MAO'S CHINA AND AFTER

Transformation of Modern China

by Maurice J. Meisner

In this much-anticipated revision, Maurice Meisner again provides piercing insight and comprehensive coverage of China's fascinating and turbulent modern history. In addition to new information provided throughout this classic study, the new Part Six, "Deng Xiaoping and the Origins of Chinese 1976-1998," analyzes the country's uneasy relationships with democracy, socialism, and capitalism. Meisner incisively displays the contrasts between China's speech and actions regarding these subjects. Retaining the elegance, lucidity, fairness, insightfulness, and comprehensiveness he is known for, Meisner moves far beyond his previous work to paint a never-before-seen portrait of the political and social realities of China on the brink of the millennium, and the global implications of its rise to economic and political power.

Genres: China, History, Nonfiction, Politics, Asia, Economics, 20th Century

534 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1977

About the author

Maurice Jerome Meisner was an historian of 20th century China and professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

Reviews

[Arjun Ravichandran · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perceptive analysis of the People's Republic of China, from a left-wing (though not uncritical) standpoint. The author, who was one of the leading Sinologists in the world, traces the origin of the generation of Chinese communist intellectuals, whose ranks included Mao Zedong, to the May 4th movement at the beginning of the century. This movement, which had its source in the new Western ideas the conquerors brought with them, caused a section of China's youth to stridently question both the imperialist domination of their country, as well as what they perceived to be the inherent sickness and exploitativeness of their millennia-old Confucian culture. The May 4th radicals questioned both and sought to overthrow both ; it was not long before this rootless radicalism was eventually fused with Marxism, allowing both imperialism and the cruelty of traditional culture to be analyzed in a more or less scientific way.
After this brief write up of the origins of Chinese communism, the author then dovetails into the next section ; the long and bitterly fought civil war between the Chinese Communist Party, and the Kuomintang (the party of the bourgeoisie) ; the author reveals how the Chinese communists were betrayed by Stalin, who was then ardently following the 'Socialism in One Country' line.
The really interesting and meaty part of the book comes after the communists seized power, and unified the mainland for the first time in more than a century. In a country with barely any proletariat, or for that matter, any real capitalist class that could fire the engines of industry, the communists had to do it all themselves. This they did, to their great credit, industrializing the country and creating a unified nation state in preparation for the eventual transition to socialism. The author examines the motivation and the reasoning behind such controversial initiatives like the Great Leap Forward, and the Cultural Revolution ; the latter, in fact, gets a whole section (a good one quarter of the text) to itself. The crucial point that many people forget about the early decades of Communist China, is how sincere the revolutionaries actually were ; they were sincerely attempting to both modernize China, as well as eventually transition to communism. That this utopian project was forced to take place in one of the great underdeveloped backwaters of the world (even worse than the Soviets at the time of their own revolution) makes their achievements even more remarkable.
Mao Zedong emerges as a complex figure in the book. Rather than being the murderous dictator that people love to malign, Mao emerges as a sincere and dedicated revolutionary who was not averse to asking the masses to rise up against the new state ; for he perceived that a new exploiting class (the bureaucracy) had emerged. This, in a sentence, was nearly the entire motivation for his initiation of the Cultural Revolution. Yet, he too was a man, and was prey to petty insecurities and the lust for power, that compromised his revolutionary credentials.
Unfortunately, after the death of Mao, the right-wing counterrevolution (led by Deng Xiaoping) took root and rolled back nearly all of the Maoist initiatives, and led a full-blown capitalist restoration ; while massively successful, the author notes that the socio-economic relations of modern China resemble those of the pre-revolutionary times, with exploitation, superstition and banal cruelties rife throughout the land.
All in all, this is a fantastic book which presumes no prior knowledge or understanding of China, or modern Chinese history (with the only prerequisite perhaps being a very basic understanding of communism, and what it sets out to achieve) and yet leaves one with a fairly thorough understanding of the history of the Chinese revolution, its triumphs, catastrophic failures, and tragic eventual defeat.

[Rebekah Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Comprehensive and well written, this book will help you understand the root's of Mao's political regime and the changes (/chaos) he spread and encouraged through the modernization of China. This is a textbook of sorts, but it is written well enough that you won't fall asleep.

