Modern Chinese History

¶ … Chinese History

Compare and contrast Mao's ideal of China to the variety sought by Deng Xiaoping. What advantages and disadvantages did the Maoist system have? What advantages did the Dengist system have?

Chairman Mao and Deng Xiaoping were two of the most influential leaders of modern Chinese history. Both men believed that they were acting in the best interest of their citizens but had vastly different ways of pursuing this goal. Each man was a member of the Chinese Communist party and built and government system based on Marxist teachings. However the two men had different ideas about what it meant to have a Communist regime and the types of policies which would best suit the needs of the people.

Chairman Mao led China during the period of Communist revolution. He completely revitalized the political, economic, cultural, and sociological system of the country. Mao's policies were concerned with the social policy of Communism. He believed in this policy. After Mao was first appointed head of the now-Communist China, he implored all of the people of the country to take equal responsibility for the recent revolution and to take credit for it as well (China 1997). This was the first step in creating what he felt was a joined national identity. China had a history of being colonized and terrorized by warring factions from around the globe. Part of the reason for this, he argued was the China was disjointed and separate. Only by uniting sociologically into one mass group did the country have a chance of avoiding similar instances of colonization and war later on.

Although there were positive components to this mode of government, there were assuredly negatives as well. For instance, under Mao, the economy of China took a decidedly downward turn. He turned personal property into government property, including small farmlands which were owned by peasants whose only chance at survival was in their meager harvests.

On the other hand, Deng Xiaoping, although also a Communist, saw some serious flaws in the Communist policy as set up by Chairman Mao. Deng was extremely focused on the economy of China and in recreating the country as a potential world power. He determined that the economic system under Mao was faulty and that Communism in social policy was one thing, but strict Marxist doctrine in economics was another. Consequently, Deng began a policy wherein people of China would be encouraged to have a somewhat materialist identity. He saw that increasing the amount of goods purchased would directly encourage a formerly floundering economic structure. Deng Xiaoping named the movement "Socialism with Chinese characteristics" (China 1997).