxplanationsnd nformation,nddirect he eader o someof thebestsecondaryiteraturen thepoints t issue. This factual ommentarysoverwhelminglyf a high tandard.'5 f more oncern s the nterpretiveZedong's On theCorrect andlingf Contradictionsmong hePeople"',TheAustralian ournalfChinese ffairs,o. 16 July 986),pp.99-112.12 Altogetherhe1989Harvard ouncil olumenote ) nearly oublesWMl's otalcoveragefMao'spreviouslynavailablealks f pring957. or nanalysisrawingonthe Sdocumentshatould ave nly een artiallyonstructedromheWM exts,seeFrederick . Teiwes,Politics ndPurges nChina:RectificationndtheDeclineofParty orms950-1965,nd d. Annonk: . E. Sharpe,993), p.xxiii-xxv.3 SeeWM,I,pp.375-7. detailedummaryf he evisionrocessor othpeechesanbefoundnMaowengao,ol.6, p.358-60,95.Cf.below, ote 2.4 SeeWM, ,pp.478,80-81; ndMaowengao,ol.6, p.506-7. aodid, owever,raftormakehangesootherditorialsromhe eriod,ncludingt east nenotncludedinWM; ee Mao wengao, ol.6, p.519-20, 29-34.15 Indeed,he nly rulygregiousrror otedy his eviewersthe tatementhatMao'ssecretary,ianJiaying,hasnotbeen ctive ublicly'ince heCultural evolution


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132 THE AUSTRALIANJOURNALOF CHINESE AFFAIRScommentary,hich resentsnunusuallyxplicittatementfthediscredited'two line struggle' iewof post-1949 hinesepolitics.Not only s Maopictureds beset by opponents t various riticalunctures nd his veryleadershipalmost onstantlyncontention',ithong-standingonflict ithLiu Shaoqi nparticularepeatedlysserted,ut hewholenotionfongoingstruggle etween 'radical'Mao and his conservative'ppositions tracedbackto the arly 950s nd s saidtodevelop articularlyrom 956-57. heeditorsfurthererceivepoliticaldevelopmentss stemming romMao'stheoreticallyonsistentommitmento class struggle, hich llegedlyedinevitably o first he GreatLeap Forward nd eventuallyhe CulturalRevolution.16believesuch an interpretationo be fundamentallyrong:elite-levelarty olitics f theMaoistperiod hould emore ccuratelyeenas a processdominated y an unchallengedhairman urroundedy otherleadersattemptingo divinehis often bscure ntentions,djustingheirpreferenceso hisdesires,ryingoexploit isambiguitieso advance heirbureaucraticndpoliticalnterests,ndsquabblingmong hemselves henMao's actionsxacerbatedld tensionsrcreated ew nes mong hem.Mao wengao theClassified hineseCollectionThe latterview of Mao-erapolitics s supportedy the Mao wengaocollection.While notexplicitlyddressinghe ssue of Mao's power, hewholenaturef the rojects toregard im s anall-powerfulmperor.hereis, indeed, strongimilarityith raditionalistoriographicalollectionsfimperialnotes.'7 t could even be argued hatMao wengaoreflectsnunconsciousmpulse ogatherogetherwidevarietyf thingswhich heimperial ulerouched,owever rief r nconsequentialarticulartemsmaybe.Thusdocumentsonsistingolely fthemost erse ommentsre ncluded'agree', this an be used', returno Comrade engDehuai, havereadthis document'18 and even the Chairman'smisuse of characters,underliningsnd somewhat omicaluse of Englishphrases re faithfully

(WM, , p.448)when nfact ewas one ofthenotableuicides nthe ve of themovement.16 See especially he ntroductionoVolumeH., p.xxi-xxviii,xxi-xli.While omenoteson specificextssee,for xample,, p.335, I, pp.17, 93, 435) provide moremodulatediewwhichncorporateshiftsnMao's views,hissa fairummaryf hebasic osition.or nextendedtatementf he ollowinglternativenterpretation,eethentroductiono heecondditionfmy oliticsndPurges.17 See, forexample,Gongzhongdang uangxu hao zouzhe Memorials o theThroneduringhe eignf heGuangxumperoreptn he orbiddenity rchives],6vols(Taibei: ugongowuguan,973).18 See Maowengao,ol.1, .317; ol.5, .1 ;vol.7, .69.


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MAO TEXrS ANDTHE MAOOF THE 1950s 133recorded.'9 ao's awesome uthoritys revealednmultiple ays:hisabilityto determinehowould ttendndwhowouldplaykeyroles t major artymeetings,istightontrolverdocumentsirculatedohigh evelgatherings,his review fand changesmadetokey reportsnd to thespeeches fhisrankingolleagues, is demands or n immediateesponseromhe ikesofZhouEnlai on mattershat aptured is nterest,nd his eading oleat allcrucial urningoints.20he Maopicturedythese extss someone tterlyncommand,ssertivefhispowernd nvariablybtainingompliance.Thetypes f temsn theMao wengao ollectionncompassll of thoseinTheWritingsfMao plussome dditionalategoriess well,most otablyspeechoutlines or some of the Chairman'smajorpronouncementsndmarginal ommentsn and alterationso Partydocuments.he speechoutlines,or xample or hemajormeetingsfthe irstalf f1958,21re s arulemore ellinghan he ompletepeeches reciselyecause heyre rude,less rhetorical,nd henceto the point.Mao's alterationsnd marginalcommentsan also reveal his particularmphasis nd what s especiallyagitatingim tkeypoints. he substantiveoveragefpolicy reas s at eastas wideas that f the ranslatedollectionndconsiderablyore ense,withmultiplentriesvailable ormostweeks.Unlike heKauandLeung olumes,themost ignificanttemsrewrittenocumentsatherhanpeeches,ndallcan be traced oMao himself.hat s, apart romtems hathe personallywrote,ll documentsncludingecordsf speecheswere hecked yhim. nthis ense he ollections farmore eliable han heRed Guard ompilations,whichwerenotvettedyMao andcontainnevitablerrors.22ut n anothersense thegeneralvalidity f such CulturalRevolutionmaterials againconfirmedhroughhe losesimilarityfarchivaltemso the ersionsut utby 'revolutionary'roups n the late 1960s.23One unfortunateractice,however,s the tendencyf the editors o use theofficial electedWorksversionswhere hese xist, lthoughhere s oftenn implied ouchingorsuch exts ythenotewe havethe riginalmanuscript',nd na significant19 See bid., ol.7, .196, ol.8, p.32,02.20 For nstance,ee bid., ol.4, p.435-6,51-60; ol.5, p.412-16,ol.6, p.469-76,71;vol.8, p.184-5,50-1,55, 56-7,14-17.21 Ibid., ol.7, p.10, 6-18,4-31, 08-25,94-211.22 Mao'spersonalnvolvementroducesistortionsf ts wn, owever,hroughepeatedrevisions. erhaps hemost trikingase concernsheApnl 1956 'Ten Great

Relationships',hichfteranousarlierevisionsas gain ditedn 1975 spartfthe rojectfpreparingolume of Wunderhe irectionfDengXiaopingnot he'Gangof Four' s commonlyhought).here-editingasapprovedyMao,andultimatelyppearedn his ersionnbothW ndMaowengaoseevol.6, p. 05-6).23 Compare aowengao,ol.3, p.489-91;ndWM,, pp.272-3.nthe verall eliabilityofRedGuardources,eeCheek,The Genius" ao',pp.327-8.