Read this if...
* You're into Chinese history
* confused/curious about Mao era China
* You like learning how modern countries developed

[Will · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly readable, balanced, and illuminating history of China circa 1921-1998 from one of the West's greatest China-scholars. This is probably the best work on a communist country I've ever read, even better then the great Soviet Experiment by Ronald Grigor Suny. Meisner was just the kind of classical Marxist historian that I like: sympathetic to the communist cause but highly analytical and critical of corrupt state-ideologies like Stalinism, Maoism, and Dengism; using Marxism as a theoretical tool but not getting bogged down in an ideological straitjacket like many Marxist historians, or falling into determinism or Western bias as the legendary Trotskyite Eric Hobsbawm was sometimes wont to do; using Marxism to critique Marxist regimes by their own standards, and demonstrating that the People's Republic, especially after Mao, has been a unique but quintessential case of a capitalist state waging class war against the lower classes, the latter of which continue to sporadically and bravely resist. Meisner brilliantly chronicles the valiant efforts and significant (sometimes unprecedented) achievements well as the colossal (often unprecedented) failures, crimes, and betrayals of the Chinese revolution, and navigates the byzantine political and ideological struggles in a clear way. The sections on the Cultural Revolution and the 1989 Democracy Movement were my favourites. My only criticism is that discussions of the impact of the Great Leap Forward and subsequent famine were bewilderingly brief.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5. Really loved how theoretical Meisner got at the start with explaining the origins of Chinese socialism/Marxism, the May Fourth Movement, Mao's ideological underpinnings and origins, Mao's contributions to Marxism-Leninism (and ideological heresies regarding his faith in the backwards peasantry LOL), the failures of the Kuomintang, etc.

I also definitely really enjoyed his description of collectivization, Mao's missteps when it came to implementing "communism". Was certainly no hagiography with regards to the eponymous man, but I certainly would have appreciated some more fleshed out portraits of the Chinese leaders not named Mao. The book also takes to task those who claim Mao held absolute power for the duration of his life following 1949, I think it really puts that notion to bed once and for all. The book illuminates quite interestingly the struggles between Mao and Liu Shaoqi, Deng Xiaoping, Lin Biao, the Gang of Four, etc.

I also thought it lingered on a bit too long at the end with Deng, especially given that he has written a book called "the Deng Xiaoping Era". In true Dengi$t #grindset fashion he had to write another book to make more money I guess!

Side note but ironically my 3.5/5 is a 70% good, 30% bad

[Severi Saaristo · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The first quarter of a century of the People's Republic was a time of immense social and material accomplishments, as well as a time of great inhumanities and crimes. It inaugurated the modern industrial transformation of the world's most populous country, which, over the previous century, had become one of the world's most backward and wretched lands. During the Mao era the Chinese Communists made a notable, if flawed and ultimately failed, attempt to reconcile the imperatives of modernization with the ends of socialism." - Maurice Meisner

This is a brilliant book about Mao era (1949-1976) and Deng era (1978-1998, this book ends in the year 1998, but today usually 2012 is marked as the year ending the era of Deng and the start of the era of Xi Jinping, although Deng Xiaoping died in 1997) China. Meisner's book will stand the test of time and it gives a great understanding of 20th century China and its complicated relationships with socialism, capitalism, democracy and nationalism.
One thing I would criticize this book for is the somewhat one sided analysis and interpretation of The Cultural Revolution, although it's better here than with most Western or Chinese scholars. Like many historians, Meisner claims that The Cultural Revolution didn't have an important impact on the countryside, however it did and it was a tremendously positive one. The Cultural Revolution was a violent catastrophe and disaster in the urban areas and the bitter inner party power struggles happened during it, but it was successful in the countryside where a lot of social, political, educational, economic and cultural gains were made. Dongping Han's The Unknown Cultural Revolution: life and change in a Chinese village is a good book about the effects of the Cultural Revolution on rural China.
Maurice Meisner's book is a must read for anyone interested in modern Chinese history and for every socialist.
(EDIT: I don't agree anymore with Meisner that modern China is capitalist and some other things he puts forward in this book, but it is still a great book and should definitely be read.)

[Austin Barselau · Rating 4 out of 5]

"If revolutions involve the violent destruction of political institutions that allow new societies to emerge, then what Chinese Communists celebrate on the first day of October is a revolution no less significant than the great French Revolution of 1789 and the Russian October Revolution of 1917, no less momentous in the scope of its political destructiveness, no less important in opening the way for a new and unprecedented course of social development, and no less great in its worldwide impact."

