Shows
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Bailu Conference: Suppressing Orders from the Party Congress and Preparing to Leave the Jinggangshan (January 1929)Potentially explosive guidance arrives in the Jinggangshan from the 6th Party Congress of the Communist Party, and plans are laid to break out of the enemy encirclement.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2023-02-1624 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Base Area under Economic Blockade and Unification with the Fifth Red Army (End of 1928)The national Guomindang center takes note of the Communists’ resilience, and takes charge of organizing a new suppression campaign, which is preceded by a tight economic blockade. Peng Dehuai makes his way to the Jinggangshan.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2023-02-0229 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastVagrants, Mercenaries, and Rich Peasants (November 1928)A close reading of a couple portions of Mao’s November 25, 1928 report to the Central Committee.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2022-11-2741 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastTransforming, Building, and Purging the Party (September to November 1928)Finishing our close reading of the resolution of the Border Area Party Congress of October 4 to 6, 1928. Also, the reorganization and purge of the party following the Communist recovery of the Jinggangshan base area after the August Defeat.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2022-10-3125 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastOpportunism and Self-Criticism: The Jinggangshan Party Congress Resolution of October 1928A discussion of the concept of opportunism as it developed in the international communist movement, and a close reading of the self-critical portion of the resolution of the Border Area Party Congress of October 4 to 6, 1928.Further reading:Lenin, “Opportunism, and the Collapse of the Second International”Cheng Yen-shih, ed., Lenin’s Fight Against Revisionism and OpportunismMao Zedong, “On the Correct Handling of Contradictions among the People”Lynn White, Policies of Chaos: The Organizational Causes of Violence in China's Cultural RevolutionSome names from this episode:Du Xiujing, Inspector sent to the Jin...
2022-10-2029 min
People's History of Ideas Podcast“Why Is It that Red Political Power Can Exist in China?” (October 1928)A close reading of the portion of the resolution of the Border Area Party Congress of October 4 to 6, 1928, which later became a key early text in the Maoist canon.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2022-09-1541 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe August Defeat (Part 2): The Communists Strike Back (August to November 1928)The Communists fight to regain lost territory, and ethnic tensions explode among the peasants in the base area.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2022-07-3124 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe August Defeat (Part 1)The 29th Regiment goes against Mao’s orders and decides to stay in Hunan, with disastrous results for the Communists.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2022-07-2421 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Yongxin Joint Conference and Mao’s July 4, 1928 Report to the Hunan Provincial CommitteeMao explains his refusal to comply with orders from the Hunan Provincial Committee.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2022-07-1727 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastClandestine Transcripts of Revolutionary Globalization: The Shining Paths of Late Cultural Revolution MaoismA talk that I recently delivered at the University of Hamburg, focused on the development of a new socialist political economy late in the Cultural Revolution and how this influenced the Communist Party of Peru.Further reading:Alessandro Russo, Cultural Revolution and Revolutionary CultureFabio Lanza, The End of Concern: Maoist China, Activism, and Asian StudiesAntonio Díaz Martínez, China: La revolución agrariaCatalina Adrianzén, “Semblanza de Antonio Díaz Martínez”Peer Moller Christensen and Jorgen Delman, “A Theory of Transitional Society: Mao Zedong and the Shanghai School”...
2022-04-2844 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastNuclear War and Communist RevolutionIn light of the Ukraine crisis, a historical look at communist thinking on the connection between a third world war and revolution.Further reading:Sergei N. Goncharov, John W. Lewis, and Xue Litai, Uncertain Partners: Stalin, Mao, and the Korean WarDavid Holloway, Stalin and the BombEdward Wilson, “Thank you Vasili Arkhipov, the man who stopped nuclear war”Mao Zedong, “On the Correct Handling of Contradictions Among the People”Mao Zedong, “Speech at a Meeting of the Representatives of 64 Communist and Workers’ Parties”M. Upshaw, “Considerations on a Revolutionary Situation in the United St...