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134 THE AUSTRALLAN OURNALOF CHINESE AFFAIRSnumber f cases fuller ersions re presentedhanwhat reexcerptedn theSelectedWorksrotherources.24In what ensecan it be asserted hat here s no obviouspolitical ineimposed n the editing f the Mao wengao ollection?n contrast o thevarious ullsof the electedWorks,heres no efforto paint Mao of anyparticularolouration.oth adical ndmoderate hairmenrefoundnthesepages; as the ditors ut t, he ollectionncludescorrect,ncorrectnd notcompletelyorrect' iews. t is this s well as the fact hat hecollectioncontains classified'materialwhich ed to it beingrestrictedn theory oleading adres t the specialdistrictnd army ivision evel, s well as torelevantcholars.25The aimis clearly istoricist,o reveal herealMao. Yet selectivitysinvolved; ot ven ll items romhe electedWorksre ncluded. bias doesexist, utnot heusual one ofimposing distortedolitical lant n Mao'swords.nstead, here eems o be anefforto protecthepersonaleputationsof those oncerned. ith egard o Mao himself,neofthe trikingmissionsishis motional3 July 959 ttack n PengDehuai t the ushan onference.Arguably hat s involved ere s lessMao's policy tance,which s amplydemonstratedy otherMao wengaodocuments rom heperiod, han heirrationalityf this articularutburst.uteven learers an effortoprotecttheprestigefthosewho ufferedt Mao's hands; fterll,the 3July peechwas aimed at one of thegreatmilitary eroes f the revolution.urtherindicationsf this ensitivityretheremoval f critical eferenceso otherleaders,which ppearnthe electedWorks'nnotationsor he ame tem.Even where he historical ecordndicatesMao was indeed riticizingheindividualsnquestion,26X orXXX s used na few ases to hide henames24 This can have mportantubstantivemplications,s in the 1951public ecurity

conferenceesolutionditedyMao whereheWM ersion1, .192) ased nboth WandRedGuardourcesasMaocallingor xecutionsn about 0 to20per ent' fcounter-revolutionaryases. ntheMaowengaoextvol.2, p.295-6),owever,heresolutionistinguishesmong ariousategones, ithhe10 to 20 per ent igureapplyingnly o counter-revolutionariesoundntheParty, overnment,rmy,ndcertaintherrganizationsnd ircles,nd ets he armoremodesteneraluidelinesof0.1per ent or uralreas nd .05per entnthe ities.nsome ases, owever,WM resentsullerersionsfparticularexts;ornstance,ompare,pp.196-201,ithMao wengao, ol.2, p.316-18.25 See the explanation't the tart f each volume.npractice,ntoday's hina hecollectionanbepurchasedidely,ven y oreigners.26 Compare aowengao,ol.2, p.578-9;nd W,V,p.71,withegardoMao's ate 951directivenagriculturalooperativizations a criticismfL1u haoqi.n this asetheSW assertionf such riticismppears orrect;ee Frederick. Teiwes, olitics tMao's Court: aoGang ndParty actionalismnthe arly 950sArmonk:. E.Sharpe,990), p.42-3. owever,n ome ases heMaowengaopproach aynhance


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MAOTEXTSANDTHE MAOOFTHE 1950s 135of peoplerebukedyMao,27ndfootnotesetail he reversalfverdicts'nleaderswhohadbeen wrongly'ubjectedoMao's punishment.he effortoupholdtheprestige f theChairman's omrades-in-armsa prestigehatwould, ccordingo the ogicof theeditors, e damaged yemphasizingMao's dissatisfactionith hem),s nowhere ore tronglyuggestedhan ythenon-inclusionf Mao's 12August 953speech hat ttackedneof thepost-Mao egime'smost nfluentialigures,o Yibo,andwhich ppearedntheSelectedWorksna grossly istortedorm.28A strongeaturef theMao wengao ompilations the traightforward,factual nnotations. nly occasionallys an interpretiveote included,invariablyo affirmarticular attersn terms onsistent iththe 1981'Historical esolution',s in thedefense f the old revolutionaries.29hisempirical pproachoffers goldmineof specific nformation. ao'sfrequentlyerse ommentsn various ocumentsrenot nly ccompaniedynotesdentifyinghe ocumentsnquestion,utnormallyy summaryfthedocuments hat re often xtremelyetailed. husMao wengaonotonlyprovidesxtensiveew extsfwhatMao saidorwrote, ut lsoan mportantwindow ntowhathe read.As a result, heinteractiveature f Mao'sactivities withhis topcolleagues,with ocalofficials,entral ureaucratsandcorrespondentsis opento scrutinyn a widerange f ssues.A senseof politicalprocess, s well as the Chairman's iews,flowsout of thiscollection.Othernuggets rom heMao wengaotexts nd annotationsnclude:evidence fMao's authorshipf documentsssued n thenamesof otherleaders, pecifically number f 1958orders nd appealsconcerningheTaiwan Straitscrisis that were formally igned by Peng Dehuai;30biographical/organizationalataunavailablelsewhere,s inthe dentificationofLin Fengin the mportantostof Central ommitteeeputyecretary-generalfiumishuzhang)n 1955, rthe istingf theheadsof the conomiccooperationegionsetupduringheGreat eap;31vidence fMao's intense

'seekingruthrom acts' ymodifyingssumptionsoncerninghe egreef Mao'sdissatisfaction,s in his May 1953 ommentalling orhispersonalettingf alldocumentsssued y he entralommittee.nthis ase he roposal as ctually adetoMao by he olitburoseeMao wengao, ol.4, .230),lthoughtmay ave eflectedhis olleagues'erceptionsfhis nhappinessithxistingrocedures.27 SeeMao wengao,vol.1, p.433, 05;vol.7, .197.ronically,hesemayncludeeopledeletedrom edGuardollectionsecause ffavourableentionsyMao.28 On hedistortionsf hispeech,eeTeiwes,olitics tMao's Court, p.9, 9-70.29 The first hree olumes, owever,ontain 5 to20 pagesof endnotes hich eflecthe'Histoncal esolution' hile rovidingnoverviewfthepernodnquestion.hispracticeasdroppedn ubsequentolumes.30 SeeMao wengao, ol.7, p.454-61,68-70, 88-9.31 See ibid., ol.5,p.271;vol.7,pp.255-6.