The founding of “new China” in 1949 was historically momentous, with its leaping proclamations of societal reorganization and economic development rooted in hearty displays of revolutionary fervor and adherence to Marxist-Leninist precepts. Ambitious, perhaps unrealistic, in the scope of its designs, the establishment of the modern Chinese state was also a tortuous and turbulent struggle for the ideological realization of socialist ideals. With this historical setting, Maurice Meisner – the late American sinologist and frequent publisher of works on socialist ideology, Maoism, and Marxism in the Chinese context – has produced the definitive inquiry into the development of the Chinese Marxist revolutionaries through the Maoist era. Despite his expressed sympathies for such leftist political ideologies, Mesiner has put forth a sober, but not uncritical or exculpatory, evaluation of the history of the new Chinese state according to the perspective of the communists’ own Marxist goals. Mao’s China and After parses each turn of the revolution, beginning with its origination in rural-based revolution, to its state-led orchestration of land reform and industrialization, to the mass mobilization and anarchical pandemonium of the Cultural Revolution and beyond.

Meisner spends a great deal of time analyzing the ideological development of Marxism in the Chinese context, and the justifications its proponents used to operationalize those beliefs. Meisner assesses how the declaration of new China was accompanied by a new spirit of political activism and nationalist resentment, including disillusionment with Western bourgeoisie democratic ideologies. Mao Zedong, China’s founding intellectual architect, infused revolutionary populism into a whole-cloth rendition of Marxism based on contemporary Chinese conditions. Meisner argues that Mao’s adaptation of Marxist precepts to China was rooted in a realistic understanding of the country’s lagging social and economic development; Mao’s unique idea was that revolution in China need not be dependent on a cohesive proletariat or predetermined levels of progress and prosperity. Rather, the conception of “proletarian” ideas and the kindling of heroic self-sacrifice was enough to confirm the existence of all the preconditions for revolution. In this way, Mao had selectively interpreted and applied Marxist precepts to mobilize Chinese society through struggle and class conflict.

Such social mobilization was enabled by authoritarian rule and centralized political and economic organization. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) became the manifestation of the proletariat and pursued “wealth and power” as a means of attaining Marxist socialist ends. The 1950s were characterized by Soviet-style economic planning and heavy industrialization, producing a bureaucratized and routinized state and society. Eventually, Mao abandoned the Soviet model in favor of a more populist approach and an economic vision driven by breakneck economic development. The Great Leap Forward, however, was too impractical, engendering a legacy of bitterness and distrust between the peasantry and the communist Party and cynicism with Marxism. Mao, sensing a malaise in the revolutionary cause, concocted the conditions which led to the Cultural Revolution, which unleashed social and political forces he could not ultimately control. The aspirational goals of revolutionary mass mobilization and the “life and death struggle” for ideological purity transmogrified into an ouroboros of mass chaos and indiscriminate prosecution. Once brought to a forceful end, the Cultural Revolution, Meisner laments, ultimately thwarted Maoist aims and produced inconclusive outcomes.

Despite his critique of Mao’s capricious and counterproductive social and economic fancies, Mesiner acknowledges that Maoism was ultimately successful at modernizing China, despite its unsuitability to the evolving context in which it was applied. If one overlooks all the “blunders and stupidities” it committed along the way, the Maoist regime, he argues, actually oversaw China’s modern industrial revolution, including higher economic production and self-sufficiency. However, Mao’s cult of personality and destructive revolutionary exhortations soiled the grounds for a more permanent Chinese society girded by stabilizing institutions. Meisner writes that Mao’s social campaigns completely failed to create “permanent institutions of popular self-government” and to resolve the question of Mao’s political succession. Its economic strategy, he writes, also failed in altering the Soviet-inspired industrial structure of the 1950s. Waste, inefficiency, and bureaucratic stultification were its unsalutary outgrowths. Meisner’s most acidic commentary is on the cult of Mao, which “was one of history’s most extreme examples of the alienation of social power into fetishized political authority.” “At the end,” he continues, “all the monuments to Mao stood as grotesque symbols of a monumental political failure.” Meisner’s exhaustive evaluation of Mao’s ideological strivings, as well as his yawning failures, provides sobering context to the legacy of Chinese revolution and Mao’s authoritarian rule.