2022-03-0830 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Beginning of the Midyear Crisis (June 1928)The Hunan Provincial Committee decides that Mao must obey its authority.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2022-02-2726 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastLand Revolution and Communist Party Growth: The High Tide of the Jinggangshan Base Area (Summer 1928)In the wake of their military victories in late Spring 1928, the Communists carried out a major land redistribution and a mass recruitment drive. There were some unforeseen complications.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2022-02-1030 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastBeating Back Suppression Campaigns and Expanding the Jinggangshan Base Area (May to June 1928)Mao Zedong and Zhu De learn warfare through warfare as they face continuing onslaughts from Guomindang forces.Further reading/watching:Stephen Averill,
2022-02-0326 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Jinggangshan Junction of Forces: Mao Zedong and Zhu De Unite (April to May 1928)The unification of Mao Zedong’s and Zhu De’s forces. Some discussion of the problems involved in unifying the Communist armed forces.Further reading:Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De]Stephen Averill,
2022-01-2729 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Wages of Revolution: Life Underground in Shanghai in the Late 1920s (Part 3)Discussing pay for professional revolutionaries, the role of servants in the lives of Communist leaders, and the Comintern in Shanghai.Further reading:Patricia Stranahan, Underground: The Shanghai Communist Party and the Politics of Survival, 1927-1937Elizabeth Perry, Shanghai on Strike: The Politics of Chinese LaborWang Fan-hsi [Wang Fanxi], Memoirs of a Chinese RevolutionaryGavin McCrea, Mrs. EngelsFrederick Litten, “The Noulens Affair” Anna Belogurova, “The Civic World of International Communism: Taiwanese communists and the Comintern (1921-1931)”Onimaru Takeshi, “Shanghai Connection: The Construction and Collapse of the Comintern Network in East and S...
2022-01-2024 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastFriendship, Compartmentalization, and Assassination Squads: Life Underground in Shanghai in the Late 1920s (Part 2)How did the Communist Party try to protect itself in Shanghai? We discuss the compartmentalized party organization and the creation of the Special Services Division.Further reading:Patricia Stranahan, Underground: The Shanghai Communist Party and the Politics of Survival, 1927-1937Timothy Cheek, “Making Maoism: Ideology and Organization in the Yan’an Rectification Movement, 1942-1944”Mao Zedong, “Combat Liberalism”Xuezhi Guo, China's Security State: Philosophy, Evolution, and PoliticsSome names from this episode:Qu Qiubai, Top Communist leader from mid-1927 to mid-1928Wang Shiwei, Cadre expelled during Yan’an rectification campaign
2022-01-1325 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastLife Underground in Shanghai in the Late 1920s (Part 1)The Communist Party Center remained underground in the dangerous city of Shanghai during the late 1920s and early 1930s.Further reading/watching:Patricia Stranahan, Underground: The Shanghai Communist Party and the Politics of Survival, 1927-1937China: A Century of Revolution documentaryJosephine Fowler, Japanese and Chinese Immigrant Activists: Organizing in American and International Communist Movements, 1919–1933Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes)Wang Fan-hsi [Wang Fanxi], Memoirs of a Chinese RevolutionaryChristina Gilmartin, Engendering the Chinese Revolution: Radical Women, Communist Politics, and Mass Movements in the...
2022-01-0624 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastMao’s (Temporary) Expulsion from the Communist Party and the Collapse of the South Hunan Uprising (March and April 1928)The Party Center puts the South Hunan Special Committee in charge of the Jinggangshan, and the contrast between the strategies advocated by Mao and the Party Center are put on vivid display.Further reading:Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De]Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928Stephen Averill,
2021-12-1922 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Southern Hunan Uprising (Early 1928)We look at the successful conquest of three cities (and one heart) by Zhu De during the course of the uprising he led in south Hunan at the beginning of 1928.The link for my new course on academia.edu mentioned at the end of the episode:www.academia.edu/learn/MatthewRothwellFurther reading:Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De]Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928Stephen Averill,
2021-12-1523 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastStudying Marxism and Getting Thrown in Jail: Zhu De in Germany (1922-1926)Following Zhu De in Shanghai and Germany, finishing up our four-part detour through the early life of Zhu De.Further reading:Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De]Some names from this episode:Chen Duxiu, first general secretary of the Chinese Communist PartyZhou Enlai, organized branches of the Chinese Communist Party in Europe when he was a student there in the early 1920s, before returning to China to become a leading CommunistSun Bingwen, Zhu De’s friend who traveled to Europe and jo...