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136 THE AUSTRALIANJOURNALOF CHINESEAFFAIRSinvolvementn theearly1950s nmajor vents uchas thesuppressionfcounter-revolutionariesnd the Three and Five Anti Campaigns butsurprisinglyot othe amedegree oncerningand eform);32nd ndicationsviatheflow f documentsf the tatus,ctivityndpossible oliticaltances(or Mao's perceptionshereof)fvarious igh eaders.33inally,hese extsprovide mportantonfirmationf keypoliticaldevelopmentsreviouslyknown nly hroughnterviews. case inpoint s the ssueofdowngradingtheThoughtfMaoZedong', developmentommonlyaken s ananti-Maoploy fthemid-1950s,utnow onfirmedsMao's own nitiativeating romfall1952.34Notwithstandinghevast array f newinformationnMao wengao swellas the mportanttemsespecially ed Guard ecords fMao's speeches)inTheWritingsf Mao that re not ncludednthePartyompilation, hatcan be known hroughhesecollections as definiteimits. or all theirrichness,hese ocumentsnly rovide art fthe vidence equiredndmustbe supplemented y Partyhistories,memoirs nd interviewseforeasatisfactorynderstandingf events an be achieved.A case inpoints thecriticalgriculturalooperativizationebate f1955, nothernstance heretheeditors f the translatedollectiondoptthe conventional ao versus'conservatives'erspective.ritical ere s that he ocumentsnTheWritingsofMao,when sedwithouttherources, o notprovide basis tochallengethat erspective,ndeven heMao wengao extsnly ivefaint ints f whatactuallyranspired.nfact, atherhan Maoopposed yconservativeeadersinthefirst alf f 1955,Mao initially otonlyfully ndorsed he onsensusline,but venadopted postureo far o the right' s tosurprisehemainadvocate fmoderation,uralwork hief engZihui.By MayMao began oswingtoward moreradicalposition, uthe was accommodated notopposed by he emainderfthe eadershipithhe ole,briefxceptionfDengZihui. t is a story fa dominant ao cuttingisswathe hroughhe

32 See bid., ols -3 assim,speciallyromate 950.33 Itbecomes ossibleoperceivehe qual tatusfYeJianying,lthoughnly ead fthe outh hina ub-Bureau,ithhe ureaucraticallyigherreat egioneadersfterLiberationvol.2, .70), opinpointengXiaoping's959 nactivityue o n njuredleg frommid-Juneo mid-Decembervol.8, pp.294, 303, 616), and to observe hecunousresurfacingfLinBiao as a recipientfMao's documents rom pril o June1959: that s, before heLushan nsis at a timewhenMao was clearlyveenng n amoderateirectionvol.8, p238, 41, 43, 50, 52, 88, 02).34 See bid., ol3,p.563, ol.4, p.192,23-4. or hergumentnthe asis f nterviews,see Frederick. Teiwes,PengDehuai ndMaoZedong', heAustralianournalfChineseAffairs,o.16 July 986),p.87.


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MAOTEXTSANDTHE MAO OF THE 1950s 137leadership,uta storywhich annot e demonstratedrom ither f thesecollectionsftheChairman'statements.35The 1950sMao ZedongWhat, asedon these wocollections,anbe saidoftheMao of the1950sapartfrom is awesomepower?TheMao of theseyears omesacrossassomethingf a centristn policydebatesup until ate 1957,albeitwithoccasional radical enthusiasms,most notably n the post-April 955cooperativizationampaign. is thinkingasmarkedy nner ensions,utoverall etriedosteer course etweenhe xcesses f both he right'ndthe left', ven fonsome mportantccasions ewas tothe left' fother eyleaders.The collectionslso provide fuller icturef other eaturesf Mao'sleadership: ao's conceptionfhimselfs a significantarxistheoristndhis preoccupationith heoryespite oparticularistinctionnthis rea;hismarkednd ometimesapid hiftsfview, atchingis eadingolleagues ysurprise; is frequentmbiguity,eaving olleagues nd offilcialsenerallyconfuseds tohis ideas andpolitical urposes; forcefulnddemandingposturewhenaroused, ometimesnvolving arsh tricturesgainst therleadersbut almostalwaysmitigatedy signs of forgiveness;nd anunwillingnessoacceptmeaningfulersonalesponsibilityor olicy ailures,while hiftingheblame nd personalizinguchfailureshroughhistoricaljudgmentsfthe lleged hortcomingsfothers. ll ofthese spects fMao'sleadershiptyle anbe witnessedarticularlylearlyn theperiod romheEighth arty ongressnthe utumnf 1956 hroughhe irstwoyears ftheGreat eapForward.o illustrateao's politicsndmode f eadershipnthe1950s shallfocusmy emarksn these hree ears.The interpretationdvancedby Kau and Leung pictures he EighthCongresss theheightfconservativeominance, gatheringhat borethestamp fLiu Shaoqi'. nthis iew, part rom he autiousconomic oliciesofthe anmaojinrogram,hekey ssuewas the heoreticalssessmentfthecurrentituationxpressednthepolitical esolutionassedbytheCongress.Theepitomefthe Liuist'approachllegedly asthe esolution'sssertionthatthe ontradictionetweenhe roletariatnd he ourgeoisie. . hasbeenbasically esolved,. . classexploitation.. hason thewhole eenbroughto35 For a comprehensivenalysis fthis ase,see theEditors'ntroductiono Fredenck .TelwesandWarren un eds),ThePolitics fAgnculturalooperativizationn China,

Mao,DengZihui, ndthe HighTide'of1955 ArmonkM. E Sharpe, 993),pp.5-27.The keysource n which his nalysis s based,Bo Ylbo's Ruogan hongdauece yushijian ehuiguReflectionsn Certain ajor ecisionsndEvents], ol.1 Beijing:Zhonggonghongyangangxiao hubanshe,991),ch.15, ogether ithtssubsequentvol.2 1993), s notable or significantumberfMao statementshich onot xistnany ther nown ource