[TG Lin · Rating 1 out of 5]

這是以「思想史」的方式來寫成的書籍。我只能說……跟我不對味兒，畢竟我最服膺的是有憑有據的「物質史」。

會借回來讀，是由於看到本書的介紹有「一搥定音」的強烈褒美之辭，吸引我的目光。但實際一讀之後才發現，那是言過其實的。誠然，本書作者撈了許多關於毛澤東本人的生涯資料；但正如我一開始所說的，作者只搞「思想」，而思想比起有形的物質、政治的制度、民生的現況而言，是種虛無縹緲的存在，因此本書的書寫只令我感到拖泥帶水，只為了表達毛與其時代的思想。但侷限於作者對其它附屬領域（中國歷史與人民各種方面）的陌生，使得書中所帶到的話題，處處都顯出不足與腦補之處。

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引書中一段冗長的話︰「從中國歷史發展的總進程來看，中國是一個傳統已僵化的國家，中國人保守地執著於傳統的儒家社會和文化價值觀，因此，人們往往形容中國人實際上對『西方的反應』無動於衷。但是，要切記的是，中國當代革命史是以反傳統的方式開始的。在強烈的反傳統意識的驅動下，擯棄了中國文化歷史遺產的太平天國以激進的基督教平均主義網領，為後來的革命運動以不同的方式所繼承，特別是為『五四』時期的反封建的知識份子，中國共產黨的創造人和早期領袖正來自這批知識份子。……在關鍵的社會領域中，西方帝國主義起了決定性的作用。但這卻是自相矛盾的作用，既是革命的又是反革命的，它創造了當代革命的環境，但又阻礙革命的實現……無論帝國主義的行為動機多麼卑鄙，也無論它使用的方法多麼野蠻，對那些單靠自身力量無法進入現代歷史的民族來說，帝國主義是打破僵滯的、受傳統束縛的社會的必然歷史力量。」

這完全是無視於整個歷史的連續性，純粹為作者想建立的單線思路，先射箭再畫靶。論思想史的重大轉變，可以直接由「太平天國」直接跳到「五四」，完全無視原本自洽豐盛的經濟活、以及其後的自強（物質改革）、變法（制度改革）、辛亥革命（民族運動）到五四（社會思想改革）這一連串的重大事件，實在太粗糙了（行文拖沓的這本書，還真的從未為這段歷程點過隻字片語）。相較起來，史景遷所寫的中國題材雖然瑣碎，但卻能讓人看到這麼偌大一個國家的轉變，而並非只是 Meisner 那淺薄的認知（與冗長言辭）所及的，更不用說他還拿著西方帝國主義思想的自豪，來為中國的轉變也必須「框」入西方帝國主義的奇妙吃豆腐言論……

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再引書中一段冗長的話︰「1890年代，一批人數不多但有影響力的傳統地主官僚精英的後裔開始不信任儒家價值觀念的作用（及其道德準則）。在受西方觀念影響的同時，他們敏銳地認識到，西方帝國主義對中華民族的生存構成了日益嚴重的威脅，而舊的統治階級沒有能力對此作出有效的反應。……正是士紳的後裔——他們實際是本身階級的叛逆者，將為最終摧毀士紳這個社會階級的革命運動提供理論和領導。」

這也是完全不懂清末民初中國社會變遷的「想當然爾」的話。清末中國在一連串外在列強的打擊之下，自然也必須作出相應的改變，也就是各種變法與民族革命——但作者完全沒提到這點，好像知識份子的子弟們突然其來開始討厭了他們所屬的菁英階層。持平地說，這不過是每一代年青的知識份子都會湧起的激進思想，端看政府與統治如何安排與疏導罷了。正是因為統治者改變了長久以來的疏導制度（廢科舉），才使得這一個世代的年青人便需要尋求另一種知識領導的管道，所以搞革命的便愈來愈多……民族共和革命搞完再搞社會主義革命。將視野框在作者完全不懂的儒家地主仕紳，根本是弄錯觀點了。

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讀到十四章的〈官僚的復辟〉，裡頭講到共產革命成功的國家，後來都不免步上了「官僚主義」的弊病。但作者認為，這不是馬克思主義的原意，而是列寧的蘇聯和毛澤東的中國走偏了。我可以確信，這位作者應該是馬克思的信仰者吧。

當多個國家經過實證之後，確定某種主義思想無法推得很好，合乎科學邏輯的結論，是這某種主義思想「不符人性、玩不起來的」。但若這某種主義思想沒有成功，解釋成「執行者沒有好好努力」——嗯，這叫作「宗教信仰」，而不是世俗政策了。

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總而言之，本書我並不欣賞，認為沒有太多細讀的價值。以後別再相信書皮上的浮誇之詞，即使它宣稱出版修定到了第三版。

[Thomas Cavan Gui · Rating 3 out of 5]