2021-11-2021 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastZhu De and The Army for the Defense of the Republic in Sichuan and Yunnan (1916-1922)As the Army for the Defense of the Republic faces defections from the revolutionary nationalist cause as well as powerful warlord enemies, Zhu De rethinks the military vocation.Further reading:Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De]Some names from this episode:Cai E, Republican general and governor of Yunnan after the 1911-12 revolutionYuan Shikai, leader of the Beiyang Army and dictator after the fall of the QingXiong Kewu, Nationalist general turned warlordXiao Jufang, Zhu De’s first wifeZh...
2021-11-0324 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastFrom Gym Teacher to General: Zhu De in Revolution and Rebellion (1907-1916)Following Zhu De from his time as a teacher of physical training at a modern school, through his time at the Yunnan Military Academy, the Revolution of 1911 and the rebellion against Yuan Shikai.Further reading:Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De]Some names from this episode:Cai E, Republican general and governor of Yunnan after the 1911-12 revolutionYuan Shikai, leader of the Beiyang Army and dictator after the fall of the QingXiao Jufang, Zhu De’s first wifeLu Shaozhen, re...
2021-09-2320 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastFrom Poor Peasant to Gym Teacher: The Early Life of Zhu DeTaking a look back at the early life of Zhu De, the man who would later be Mao’s main partner in revolution.Further reading:Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De]Some names from this episode:Zhang Tailei, leader of the Guangzhou Uprising of December 1927Wang Zuo, Bandit leader who joined with Mao ZedongShi Dakai, Taiping general who fought a campaign in SichuanEmperor Guangxu, Emperor of China who tried to assert his power during Hundred Days Reform only to be th...
2021-09-1627 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastEngels on InsurrectionThe story behind how guidance on communist armed struggle got into a major American newspaper in 1852. Listener requested background on the text used by Lenin and which was so influential in the Guangzhou Commune.Further reading:Frederick Engels, Revolution and Counter-Revolution in GermanyLenin, “Advice of an Onlooker”Some names from this episode:Zhang Tailei, leader of the Guangzhou Uprising of December 1927Support the show
2021-09-0924 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Guangzhou Commune (December 11-13, 1927)The last major armed uprising of 1927, in which the Communists temporarily took over Guangzhou.Further reading:Arif Dirlik, “Narrativizing Revolution: The Guangzhou Uprising (11-13 December 1927) in Workers’ Perspective”Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928Hsiao Tso-Liang, “Chinese Communism and the Canton Soviet of 1927”Lenin, “Advice of an Onlooker”Some names from this episode:Zhang Tailei, secretary of the Guangdong Provincial Committee of the Communist PartyYe Ting, Communist military leaderHe Long, Communist military leaderHeinz Neumann, German Comintern agentZhang Fakui, Guo...
2021-09-0221 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastRed Canton: Background to the Guangzhou Uprising of December 1927Some background on the situation in Guangzhou leading up to the uprising.Further reading:Arif Dirlik, “Narrativizing Revolution: The Guangzhou Uprising (11-13 December 1927) in Workers’ Perspective”Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928Hsiao Tso-Liang, “Chinese Communism and the Canton Soviet of 1927”Manuel Gomez, “Organize for Liberation of the Colonies: Canton Center of World Movement”Some names from this episode:Wang Jingwei, leader of the Guomindang LeftLi Jishen, Guomindang militarist allied with Wang JingweiZhang Fakui, Guomindang militarist who launched a coup in Guangzhou in...