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138 THE AUSTRALIANJOURNALOF CHINESE AFFAIRSanend, . . [and]themain ontradictionzhuyaomaodun)nourcountrysalready hat . . between he advanced ocialist ystem ndthe backwardproductive orces f society'.This formulationas distortedy CulturalRevolution ources s advocating he dying way of class struggle' nd,accordingo such ources, as nsertednto hepolitical esolutiontthe astmoment,n some versionsvirtuallymuggled n, so thatMao had noopportunityo veto t.KauandLeung peculatehat heChairman ent longfor actical easons, resumablyn light f the trengthf theconservativeopposition. heyassert hat y spring 957hebegantoopposeopenly heresolution'smplicationsor he utureourse fthe evolutionnd aunchedParty ectificationn anefforto overturnhis ominantosition.inally,heeditorsclaim that when Mao explicitly ejected he EighthCongressformulationt the CentralCommittee's hirdPlenum yearlater anddeclared hecontradictionetween heproletariatndbourgeoisieo be themain contradictionn the same occasion as overturninghefanmaojinpolicies, e was providinghe heoreticalasisfor heGreat eap Forward.36The evidence fMao's speechesncludedn TheWritingsfMaoZedongitself, he Mao wengaodocumentsnd other ecent artyhistoryourcespresentsfar ifferenticture. ao's controlfwhatwent n at theCongressis clearlydemonstratedy his vetting f speeches,reports nd otherdocuments,ncluding he politicalresolution.37ost telling re Mao'srepeated omments nd correctionsuring hedraftingf Liu's politicalreport, report ully choing heanalysis f theresolution. ao notonlyclearlyndorsed he eportndpraisedhe ffortsfLiu and othersnvolvedin the drafting rocess,but he also made manyamendments imself.Particularlyelevants Mao's additiono the section f thepreparedextwhich noted thatdespite he decisivevictoryf socialist ransformation'classes stillhavenotdiedout' andremnantourgeoisdeologyontinuedoexist.HereMao insertedn hisownhand he ommenthatafter he emnantideologyfthe ourgeoisiendpetty ourgeiosieiesout, he ontradictionnsociety f theforces fproductionndtherelationsfproduction.. willexist orever'.38everal hingsre pparent ere. irst,s has been learforlongtime,39t demonstrateshat he onsensus iewof theEighth ongressincluded belief hat lasses ndclass struggle erenot ntirelyhingsfthe36 WM, I, pp.xxiv-xxv,58, 692-3. For details n theEighth ongress esolution,eeRoderickMacFarquhar, he Originsof the CulturalRevolution : ContradictionsAmong hePeople 1956-1957 New York: ColumbiaUniversityress,1974), pp.101,119-2137 Mao wengao, ol.6,pp 165-9.187-8, 92-4, 99-200, 10-12. ee also Mao's speecheson theeve of theCongressnot ncludednMao wengaowhich how his control fpersonnel atterstthemeeting; ang de wenxian, o.3 1991),pp.5-10.38 Mao wengao, ol.6, p. 36-64quotationnp.137).39 See the iscussionnMacFarquhar,heOrigins,,pp 160-4.


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MAO TEXTSAND THEMAOOFTHE 1950s 139pastandthat ffortsocombat eactionarydeologieshould emain n theParty'sagenda.More significantly,t showsthatMao fully haredthedominantutlookhat riorityoncernmusthiftoa new etoftasks entredonnationalonstruction.In fact,Mao upheld hisnewcourseovertheentire 956-57period,starting ithhis optimisticeclarationt the beginningf 1956 of a'fundamentalhange n thepolitical ituation' ue to thebasic victoryfsocialismover capitalismn the successful griculturalooperativizationcampaign.40hile he hiftromlassstruggleo economiconstructionasclearthroughouthisperiod, t tooksometimeto arrive t a theoreticalformulationor t.As Mao put t in spring 957, inApril astyear . . [I]spoke f ten elationships.. Atthe imewehadnotyethad a chance osaythat he lassstruggleasbasically rawnoa close. twasnotuntil he ..[Eighth arty] ongresshatwe were ble to speakon thispoint irmly'.'Althoughhenew heoreticalositionundamentallyecognizedhe hangenownershipatterns,t also reflectedpragmaticoliticalssessment,nthiscase that pponentsnsociety adbeen ufficientlyowed, ras Mao wouldput t subsequently,wereobedient'ndnot ausing rouble.42n short,herewas little ontention ithin he top leadershipver thebasic thrustfdowngradinglassstruggle.43An adjustmentotheEighth ongressonsensuswas soonrequiredydevelopmentsn Poland nd HungaryndbyechoesofdiscontentnChinaitself. hus n late1956and the tartf 1957,Mao andthePartyeadershipadopted somewhat arsheroneconcerninglass struggle,he needforprotractedfforts o combatbourgeois deology, nd the dangersofrevisionism,ut without ltering he basic frameworkhateconomicconstructionas theParty'smain ask.Thenewharsherone, owever, asseized upon by lower-level fficials o tightenontrol, speciallyover40 See WM, , pp.724-5,11,.18.41 Ibid., I,p.465.42 See ibid., .689.43 Therewere omereservations,hough,oncerningheprecise ormulationfthemaincontradiction,matterpparentlyeading o CulturalRevolutionlaimsabout ast-minute ctivityoncerninghepolitical esolution.heanswer othat uzzlemay ie inKang Sheng's interjectionuringMao's comments year ater, nd theChairman'sresponse Kang Sheng: When we wroteup that tatement,e gave thoughtowhether eshouldwritetornot t all.Afterhinkingtover epeatedlywedidwritet

up] . . .' Mao: '. . . We were going to change it at the time,but [thedocument]hadalready eenreleased'. Ibid, p.812.Althoughhis tems simply ated 1957', textualanalysis learlyndicateshattdatesfromheThird lenum. f SS, p.21 .)Clearly helast-minuteonfusionurroundinghe recise ormulationasnot major oliticalssuebutsimply eflectedn ongoing heoreticalncertaintyithinhe eadershiphatwasfullyhared yMao.


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140 THE AUSTRALIANJOURNALOF CHINESE AFFAIRSintellectualshosecooperation ao hadidentifieds critical or conomicand cultural evelopment.y mid-February957 Mao determinedhat histighteningp had gonetoo far, nd startingith is Contradictions'peechhe launchedn intenselobbying'ffort44ver henext oupleofmonthsoreassertndcany evenfurtherhe asicorientationf the ighth ongressydevelopingheconcept f theprimacyf non-antagonisticontradictionsamong hepeople nd nvitingntellectualsoparticipatenPartyectificationbyofferingriticismsuringheHundredlowersMovement.ellingly, henobservingn March1957that heEighth ongress adpointedut he ndofclass struggle, aowent n tosaythatNowthe ituations even learer,ndthereforehere s a need to tell the wholeParty n detail:Don't use oldmethodsodeal with ewproblems.. '.45Ambiguity,hough,rept nto Mao's message,withremindersf thecontinuing eed for ideological trugglend statementsoncerninghenegativespects f ntellectuals.hileKau andLeung ee such ualificationsas Mao rethinkingis positionndupgradingherole ofclass struggle,sillustratedbove, he ppositewas what heChairmanad n mind. he morecautionaryotesn Mao's statementsre best xplaineds manifestationsfbasic Party deologywhichhad remained artof the EighthCongressformulation,nd as an attemptolaydownbalanced arametersordealingwith ntellectuals.n this ense,Mao's ambiguitylowed rom he nherentnovelty f the Hundred lowers xperiment,et at thesametimeMao'sidiosyncraticackofclaritynd ndeed nreasonablenessergingnpetulancemade ife ifficultormportantiguresndofficialsenerally.Red Guard collectionsmakeclear thedeep anxiety mongofficialscreated yMao's effortoencouragehe ntellectualsocriticizeheParty.44 See WM, I, p.436. In this ffort ao articulated powerfulase for hifting arty