每蜀个毛左攏得好好看覓這本冊，體會蜀下怹主子面對伊兮烏托邦理想堂吉訶德式兮努力佮無能為力兮絕望。
改革開放毋是阮過去理解兮彼款開天闢地，瞭解了黨內各派兮思想鬥爭，著袂歹理解這陣強調兮前後兩个時期互不否認絕非為某蜀方強強挽尊。
這本冊兮優點已經無需要佫贅述囉，作者作為左派，伊立場加減有淡薄無客觀，所以我著簡單說覓冊內兮幾个小問題。
首先第一章作者沿用了中國官方對太平天國運動兮定性，用伊視作當代中國革命史兮開端，佫指出太平天國佮後壁國民黨以及中共領導兮革命仝款，是西方兮外來思潮指導（基督教平等主義）兮，以此區別其他農民起義。但洪秀全對基督教兮瞭解是極其有限兮，所謂天朝田畝制度思想來源猶卡濟是農民起義中司空見慣兮均貧富思想而已。
農業改造部分（包括土改佮集體化）是作者寫兮相當差氣兮蜀部分。伊對土改兮評價懸兮離譜。作者意識遘囉土地改革兮政治意義懸過經濟意義，猶提得背後兮流血，但作者無指出，解放前“靜悄悄兮革命”佮福爾摩沙國民黨兮土改攏相對卡和平。而且土改毋但以流血為代價。兩千萬地主階級失去兮毋但是特權，佫是基本人權，地主乃至富農淪為政治賤民，農村開始形成蜀種政治種姓制社會。如果說流血佫卡濟兮“鎮反”只是所有革命兮基本操作，那土改遮是真正打開了毛時代負帕累托最優式社會運動這一潘多拉魔盒。
第九章有關中俄農業集體化改革兮分析漏洞百出。作者引用了毛佮蜀寡中共高層兮論斷，認為相比之俄國，中國存在極大比例兮一無所有兮農民，而這是中國順利開展農業集體化兮階級基礎。但中共高層兮論斷純屬臆斷，嚴重偏離現實，相關兮調查早著證明四五十年代兮華北農村土地集中度無懸，多數農民毋是一無所有。作者缺乏對這一史實兮瞭解，導致伊佇農業改造部分呾野濟。土地集中程度卡懸兮南方集體化比華北卡困難，足以駁倒作者兮觀點。而俄國集體化兮不順猶毋是因為富農階級卡強大，而是往布爾什維克解散了社會革命黨兮立憲會議開始，著無蜀刻徛咧農民兮立場兮，俄國農民為啥物欲為伊放棄家己兮財產權。而相比之下華北農民對中共則是絕對信任兮。
第十三章作者意欲淡化毛佇大飢荒中兮罪行（負主要責任，但非故意為之），但提兮證據卻攏有史實錯誤。雖然作者猶承認毛“對於個人政治上的考慮最終壓倒了對農民福祉的關注”，但作者堅持，因為浮誇風兮蒙蔽，毛無法清晰認識遘農民究竟面對偌大兮威脅，直遘60年後，北京遮意識遘問題嚴重性，證據是遘彼時國家遮削減囉征糧定額。實際上兩者間無必然關係，59年四月毛已意識遘有2517萬人面臨枵死兮威脅，猶無妨礙伊強強欲佇廬山會議後加速。

[Raj Karan Gambhir · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really wonderful survey of modern Chinese history from 1949-1999. I would recommend a beginner's comprehension of the history of the PRC before starting this book. Also, I would caution that this book is a survey, and does not go particularly deep into any particular event (though the Cultural Revolution rightly takes up a good deal of the book). What this book does spectacularly well is synthesizing complex events and contextualizing the actions of historical actors.

If you have a dogmatic view about China, that it can either do no wrong or do nothing right, you will not enjoy this book. It is brutally fair, and never fails to point out when actors fail on their own merits or should be re-evaluated in light of new evidence. I would highly recommend this book.

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

A classic.

[Will · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel like I now know more about the philosophies and people that created early China than I do with early America...

Definitely written by someone with an appreciation and sympathy for communist ideas, the author also makes very clears the missteps, ironies and destruction caused by the contradiction that is modern China.

When describing the Mao era, he would take great pains to describe the changes in the seeming minutia of agricultural outputs and grain taxes but as he approached present day and entered the Deng period he was able to condense more learning in a much easier read.