2021-08-2621 min
People's History of Ideas Podcast‘Blind Actionism’ in Action: Understanding the Hundreds of Small Revolts Led by Communists at the End of the 1920s in ChinaUsing the early November 1927 peasant revolt in Jiangsu province to illustrate features common to the many small Communist-led uprisings at the end of the 1920s.Further reading:Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928Chang Liu, “Making Revolution in Jiangnan: Communists and the Yangzi Delta Countryside, 1927-1945”Some names from this episode:Qu Qiubai, top leader of Communist Party beginning in the summer of 1927Zhu De, Communist military commanderZhou Enlai, leading CommunistSupport the show
2021-08-1923 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastSumming Up Failures, or Playing the Blame Game? The November 1927 Politburo Meeting in ShanghaiThe Politburo meets to decide whether the leadership’s overall policy was wrong, or whether all the cadres carrying out the policy are just bad.Further reading:Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist PartyChang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes)Some names from this episode:Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist Party until summer 1927Qu Qiubai, Top leader of Communist Party beginning in the summer of 1927Zh...
2021-08-1228 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastSedan Chairs, Tired Intellectuals, and Indifferent Masses: The Denouement of the Nanchang Uprising/Southern Expedition (August to October 1927)We follow the Southern Expeditionary force from Ruijin in Jiangxi province to Shantou in Guangdong.Further reading:Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De]Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes)C. Martin Wilbur, “The Ashes of Defeat”Some names from this episode:Zhang Guotao, Leading CommunistYun Daiying, Communist Central Committee memberLi Lisan, Leading CommunistPeng Pai, Communist peasant organizerZhang...
2021-08-0524 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastHearts, Minds, and a Head on a Spike: The Unification of People and Forces in the JinggangshanHow Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai’s forces were brought into the Red Army, and Mao cemented the loyalty of the locals by marrying the Two-Gunned Girl General.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2021-07-2928 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastSecret Agent for International Maoism: José Venturelli, Chinese Informal Diplomacy and Latin American MaoismA podcast version of an article published a few years back. The Chilean artist José Venturelli was a supporter of Maoist China. This article, a brief political biography of Venturelli, shows how he acted on behalf of the People's Republic of China's informal diplomacy among Latin Americans and worked to promote Maoist politics among Latin American revolutionaries.The article can be read here.Support the show
2021-07-2249 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastTwo Incursions, One Betrayal, and Six Points for Attention: The Red Army in Chaling and Suichuan (October 1927 to January 1928)The early progress of the Red Army in expanding Soviet power in the Jinggangshan region.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2021-07-1526 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastAlliances, Discipline, and an Army to Serve the People: The Beginning of the Jinggangshan Base Area (October 1927)Mao forges an alliance with Yuan Wencai and Wang Zuo, and the Revolutionary Army builds its capacity as a political force.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2021-07-0824 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Early Jinggangshan Revolutionary MovementHow the Chinese revolution came to the Jinggangshan, and how the revolution and counter-revolution developed up until Mao’s arrival in October 1927.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2021-07-0128 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastMao’s Bandit Comrades: Wang Zuo and Yuan WencaiThe stories of Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai before they joined up with Mao Zedong.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2021-06-2421 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastBandits of the JinggangshanA closer look at the phenomenon of banditry in the Jinggang Mountains, because of the importance that banditry and other forms of collective violence had on how the revolutionary movement developed.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2021-06-1726 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastBackground on Society and Economy in the Jinggang MountainsWith particular emphasis on the geographical divisions between valleys and mountainsides, and ethnic divisions between Han and Hakka.Further reading:Stephen Averill,
2021-06-1024 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastEntering the Jinggangshan: The Sanwan Reorganization of the People’s ArmyAs Mao’s troops arrive in the Jinggangshan region, a revolutionary reorganization of the people’s army is begun. Also, a tangent on Mao’s leadership style and nuclear war with a jump 30 years into the future.Further reading:Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949Stephen Averill,
2021-06-0324 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Autumn Harvest Uprising in HunanThe first days of Mao Zedong’s long career of armed struggle.Further reading:Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928Roy Hofheinz, “The Autumn Harvest Insurrection”Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928Elizabeth Perry, Anyuan: Mining China’s Revolutionary TraditionSome names from this episode:Lu Deming, Leader of the Lu Deming RegimentZhang Fakui, Guomindang general close to Wang JingweiQu Qiubai, Named head of new provisiona...