concernswayfrom lassstruggles having eenbasically ompleted.While heneedfor ontinuingdeological truggle asacknowledged,eemphasizedhenew genda feconomic ndcultural evelopmentnd the new battlegainstnature'.n all this heChairmanepeatedlynveighedgainst sing he old methods'whichwereunsuitedoproductionnd development e declaredhatIn society at arge] oday hat lay i.e.,classstruggle]s no onger eing erformed',ndforcefullynjoinedadres o pack upall that rathermeaninglesslass struggle]tuff' WM, H, pp.397,399, 438, andSS,p.282) As indicatedby his obvious pride in his 'Contradictions'peech,Maoundoubtedlyaw himselfs an nnovativeheorist hohadtoprodhishideboundroopsinto new raDespitescholarly rgumento theeffect hatMao's effort as opposedby LiuShaoqi and other eaders, his lobbying'was directedt officials utside he coreleadership. ewly vailable exts ndother ources uggest centraleadershipitherunited ehind r acquiescingnMao's policies nd oining n the fforto overcomedoubtsndconfusiont ower evels. ee WM,, pp.397, 99,438;andSS,p.282.45 WM,, p.465.See alsoSS, pp.278-85.


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MAOTEXTSANDTHEMAOOFTHE1950s 141Thenewlyvailable ocumentsepictower ankingfficials,s well s somewithsignificantositions t theCentre, ttemptingo figure ut Mao'smeaningnd,while ometimesryingoguidehim nthedirectionf theirpolicy references,esitatingo act n thefaceofuncertaintyverhispreciseposition.Yet on severaloccasionswhenthe Chairmanwas pressedforguidance rfor directiveyofficials ishing,s he observed,tofathomwhat s theCentre's olicy tthebottom',he verlyanguineeaderwavedasidesuchrequests,avenoclearguidance,ndtold hemo considermattersfor hemselves.46

MoreominouswasMao's harshttacknthe eadershipf thePeople'sDaily in earlyApril for allegedlyrefusingo publicizehis views on'Scontradictions'nd opposinghepolicies f theCentral ommittee.n fact,the responsibleropagandafflcialswere facedwith complex ituation.Party egulationsannedpublicityr anyquotationsromMao's speechesbeforen officialextwaspublished;fficialroceduresequiredprocess frevisionndapproval fsuch peeches; heoriginalext f Contradictions'was so disorganized,nclear nd plaincontradictoryhat hree ompleterewritingsererequired eforet was presentable;ndMao himself addeclared is ntentionot o publisht withoutevisionhortlyfterelivery,expressing ockhorrort the onsequencesf ssuingn unamendedersion.All thisdid not preventMao's ferocious utburst,nd the propagandaapparatusmmediatelyell ntoine.47WhileMao's main ffortsn thespring f 1957were n linewith hepolicyorientationf theEighth ongress, e also paradoxicallyegantoexpresshisdissatisfactionith hepolitical esolution'sormulationfthemain ontradiction.n theperiod eforemid-May,owever,hisrethinkingdid not meana theoreticalpgradingf class struggle;n thecontrary,tinvolvedoncernor more atisfactoryonceptualizationfthebasic ineofthe Congress.The EighthCongressversionhad declaredthe maincontradictiono be betweenthe dvanced ocialistystemndthebackwardproductiveorces fsociety'. hisreflectedhebasicMarxist ositionf thesuperiorityf socialism n a simplemindedashionwhichdid not takecognizancef the he nevitablehortcomingsf a newlystablishedocialiststructurehich adnotyet eenperfected.48n this ontexthewholenotionof an advanced ystemequiredmodification,nd nearlyAprilMao flatlystated:It s incorrectospeak f a contradictionetween progressiveocial

46 SS,pp.240,61, 67-9. f. bove, ote 2.47 WM, , pp.515-16; ndTimothyheek,Deng Tuo and Intellectualervice nMao'sChina Oxford: xford niversityress, orthcomingt),h.4.48 See WM, I, p.438;andSS, pp.150,167,175,325.The most oherenttatementf thispoint ppearednthe evised une ersion f Contradictions',M, , pp.318-19.


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142 THE AUSTRALIANJOURNALOF CHINESE AFFAIRSsystem nd backward orces f production'.49utMao's concern emainedwith he nteractionf the elationsndforces f production,ith heneed operfect he relations f productiono that roductiveorces ould developmore moothly,nd notwith lassstruggle, hich,s has beenshown,wasdeemedargely thingfthe ast.Things hanged ramaticallyoth oliticallyndtheoreticallytartingnmid-May,with intellectuals' riticisms ow judged to have reachedunacceptableevels.WithMao takinghe ead,thePartyaunched fierceattack n its ritics hroughheAnti-RightistampaigntartingnearlyJune.Class struggle ow became moreprominentheme,with hequestion f'whowillwin' assertedlyotyet ecided. he mpetus as narrowlyolitical.Significantly,ao later bservedhat isown1956 ommenthat he ocialistrevolution ad been basically olved had been inappropriateecause thebourgeois ightistssed he elaxationtentailedoattack he arty.50he aimoftheAnti-Rightistampaignwas to stem ntellectualriticismnd restoreParty ontrol, ithout ullifyinglementsfthe pringbjectivefrectifyingParty nd state tructures.hus he evised ersionf Mao's 'Contradictions'speechpublishednJune till ddressedheofficialhortcomingsequiringreform.t held to theEighth ongress iew ofthemain ontradictionndstated he Party's asic task was to 'safeguardnd develop,heforces fproduction . .'.51 At the same time, continuity as apparent n economicpolicy,withhefanmaojinpproachf1956 ontinuingight ptothe tart ftheThird lenumnSeptember.heanti-rightismf summer957 oncernedpoliticsndnot rightist'conomicsespiteMao's implicitinkingfthe woin the all.Meanwhile,nthe ontextfthenewpoliticalriorities,aomadesomebreathtakingeversalsfpositionse had advocatedn the pring hehadearlier raisedhenon-Partyress or tshandlingfcriticalpinions, ethe now denouncedt forndiscriminatelyublishingttacksn theParty. ealso sanctioned ttackson hapless bourgeoisrightists' or advocatingproposals uch s to review ounter-revolutionaryases and to abolish artycommitteesn educational nstitutions:roposalswhichwere not toodissimilaro hisown arlieruggestions.52hile hese hamelesshanges idnot nconvenienceheChairman'solleagues r Party adresgenerally,heywere bittermedicine or ess wellplaced participantsn theevents f thepreceding onths.The attacks n theRightistsnvolved re-evaluationfthe ignificanceof class struggle.his was already pparentnMao's amendmentso the49 WM, I, p 523. Dated 'April 1957', Mao made these commentst theHangzhouconference ost ikely eld nthe irst eek fApril; bid., 51650 SS, p.491.See alsoWM, I, p.705.51 WM,ll,pp318,32152 See WM, I, pp.322, 21, 524, 591-601, ndTeiwes,Politics ndPurges, p.195,209-

11.


