2021 Reading, Mao: The Unknown Story

 

Mao Tse-tung was a brutal tyrant, pure and simple (the authors didn't use pinyin spellings, which we have become used to since the 1970s, in the book, so I utilize the traditional spelling of Mao's name that they use for this post). This very detailed biography by Jung Chang and her Irish husband, Jon Halliday, paints a picture of a man who sought power at all costs and utilized deception and terror in doing so. Rising from a humble background, Mao worked his way to a position of power in the Chinese Communist Party. Assisted by the writings of sympathetic American journalist Edgar Snow, he came to be portrayed as a heroic leader, burnishing his image among Western liberals. There are historians who question some of the author's sources and conclusions, and Jung Chang's attitude toward Mao and his regime is very clear. She was a Red Guard at 14 during the reign of terror known as the Cultural Revolution. Her disgust with the violence led her to become disillusioned with Mao and the Communist government. Much of the critical portrayal fits with other sources I have read relating to Mao.

Mao's path to power left a trail of rivals shoved aside and family members, particularly wives and children, who were treated badly. Significant events in the Chinese Communist revolution were subject to exaggeration and falsification, in particular the famed "Long March". 

Mao lacked an understanding of economics and it showed in policies that his government pursued. The truth appears to be that he cared little for the sufferings of the Chinese people and, in particular, the rural peasants (who still remain on the periphery of Chinese society). Pursuing a goal to become the world's primary Communist leader (especially once the Soviet Union's Stalin was dead), he had no difficulty with subjecting his own people to privation. The so-called "Great Leap Forward" program in the 1950s led to widespread starvation and unsettled some of the Communist leadership cadre. The Cultural Revolution came about as Mao sought to purge any detractors in the party's higher ranks. It also served as a means to try and extinguish vestiges of traditional Chinese culture. Mao's fourth wife Jiang Qing played a key role in the reign of terror that ensued and later paid the price after Mao's death (Mao and Jiang Qing are pictured below).

His long-time associate and Prime Minister, Chou En-lai, was forced to humiliate himself for Mao's benefit and he was ultimately prevented from receiving necessary cancer treatment in his final years. Other associates such as Liu Shao-ch'i and Lin Biao fell out with Mao and paid the price as a result. Lin Biao, Mao & Chou En-lai are pictured below, from left to right, at a time when all was seemingly well between them.

Mao was very excited by the outreach to the United States which culminated in the visit of President Richard Nixon in 1972 (Mao is pictured with Nixon below).

Long and rather densely written (in contrast to other works by Jung Chang that I've read) , this is an interesting critical biography of a key 20th century figure and sheds light on the Chinese Communist Party as well.