2021-05-2729 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastPlanning the Autumn Harvest Uprising in HunanMao doesn’t budge on his military line in the face of pressure from the Party Center, and then gets arrested.Further reading:Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist PartyRoy Hofheinz, “The Autumn Harvest Insurrection”Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930Elizabeth Perry, Anyuan: Mining China’s Revolutionary Tradition
2021-05-2124 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Autumn Harvest Uprising in HubeiThe planning and execution of the Autumn Harvest Uprising in southern Hubei province.Further reading:Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist PartyRoy Hofheinz, “The Autumn Harvest Insurrection”Timothy Cheek’s Introduction to Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, eds., Mao Zedong : A Biography, vol. 1Some names from this episode:Feng Yuxiang, Christian warlord“Scarlet Rays” Huang, Member of South Hubei special committeeLiu Pu-I, Leader of “People’s Self-Defense Army”Hsieh I-huan, Member of...
2021-05-1525 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe “Tender-Hearted Communist:” Qu QiubaiBackground on Qu Qiubai before he became Communist leader in 1927.Further reading:Tsi-an Hsia, The Gate of Darkness: Studies on the Leftist Literary MovementJonathan Spence, The Gate of Heavenly Peace: The Chinese and Their RevolutionPaul Pickowicz, Marxist Literary Thought in China: The Influence of Ch'u Ch'iu-paiSteve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927Some names from this episode:Qu Qiubai, Named head of new provisional politburo at August 7, 1927 Emergency ConferenceWang Shouhua, President of the General Labor UnionLi Dazhao, Co-founder of the...
2021-05-0825 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastArmy or Militia? Mao and the Politburo Diverge on Military Policy for the Autumn Harvest UprisingMao takes a critical position on the military line pursued by the Comintern and the Politburo. Also, the issue of scapegoating individuals as a way of dealing with repudiated party policies.Further reading:Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist PartyStuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930Zhou Enlai, Selected Works of Zhou Enla...
2021-04-2426 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Decisive Turn to Overthrowing the Guomindang: The 7 August 1927 Emergency ConferenceThe new policy of mass uprisings against the Guomindang is decided upon, and Mao’s comments at the meeting stand out for their epistemology.Further reading:Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist PartyStuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930Some names from this episode:Chen Duxiu, Communist general secretary until July 1...
2021-04-1728 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Nanchang Uprising (August 1, 1927)The mutiny that founded the Chinese Red Army.Further reading:Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist PartyStuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De]Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes)C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928C. Mar...
2021-02-1728 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe End of the United Front (June to July 1927)As the Wuhan regime collapses, so does the united front. Soviet advisors leave China, Chinese Communists go underground. The purge strikes Wuhan.Further reading:C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928Anna Louise Strong, China’s MillionsVera Vladimirovna Vishnyakova-Akimova, Two Years in Revolutionary China, 1925-1927C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist PartySome names from this episode:M. N. Roy, Indian Comintern agentWang Jingwei, Le...
2021-02-0821 min
People's History of Ideas Podcast“Like Taking a Bath in a Toilet” (May and June 1927)The Comintern’s guidance falls short in response to the ongoing massacre of peasants.Further reading:C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928Donald Jordan, The Northern Expedition: China’s National Revolution of 1926-1928Alexander Pantsov, The Bolsheviks and the Chinese Revolution, 1919-1927 Some names from this episode:Tang Shengzhi, Hunan warlord who sided with the National Revolutionary Army and contested leadership with Chiang Kai-shekYe Ting, Communist general and garrison commander who defended Wuhan against a right-wing mutinyM. N. Roy, Indian Comintern agentW...