It is curious that the event described in the most physical details (as opposed to political ramifications) is Deng’s Beijing suppression in 1989 which killed around 8,000 where many of the (more numerous) deaths caused by Mao’s policies are brushed over and ideologically rationalized. Still, I get it tho.

[Oliver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let’s put it this way: Prior to reading this book, I didn’t know shit about modern Chinese history. Now I know shit about modern Chinese history.

[Kariem · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meisner does an incredible job. He makes no pretense of partiality, it is equal parts analysis and retelling. But as an historical account of this millennial-scale half century it is magisterial. Must be read as a critical account to be properly scrutinized on its own premises, and there is a residual “post-Maoist disappointment” carried in Meisner’s voice, particularly as he watches the sun set on the Cultural Revolution, but it’s also now my #1 recommendation for reading up on 20th century Chinese history.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good overall book for getting an understanding of recent Chinese history. There are parts I wanted to know more about, especially during the civil war, but I think that's a topic for another book. The book is already 500-something pages.

Meisner definitely tends to the left of things and I think he strives for a balanced account of things. He tries not to fall into mainstream American narrative of China nor does he toe the official China party line. For example, with the Cultural Revolution, I think he strives to give credit towards the aims of it (end a corrupt bureaucracy, etc.) and some of the good things that came out of it (emphasis on medicine for the people, fairer access to education), while also giving fair weight to the gravity of that time period from all the physical and psychological losses. I get the sense he is disappointed with China's abandonment of socialism to some distant future and sees democratic reforms and a proletariat uprising as the best chance for a more egalitarian change. It is scary how invested and enriched Communist Party members are in the current capitalist system.

Anyway, as I said a good overall book on China if you're looking for some. It's on to some novels for me...

[Michelle]

Meisner's book is plastered with reviews like

"His work is a refreshingly clear exposition of the contradictions and continuities that define China today."

and

"...the definitive text on the history of the People's Republic of China...enriching and enthralling."

But as I read passages like this one from Meisner's book:

"It was the modern Chinese social situation that was potentially revolutionary, making revolutionary ideas (and iconoclastic impulses) historically dynamic forces. Again, in the crucial social realm, foreign imperialism played a decisive role. But it was a contradictory role, both revolutionary and counterrevolutionary, one which created a modern revolutionary situation and yet, at the same time, inhibited the consummation of a modern revolution."

...I can't help but think this is probably why so few in the US seem to understand China well. Remember when you were a kid watching cartoons and little symbols would fly around a characters head to show they were confused? That is how I feel reading this book.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really helpful history of modern China. The author views China from a Marxist perspective, which has its limitations but is also makes him sensitive to the thought processes and decision-making of the Marxist leader that have shaped modern China. By far the best history of modern China I've encountered, which frankly is saying much. The reader will have to tolerate a fair amount of repetition. Meisner really wants to make sure you get the point, and the circles back through the same themes over and over. I just skipped through some of the more repetitious and/or ideological passages. For me , it was well worth the effort to get to the meaty history from a perspective that was managed to be both respectful and critical.

[Jiacheng Zhang · Rating 5 out of 5]

共和國五十年，相對於動不動就「中華上下五千年」來說，說長不長，但是從這期間歷史巨變和對於我們今天的廣泛深刻的影響來說，這五十年也是發生了極多極重要的事情，論述起來頗為不易。這本共和國通史史料紮實，線索清晰，不會lost in details, 左翼的立場，也就是說在論述過程中的語言會有意無意的和中共的官方語言暗合（當然也可以說是中共在學習國際國內的左翼的語言在為自己的合法性做論證），使我有時候又有種在讀中共官方文件或者教科書的穿越感，但是作者的語言又不是像中共官方文件那樣死的語言，類似的內容讀完之後相對那些官樣文章來說更加能理解了毛澤東鄧小平這些歷史上的大人物在那種歷史時刻的所思所想。雖然是左翼的立場，和中共官方語言有耦合，但是也不是沒有批判，作者對經典的馬克思主義、列寧主義和毛主義都有深刻的認識，對世界和中國的歷史環境也有充分的理解，這樣一種多方面的把握和平衡也很難得。尤其印象深刻的兩點是：1. 中國改革開放之後大規模引進歐美的思想，對於中國人的民族自信心的造成了嚴重衝擊，作者預計以後某個時間會有反撲，現在看作者預測的非常準確；2. 六四之後，中共對當時參與其中的工人的鎮壓比對學生的鎮壓要殘酷的多，這一點也是非常能體現作者左翼立場，與之後那些在新自由主義之下的論述，通常只強調學生的運動的一面，非常不同，這也能顯示出左翼視角的寶貴。

[R. Reddebrek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably the most informative account of Chinese Marxism I've ever read. It does a good job making the sectarian feuds within the CCP digestible and tackles the ideological crutches of Mao and the other factions that have shaped the PRC since its founding.

