The World Turned Upside Down

The World Turned Upside Down: A History of the Chinese Cultural Revolution by Yang Jisheng, Stacy Mosher (Translator), Guo Jian (Translator). Picador Paper; (2022) 

Communist Philosophy

Communists saw discrepancies in wealth as prima facie evidence of exploitation. Communists saw the middle class as exploiting the working class and land owners as exploiting the peasants. The Communists favored the proletariat against the bourgeoisie. Mao Zedong wanted to turn each Chinese citizen into a communist new man. This new man would be free of selfish motives and would instead be loyal to the Chinese Communist Party.  

What Mao Called His Perceived Enemies

• black elements,

• bourgeoisie,

• capitalist roaders,

• class enemies,

• counter-Revolutionary,

• degenerate elements,

• feudal,

• imperialists,

• Kuomintang,

• landlords,

• ox demons,

• poisonous weeds.

• reactionary,

• revisionist,

• rightist.

• rich peasants,

• snake spirits,

• trotskyite,

Liu Shaoqi

Originally Mao’s chosen successor, but he challenged Mao’s authority during the Socialist Education Movement (also called the Four Cleanups campaign). Liu argued in favor of using facts to discover the causes of the problems. Mao saw Liu as following the example of Russia’s Kruschchev, who had denounced Stalin. Mao was afraid that if he chose Liu as his successor, then after Mao died, Liu would denounce Mao. In October 1968 Liu was accused of being a traitor. His conviction was based on false, coerced testimony. Liu lost his status as Mao’s succor . Later he was expelled from the CCP. Her died in a prison, covered with bedsores, in Kaifeng in Henan Province on November 12, 1969,