2021-01-3026 min
People's History of Ideas Podcast“An Example of the Chinese Tenant-Peasant’s Life”This episode is an appendix to episode 51, and consists of a booklet written by Mao Zedong describing the life of a tenant-peasant in Hunan. This episode should help you to concretely picture peasant life in Hunan during the period we have been discussing in the podcast, while also giving a short example of Mao Zedong’s practice of social investigation.Most of this is Mao running down the income and expenditures of a tenant-peasant, and just the last few minutes of this recording are Mao giving his conclusions. If you’re good at hearing lists of expenses and...
2021-01-2320 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastMao Tries to Legislate a Peasant Revolution: The Wuhan Land Commission (April to May 1927)Mao’s experience on the Wuhan Guomindang Left government’s Land Commission, with some comparative remarks on land reform in Communist thought.Further reading:Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist PartyStuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928Lynne Viola, The Best Sons of the Fatherland: Workers in the Vanguard of Soviet CollectivizationLenin, “Pages from a Diary” and “On Co-operation”Some names from this episode:Mikhail Borodin, Comin...
2021-01-2329 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Fifth Party Congress and the ‘Better Fewer but Better’ Approach to Summing up a MassacreThe Fifth Party Congress of the Communist Party (April 29 to May 9, 1927) decides that the united front is better without Chiang Kai-shek.Further reading:Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist PartyStuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928Some names from this episode:M. N. Roy, Indian Comintern agentMikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to...
2021-01-1827 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastRivers of Blood in the Streets of Shanghai: The Massacre of the Communists by the Guomindang RightChiang Kai-shek’s April 12, 1927 coup against the Communists.Further reading:Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927Elizabeth Perry, Shanghai on Strike: The Politics of Chinese LaborMaurice Meisner, Li Ta-chao and the Origins of Chinese MarxismStuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930Some names from this episode:Wang Shouhua, President of the General Labor UnionDu Yuesheng, One of three top leaders of the Green GangHuang Jinrong, One of th...
2021-01-0724 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Third Armed Uprising in ShanghaiOn March 21-22, 1927, Shanghai fell to a combination of general strike, armed uprising, and the advance of the National Revolutionary Army.Further reading:Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927Some names from this episode:Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist PartyLi Qiushi, Delegate to the Fifth Communist Party Congress known for being very handsomeMikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the GuomindangHenk Sneevliet, alias Maring, Dutch Communist and Comintern leader in China from 1921-1923Zhou Enlai, Head...
2020-12-1723 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Split in the Guomindang: The Left Government in Wuhan and the Military Headquarters in Nanchang Develop Irreconcilable Differences (January to March 1927)The question of what sort of revolution the Nationalist revolution will be creates a fundamental division within the Guomindang.Further reading:C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927Alexander Pantsov, The Bolsheviks and the Chinese Revolution, 1919-1927Jack Gray, Rebellions and Revolutions: China from the 1800s to 2000Some names from this episode:Mikhail Borodin, Comintern ag...
2020-12-0323 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastSummation, Red Terror, and Frustration: The Aftermath of the Second Armed Uprising in Shanghai (February and March 1927)Summations of the Second Uprising on several different levels; the continuing inability of the Shanghai Regional Committee of the Communist Party to control the ‘dog-beating’ squads; and some thoughts on the problem of the inevitability of errors being made in revolutionary armed struggle and Mao’s thinking on that problem.Further reading:Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927Ally...
2020-11-1225 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Second Armed Uprising in Shanghai (February 1927)Where we continue to follow the insurrectionary journey of the Shanghai Communists.Further reading:Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927Some names from this episode:Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist PartySun Chuanfang, Leader of warlord coalition in China’s southeastZhang Zongchang, Shandong warlordLi Baozhang, the commander of the garrison of warlord troops in ShanghaiZhou Enlai, Communist commissar who left Whampoa to aid th...