[Jayden gonzalez · Rating 5 out of 5]

solid

[October Surprise · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best single-volume history of the PRC. From a critical left perspective.

[Leonardo]

Sobre los proyectos de modernización económica en la China de Mao.

Imperio Pág.187

[Alec · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely despise reading on the computer or on the phone, but Meisner's fantastic work changed me. I was able to check out his book on the Internet Archive and spent the last four days devouring it, thinking about it during other activities and craving to finish it all. Meisner wrote excellently on Mao and China: critical, open, well-sourced and willing to both give praise where due and to shred clear failures. Meisner is writing from the Left and his critique of Mao and the CCP, two unique and different actors, stems from a socialist perspective. However, as Mao proclaimed, his goals for China were both modernization and socialism. For some, Meisner appears, like Mao, to 'lean a bit to one side'; this allows a clear evaluation of Mao's stated goals - not ridicule, not generalization, not red-baiting.

It boils down to this: Mao and the CCP, like other revolutionaries-turned-leaders, put aside their more radical, egalitarian, social goals in favor of (but not limited to) entrenched positions, perks, economic growth, a strong Chinese state and stability. Turns out, building a true socialist state is hard! That giving workers and peasants better pay or incentives is much easier than radically restructuring social relations; that viewing yourselves as the vanguard party, the leaders of the masses, is not the same as being part of the masses. One might step away from Meisner's work a bit sympathetic towards Mao, and less towards the Party as a whole. The relationship between the Party, firmly rooted in a state apparatus of oppression, and Mao, seen as a disruptor and true man of the masses, is written as strayed. Mao appears to be a victim of the Party and bureaucratic notions of stability and growth, similarly to the masses he supposedly speaks for. Where they wanted more state and party power, Mao saw the revolution slipping through his fingers and hearkened back to the masses, the people. I'd like a different perspective on this as well because, while Meisner is critical of Mao's decisions leading to millions of deaths, he also shows him as a radical, bent on trying to achieve socialism and revolution his way.

Special mention to the chapter on Mao's legacy - I think Meisner summarized his entire book and premise succinctly and clearly. Overall, I found this extremely informative, well-sourced and I found some truly awesome material for my classes on Mao. Thank you Mr. Meisner, this was a lovely experience.

[katepub123 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Para analizar una revolución de corte marxista y sus consecuencias, no hay nada mejor que el propio análisis y la recapitulación hecha desde el propio marxismo. Eso es lo que hace Maurice Meisner en este libro con una prosa clarísima (muy distinta a la literatura occidental convencional sobre China) y muy bien fundamentada. Desde el colonialismo occidental que casi desintegra a la China Qing del siglo XIX hasta las reformas de corte capitalista del dengísmo a finales del siglo XX, todos estos eventos son abarcados con mucha claridad en este colosal pero espléndido libro. Y en cuánto a lo que es importante para nuestro entendimiento de lo que es China hoy en día, Meisner es explícito con una cosa: los principales afectados por el Estado chino actual son los trabajadores, y a pesar de llamarse comunista, el Estado es el principal promotor del capitalismo e incluso de reformas de tipo neoliberal como aquellas que privatizaron las empresas estatales y que inevitablemente te van a parecer familiares si eres latinoamericanx. Es increíble ver, aunque sea en páginas, la transformación de una de las revoluciones más gloriosas e importantes del siglo XX en un Estado burocratizado, dictatorial y bien entrado en el capitalismo más atroz, que no se ha tentado el corazón en asesinar y reprimir en multitud a sus disidentes en varias ocasiones (como a los traicionados maoístas –por el propio Mao Zedong– en la Revolución Cultural, a las masas que apoyaron el movimiento demócrata de 1989 o actualmente a los sindicalistas) y que en este momento, es muy difícil vislumbrar su final, terminado por una revolución como la que le dio inicio. Espero así sea.

[Yifei Sun · Rating 5 out of 5]

It gives a clear left-wing explanation of Mao's intention and consequences for Great Leap Forward and Cultural revolution. What's interesting is his analysis on the huge gap between his intention and results.

