Mao Zedong Thought

Historical Materialism #210

by Wang Fanxi, Gregor Benton (Editor, Translator, Introduction)

An outstanding critical analysis of Mao Zedong’s political thought.

There have been many books on Mao Zedong, but few match this indispensable study by Wang Fanxi, a leading Chinese Trotskyist and contemporary of Mao. Written more than fifty years ago during Wang Fanxi's exile in Macau, this outstanding analysis has stood the test of time as a critical appraisal of Maoism as a political current from within the Marxist tradition. Wang Fanxi himself was forced to live out his life in exile. His book remains indispensable to anyone interested in a serious appraisal of Mao Zedong.

Genres: China, Theory, Politics, Nonfiction

326 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2020

Reviews

[Mariam Rawwas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wang Fanxi traces the intellectual development and biographical history of Mao Zedong and Mao Zedong thought, attempting to rescue the helpful in Mao from the Stalinist "cult of personality" which he sees as its greatest weakness. It is far from a novel or unique critique, and while I don't have an alternative story, I imagine there's more to be said here (I also find material arguments as to China's trajectory not fully persuasive, if tantalizing), though I do find this useful at the very least for the careful history traced out here.