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MAOTEXTSAND THEMAO OF THE 1950s 143'Contradictions'peech, s in adding tatementsboutthe ong-termndtortuous atureof the class struggle etweenthe proletariatnd thebourgeoisie. ut themost significantheoreticallaborationame at theQingdao onferencenJuly. ereMao noted hat hetransformationf theeconomic ystemn 1956 was notenough, nd that he strugglen thepoliticalnd deologicalronts ust e pursuedo the nd.What ademergedin both the cities and countryside,e claimed,was a two-roadtrugglebetween apitalismnd socialism, strugglehatwouldtakea longtimebeforefinalvictoryouldbe achieved.No explicitmentionf themaincontradictionas made nthis nalysis,ut s a leading arty istorianasconcluded,nrealityheChairman adalready eachedhepositionhat hepriorityontradictionas betweenhe roletariatnd he ourgeoisie.53The Third lenum f September-October957was one ofthe eminalturningointsnthehistoryfthePeople'sRepublic.tnot nly ndorsedhecontradictionf theproletariatndthebourgeoisies themain ontradiction,butmore ignificantlyeterminedhat he anmaojinconomic rogramadbeena serious rror nd began oweavetogetherhepolicies nd create hemomentumhich edtotheGreat eapForward.heGreat eapwas clearlytheproductf a numberfpoliticalndeconomic ressuresnsummer 957as well as of somerethinkingbout he conomyhathadbeen underwaysince1956.The ntellectualshomMao had xpectedoplay leading ole neconomic nd cultural evelopmentad proven oliticallynreliable;hegeneral olitical elaxationccompanyingheEighth ongressine hadhadadverse ocial andeconomic amifications,uch s peasantwithdrawalsromcooperativesndurbantrikes;ndeconomicerformanceemainedluggish,with griculturen particularavingts second onsecutiveelow-par ear.Since Mao's April 1956 speechon the 'Ten GreatRelationships'heleadershipad been ngagedna significantfforto adapt he ovietmodelto Chineseconditions,nd a seriesof newprogramsncludingndustrialsupportor griculturendemphasisn smaller-scalendustrialrojects ereadoptedwithinheframeworkf opposingash dvance', ut hese entativemeasureswere soon to be transformeds parts f a grander reatLeapstrategy.n all this thewidelyheld desirewithin heelite foreconomic

53 WM, , pp.653-65; ndCong Jin, 949-1989niande Zhongguo: uzhefazhandeuiye[China1949-1989: he Years of Circuitous evelopment],ol.2 Henan-Henan enminchubanshe, 989),pp.74-5.The theoreticalssuehadbeenraised rivatelyhortlyfterthe start f theAnti-RightistampaignnJune,whenMao's secretary,ianJiaying,undoubtedlyrawing n his awareness f the Chairman's issatisfactionith thepolitical esolutionven before he turn f events, roposed o Mao that heEighthCongress iew ofthemain ontradictionas incorrect.his securedMao's agreementthat herewereproblemswith tbut lso his udgmenthat iven tsapproval ytheCongresstwas unsuitableo raise hematteror he ime eing.


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144 THE AUSTRALIANJOURNALOF CHINESEAFFAIRSdevelopmentndoubtedlyovetailed ithMao's emergingmpatience iththe xistinglowgrowth.54The major eparturest theThird lenum undamentallyamefromMao.They involved ome curious ogic, ambiguous ositions nd politicallyominous f still restrainedudgments,nd theyonly evolved during heplenumtself o the onsiderableonsternationfthose n attendance.hortlybefore heplenum,Mao hadapproved directivecaling ownthe ize ofcooperatives.55oreover,he anmaojineconomic olicieshad been n forcewithMao's consent rior o theplenum,56ethe now started o place theblame or hem n others. nd heChairman'snsistencena more apid aceofeconomic rowthnly ecame pparentt the ail ndofthe lenum hichconcluded on 9 October.The original genda had focusedon Partyrectificationnd rural olicy, utnotoverall conomic trategy,nddefinitesignsof the Leap onlyemergednMao's finalpronouncement;ndeed,nsummarizingheplenum n 7 October, engXiaopingalledfor reatffortsonly n agriculturend madeno mention f industry.57n his concludingspeech wodays aterMao still id notpresent clearly rticulatedconomicstrategy espite his broad insistence n the absolute necessity or acomprehensivelan oordinatingndustry,griculture,ommerce,ulturendeducation. he key, owever, as greaterpeed, pointMao forcefullyadeby declaring:There re at least womethodsfdoing hings,neproducingslower ndpooreresultsnd he therasterndbetternes'.58 utultimatelymore ignificanthan hepolicy dvocacy f a faster ate f growth ere hepolitical vertonesf heChairman'somments.54 See WM, I, pp.43-66,ndFrederick Teiwes,EstablishmentndConsolidationf theNewRegime',TheCambridge istory f China,Volume14 (Cambridge: ambridgeUniversityress, 987),pp.140-2.55 See Mao wengao, ol.6,pp.572-3; ndFranz churmann,deologyndOrganizationnCommunisthina Berkeley. niversityfCaliforniaress, 966),pp.455-6.56 See in particularis remarks t the November 956Second Plenumwhen, urnngdiscussion f left' nd right' endencies,heChairmantated hatrightism'verthespeedofdevelopmentas okay;Bo Yibo, Ruogan hongdauece, vol.1,p.556.WhiletheChairman idprovideomefaint intsfreservationsefore heThird lenum, heywerenot asily erceived yothereaders nd argely oncernedgriculture;ee WM, ,pp.228,239, 293, 662. Foran overview f Mao's support or, nd subtle eservationsconcerning,opposing ash dvance', ee Frederick . Teiwes, Leaders, nstitutions,

and theOrigins f theGreatLeap Forward', acificAffairs, ol.66,no.2 (Summer1993),pp.244-5357 See WM, I, pp 696-723; ndZhonggong angshiiaoxue cankaoziliao [CCP HistoryTeachingReferenceMaterials], ol.22 (n.p.. Zhongguoiefangjun uofangdaxuedangshi. angjianhenggongiaoyanshi, ay 1986),pp.312-1458 SW,V, p.490.Cf. Maowengao, ol.6, .594.