Maoism is deeply rooted in Chinese culture which is fundamentally different from Russian Revolution. China and Russia shared similar backward economic backgrounds as a socialist country. However, Mao has seen the drawback of Soviet-style socialist developing method and refused to follow the "Old brother" after the First Five-year plan.

It is also an interesting theoretical question that when socialist party takes power in an economically backward country, even with the abolishment of private property, it can still generate a new exploiting class--state bureaucracy. Mao acknowledged this problem and tried to solve it through permanent revolution. However, as the head of the bureaucracy and with his resistance to free speech and democracy, he betrayed the Cultural revolution he started himself.

I would like to explore more theoretical work on this issue because none of the current socialist regimes seem to provide a satisfactory answer.

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh boy. I'm not going to summarize the contents of the book since enough other reviews here do that just fine. In fact, I have 40 pages left but have to return it to the library within 2 days, so in case I don't have a chance to finish I just really wanted to get down: this book ebbed between being totally fascinating and slightly boring (200 pages earlier I might have given it a 5/5). The history of revolutionary and post-revolutionary China was incredible. Honestly, the incomplete Marxist analyses coupled with crazy power struggles gave rise to what seems like a really whacked out history. Bizarre. But of course inspiring. Particularly loved second to last chapter tracking the rise and fall of the democracy movement with the massacre in Beijing by Deng's command.

I wonder if anyone would challenge this book as misrepresentative or incomplete in any damaging way (genuine question, though I do ask because it's hard to imagine). I felt like the author was fair and balanced the whole time and I felt like I got a comprehensive review of the tortuous history of Mao's China.

[Clayton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very readable history book, leaving me much more knowledgeable on the subject of recent P.R.China history. The author makes it pretty clear he is a fan of socialism in general, and the Party, the Revolution, and of Mao in particular. But this did not stop him from delivering some stinging criticisms. And in fact, after this read I too am a little bit more empathetic to where Mao came from.

This book must be read while keeping the author's biases clearly in mind, but -- is that not true of all history books? The information content was very deep and nuanced, and I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to understand a little better the current state of "China". (Extensive mention is made of both Hong Kong and particularly of Taiwan.)

[Canyon Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Solid read, but short on some important events which was interesting? For example, very little discussion on the Great Leap Forward. He spent chapters discussing it only to roll past the associated abuses/neglect. The fledgeling of CCP officials and Mao gets a good amount of attention and makes you really sympathize with the average peasant / worker who was just trying to exist through this turbulent time. Meisner does a good job of explaining this, and it makes sense why his attention is focused on the politicking and politics of the time. He writes well and its a generally easy read for those interested. The theory end is also very digestible.

[Eriol · Rating 5 out of 5]

作者秉持左派立场（原教旨马克思主义？），对Mao及Maoism（尤其从理论上）怀着谨慎而深刻的同情与惋惜，但其观点仍不失客观公正，颇有洞见。当代中国以软弱的各社会阶层以及政治力量对社会和经济力量的相对独立为特征，最终导致GCD国家官僚阶级的崛起并凌驾于社会之上，以政治权力获得特权进行剥削，成为资本主义的根本代表；民粹主义和唯意志论的Maoism突出地反对官僚主义和不平等，但其平均主义和反官僚的实践不仅未能允诺，更在混乱中以巨大的痛苦告终。Mao时代终结之后，作者痛彻而发人深省地直指社会主义的根本特征，即联合起来的无产阶级，行使政治权力、控制生产进程的生产者自由和普遍的民主是社会主义的必要手段和根本目的。改开以后社会主义理想破灭、民族主义和消费主义填补空虚，作者的失望与惋惜之情感同身受。

[KT · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good comprehensive history of the history of the PRC, as shaped by Mao
The author, who has a socialist-utopian view, provides a critical view of this history, which is a refreshing change given the typical reactionary lens from the west
However this view hasn't aged well in his analysis of "Chinese capitalism"

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

非常好的一本书，平静，全面得介绍中国的这段历史。推荐给那些希望了解现代中国的读者们。唯一有点遗憾的是，作者总是希望从思想根源去推测和揣摩毛的一系列举动，但其实是高估了人性，也高估了毛的底线。 举一个例子，书中说不明白为什么50年代搞掉高岗，现在已经有很多书写过了，核心原因是权力斗争（高岗揣摩圣意，去倒刘，毛抛出了高，做切割）。还有，比如文革，比如大跃进，毛本身没什么制度性的构想，第一出发点仍是维护权利，敲打属下或搞掉竞争对手。