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MAOTEXTSAND THE MAO OF THE 1950s 145Mao charged hata 'rightist' eviation ad occurredn 1956, andcomplainedhat he ortyrticles n agriculturalevelopment,he ommitteesfor promoting rogress, nd the slogan more, faster, etter, nd moreeconomically' hichhad all been n vogue nthe arly1956 efforto leapforward'nproductionad beenblown way.Mao went n to argue hat he'conscious fforto relax' nthe econdhalf f 1956 saw the lackeningfclass strugglend resultednattacks y thebourgeoisiend richpeasants.59Later, onvenientlyverlookingisownpreviouscceptanceffanmaojin,ewould laim hat heThird lenum adrestoredisposition.60Mao's moreradicalmood was also indicatedythe ssue of themaincontradiction,ut heunfoldingf this ssueparadoxicallyuggestedess thana total reakwith heEighth ongress iew.He initiallyaised hematternadiscussion ith central omrades' n 19September957, heveryveof theplenum.On thisoccasionhe spoke of the overall ontradiction'zongdemaodun) ver he ntire ransitionaleriod etween heworkinglass andthebourgeoisie, nd also referredo thisas the 'main contradiction'.heChairman'sxpositioneportedlyeftmany fficialsncomprehendingf hismeaning nd confused y the disparityetweenwhathe had said and theParty'sofficial osition s laid down at theEighthCongress, nd such

officialsxpressedhehopethatresponsibleentralomrades'would gainexplain hematter. fterardent iscussion' wobroadviewpointsmerged,one followingMao's drift nd declaring he contradictionetween heproletariatnd he ourgeoisiehemain ontradiction,nd he ther pholdingtheEighth ongress esolutionn thegroundshat lthoughheAnti-Rightiststruggle as themain ask or hemoment,t should otbeexpandednto hemain contradictioniven the ongoing hortcomingsf the new socialistsystem. aving ut hemattern the genda,Mao returnedothemeetingosettle hemattern his alks f7 and9 October.61WhileMao's twospeeches irmlystablishedheproletariat/bourgeoisiecontradictions themain ontradiction,is views ctuallynvolved curiousmixof theoreticalerspectivesnd resultedn somewhatuarded oliticalaction.Mao did not ompletelyeject heEighth ongress esolution,hich

59 While this topped hort f linkinghe anmaojin rogramo the rightistttack', hesense of a correctpproach aving eenwronglyerailedwasclear ntheChairman'scomments,nd he beganto talk n terms f restoringhe blown-asidetems.The'rightism'f a cautious pproachoeconomic olicy ad been rbitranlyixedwith hereal 'rightism' f excessivecriticismaused by Mao's sprnngmiscalculationfintellectualupport or he arty

60 WM, , pp.697, 04-6; ndDangshiwenhuiParty istory ollection], o.2 1989),p.8.61 Bo Yibo, Ruogan zhongda uece, vol 2, pp.624-7.Mao's 19 Septemberalk is anexample f n importantext ot ncludedn eitherWM rMaowengao.


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146 THE AUSTRALIANJOURNALOF CHINESE AFFAIRShe characterizeds 'not incorrect',62harmless' nd 'well-intentioned'.Significantly,e noted hatthadbeen f benefit'o the arty nd ompatiblewith he asks f rectificationndproduction.he resolution'sealfaultwasits inadequate xpression:It's just that t was not expressed learly;t ischaracterizedy a semanticrror'. articularlyevealing ashis decision okeepthe revised ormulationf the maincontradictionntirely ithinheParty nd notpublisht nthenewspapers. hy?Because t would possiblydilute our ttentiono]themanyontradictionsmonghe eople . .', thats,itwould nderminehe bjectivesf he pring.63Yet radicallynclined r simplymbitious oliticians ickedupMao'ssignals.nparticular,hejiang's arty ecretaryiang ua andthen hanghaileaderKe Qingshi sedtheproletariat/bourgeoisieormulationnreportsoPartymeetings.WhenMao received copy of JiangHua's reportn mid-Decemberhe was reportedlyextremelyappy', rdered hou Enlai andotherso read tbythenext ay, ssigned is eading ecretariesu Qiaomuand Tian Jiayingo revise hereport,ndhad itpublishedn thePeople'sDaily with n editorial otehighlightinghe main contradictionssue'.64While nstrictheoreticalermshenewformulationhould avehad neutraleffect n economic olicy, ndnothingadchangedince he onclusionftheThird lenum,nfact majorncreasenpolitical ressureor greatlyincreased ate fgrowthadoccurred.Thispressure eaked ttheJanuary958NanningonferencehenMaotransformedhe ssue from matterf economic olicynto ne ofpoliticalprinciple.nan extraordinaryutburst,or he irstimena majornner artyforum eseriouslyriticizedyname womembersfthe olitiburotandingCommittee,hou Enlaiand ChenYun, s well as key conomic fficialsiXiannian ndBo Yibo.The Chairmanurtherrderedhe ssembledfficialsnever gainto use thefanmaojinoncept, xplicitlyinked hepolicyof'opposing ash dvance' ostimulatinghe ightists'ttacksn theParty,ndthreateninglyssertedhat hose uiltyfpromotinghis rror toodonly50metres rom herightists'.uring hismeeting ao also hada copyoftheJune 956People's Dailyeditorialriticizingrash dvance'broughtohim62 In the SW version f his 9 October peech,Mao did state hat heEighth ongressformulationf themain ontradictionas 'incorrect',ut heRed Guardversion sesthemilderudgmenthat t was 'not ufficientlyompletersound'.CompareWM, I,pp.705 nd721.63 WM,H, pp.689-90, 92, 721, 811-12. n fact,Mao was tryingo encompass oth he

perspectivef thespringwherehe criticized heunsatisfactoryannern which heresolutionharacterizedhe ontradictionf forces nd relations f productionnd hissummer iewemphasizinghe two-roadtruggle etween apitalismnd socialism,arguinghat is Contradictions'peechwas not nerror ut t had to be supplementedbyhis tatementtQingdao. bid., .691.64 Bo Yibo,Ruogan hongdauece,vol.2, p.629-31; ndMao wengao, ol.6, p.671-3.


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MAOTEXTS ANDTHE MAOOF THE 1950s 147and,notwithstandinghe act hat ehad xpressedo reservationstthe ime,now dded hemarginalote hatthis s sharplyirectedtme'.The resultfall this was to send shockwaves hroughhe assembledparticipants,culminatingnself-criticismsy Zhou,Chen ndthe thersttheMay 1958SecondSessionof theEighth artyCongress,nd creatinghedynamicswhich rove he eaptoextremes. ao subsequentlyeclaredhatwithoutheNanningonferencehere ouldhavebeennoGreat eap.65In creatinghisntenseressure ithinhe eadership ao still bservedrestraint,t least so faras thetop leadershipwas concerned. hus theChairnan eclaredttheMarch1958Chengduonferencehat isaimwasnotto 'purgepeople' zheng en), nd ndeednoneofthosehe attackedtNanningost their ositions.66oreover,espite omerhetoriconcerningclasses, class struggle, evisionismnd the antagonistic atureof thecontradictionetween heproletariatnd the bourgeoisie,67ao's mainpreoccupationsaywith roductionnd onstruction.isbasicprojectionasthat s the oliticalnd deologicalevolutionsere ompletednthe irstalfoftheyear he entrefworkhouldhiftotechnicalevolution,nd nmid-yearhe concludedhatourmain truggles with ature'. nd ven n the irsthalfof 1958 class struggle as notsomething ao dwelledupon.Mostrevealingrehis peech utlinesor hemajormeetingsfthe eriodwhere egivesrepeatedttentiono measuresuchas 'eradicatinguperstition's ameans fstimulatingapid rowth,hile lassstruggle as rarelylluded oandnever resenteds a major opicfor onsiderationytheparticipants.68Class strugglehetoric ayhaveplayed keyrole n creatinghe tmospherefor heGreat eap,butas of early1958 twas no longer entraloMao'sconcernsrthe asks acinghe arty.The same can be said concerninghe related uestion f themaincontradictions revealed yevents urroundingiu Shaoqi'spolitical eportinMaytothe econd ession fthe ightharty ongress.hisreport,hichaffirmedhenew proletariat/bourgeoisieormulationndstronglyrticulatedthenewgeneralinebasedontheGreat eap,hadneverthelesseenregardedbysome ocal eaders s toosoft nthe trugglefthe woroads.Yet again,as in1956, heMaowengao ocumentsemonstratehathiswasnot caseofLiu's 'conservatism'ut nsteadhat he eportullyeflected ao's view. nrevisingiu's report, ao added oa discussionf theParty'smain ask he65 See Mao wengao, ol.7, p.32-6; ndCongJin, uzhefazhande,p.11-12,123-3 .66 Mao wengao,vol.7,p.108. Provincialevel officials id suffer,owever,withParty

leaders n 11 provinceseceiving isciplinary easuresncludingxpulsion rom heParty t theMay Second Session.The notes n ibid., pp.201,209-10,clarify hepreviouslyonfusingeferencesyMao to Partyplits' t thismeetingy ndicatingthathey eferredrimanlyothese ocalofficials.67 See,for xample,bid., p.1 9-20, 99-201; ndSS, pp.385-6.68 Mao wengao, ol.7, p.25, 1-2,194,196,199, 03;SS, p.437;and bove,note 1.


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148 THE AUSTRALIANJOURNALOF CHINESE AFFAIRSneed to 'mobilize ll positive actors,and] correctlyandle ontradictionsamong the people'. Despite the theoretical rimacyof class struggle, heprioritiesfactualworkwere ouched nthe erms fspring 957, ven f nrealityhis oohadbeen adicallyransformedytheGreat eap Forward.69In theperiod rommid-1958 p to theLushanplenumn summer959classes, class strugglend the maincontradictionargely isappear romMao's statements,articularlynthe irst alf f 1959. nhismost ubstantiveremarksn these ssuesduring his eriod,t theNovember 958Wuchangconference,heChairman oted hat thequestionf the bolition f classesdeserves omethought';twas notyet bolishednpoliticalhinking,ut Ithink nehasto leave this uestion .. insuspense'.70 hen lassstruggleagain becamean importanterm nMao's discourset Lushan, t was notbasedon any arefulssessmentfcontradictionsnsocietyutwas a reactiontoPengDehuai'scritiquef theGreat eap whichMao,wrongly,ook s anattack n himself.n response,Mao notonlyrevived herhetoricf classstruggleut aunched harsh ttack n a leading omrade hatwentwellbeyond nythingfferedtNanningnd resultednPengand othersosingtheir osts.Althoughdmittingistakesnd ven ocausing 'great isaster'in his extraordinarytatements, ao refused to accept meaningfulresponsibilityut nstead urnedn others.71et even nthis ovel ontextheChairman continued to extend signals of comradelyconcern incorrespondenceith nd commentsoncerninghosehehad dismissed.72ynow,however,he osture as ncreasinglynconvincing.The Mao whoemerges rom his eview f events s an over-poweringfigure,ut not one impressiven either heoreticalompetencerpoliticalleadership. espitehispreoccupationith heory,isrepeatedharp umscame nresponseoevents,ventshatwere ftenhe onsequencefhisownmisjudgments,ather han being shaped by any coherent heoreticalperspective.To the extent hat a consistent hemeunderpinned is outlook69 Mao wengao,vol.7,pp.157-8.Mao hadalready xpressedhisview nearlyJanuary,when ddressing he question f the two types f contradictions.e concluded hat'Class contradictions the main contradiction];.. [butt]hequantitativelyreatest[contradiction]s between he dvancednd thebackward'.S, p.386.Cf. Mao wengao,vol.7,p.10.Following heMay Congress iscontinuingncertaintys to their elativeimportance as revealedn hisresponse oCongress iscussions n thecomparativemerits f the 1956 and current ormulations.he Chairman nstructed is closesttheoreticaldvisors o reexaminehe ssue,whichdeserves ttentionndshouldnotbeignored'. Mao wengao, vol.7, pp.283-4. Cf. Keith Forster,Mao Zedong onContradictionsnderocialismRevisited', 994paperms.70 SS, pp.490-1. f. Maowengao, ol.7, .553.71 For overviews fdevelopmentst Lushan, ee Teiwes,Politics nd Purges, p.xxxi-xxxvi, iii-lvi,311-32,and 'Peng Dehuai', pp.89-9172 See Mao wengao, ol.8, p.437, 61,473-4, 20-1.


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MAO TEXTS AND THE MAO OF THE 1950s 149over theentire eriod,t ironically as nottheclass struggleerspectivewhich e forcednthePartys themain ontradiction't theThird lenum,but ratherconomicdevelopmenthathad been thefocusof theEighthCongress. he need orefinehis ocus na manner ore atisfactoryhan heCongress esolutionashisconcernnthe pringf 1957. tremainedkeyconcernvenduringheAnti-Rightistampaignhat ummer,nd t quicklydominatedheday n a newutopian uise fterheThird lenum,espitehenew formulationf the maincontradiction'.longthewayMao's all toofrequentackofclarity,is weepingeversals,ndhis rbitraryssignmentfblame o others or ecisions e hadfully articipatednandapproved ereevident. y the ndofthedecade thereadersould till,with ifficulty,ivewith heChairman,utwith hedisastersausedbytheGreat eapForwardworsening ramaticallyhe Chinesepopulacehad even less scope forsurvivingismistakes.

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