2020-11-0525 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastFrom Dog-Beating Squads to the First Armed Uprising: The Shanghai Communists’ Steep Learning Curve in Developing Armed Struggle (1922 to 1926)The bumpy road that the Communist Party took in Shanghai as it developed its capacity to deploy organized violence as a political tactic.Further reading:Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927Some names from this episode:Wang Shouhua, Leading Communist labor organizer in ShanghaiYu Xiaqing, Leader of a nationalist faction of Shanghai’s merchant classNiu Yongjian, Veteran Nationalist operative who came to Shanghai in 1926Sun Chuanfang, Leader of warlord coalition in China’s southeastTao Jingxuan, Communist union organizer executed after First Armed Upri...
2020-10-2923 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastWhen Peasant Revolution Meets the Theory of the Productive Forces: The Communist Debate on Unity with the Nationalist LeftThe tension between maintaining the united front and mobilizing the peasants for revolution finds expression in a crucial debate over strategy at the end of 1926.Further reading:C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist PartyStuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927Some names from this episode:Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the GuomindangGregory Voitinsky, Ch...
2020-10-2223 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastMore Mass Movements, More Problems: The Aggressive Line of the Guangdong ComradesDebate breaks out within the Communist Party and the Comintern over how to assess the balance of forces and relate to the developing revolutionary situation engendered by the mass movements in Hunan and Hubei in late 1926.Further reading:C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist PartyArif Dirlik, “Mass Movements and the Left Kuomintang”Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927Daniel Kwan, Marxist Intellectuals and the Chinese Labor Movement: A St...
2020-10-1525 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastRevolution in the Countryside: The Peasant Movement in Hunan in the Wake of the Northern ExpeditionMass upheaval in Hunan and elsewhere after people are liberated from warlord rule.Further reading:C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927Yokoyama Suguru, “The Peasant Movement in Hunan”Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927A name from this episode:Wu Peifu, Northern warlordSupport the show
2020-10-0832 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Northern Expedition Begins: Attempts at Merging the Mass Movement with Regular WarfareExamining the role of both organized and unorganized mass support for the Northern Expedition in its first phase, the offensive from Guangdong to Wuhan from May to October 1926. Further reading:Donald Jordan, The Northern Expedition: China's National Revolution of 1926-1928C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927Some names from this episode:Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the GuomindangChen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist PartySun Zhongshan/Sun Yatsen, Founding leader o...
2020-10-0129 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastMao in 1926: War in Hunan, Coup in Guangzhou, Polemicizing for the Peasant MovementMao's political activity and intellectual development during the first nine months of 1926.Further Reading:Gerald Berkley, “The Canton Peasant Movement Training Institute”Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927Yokoyama Suguru, “The Peasant Movement in Hunan”Philip C. C. Huang, “Mao Tse-Tung and the Middle Peasants, 1925-1928”Angus McDonald, “The Hunan Peasant Movement Its Urban Origins”Some names from this episode:Shen Yanbing (Mao Dun), Communist writer and later Culture Minister, in 1926 worked with Mao Zedong in Guomindang propaganda departmentZhao Hengti, D...
2020-09-2427 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastSpreading Peasant Revolution Across Guangdong, and Beyond: The Guangzhou Peasant Movement Training InstituteHow the Communist Party took the formula of "Haifeng + armed self-defense" and set out to organize the peasants of Guangdong, and beyond.Further Reading:Pang Yong-pil, “Peng Pai: From Landlord to Revolutionary”Yuan Gao, “Revolutionary Rural Politics: The Peasant Movement in Guangdong and Its Social-Historical Background, 1922–1926”Robert Marks, Rural Revolution in South China: Peasants and the Making of History in Haifeng County, 1570-1930Roy Hofheinz, The Broken Wave: The Chinese Communist Peasant Movement, 1922-1928Fernando Galbiati, P’eng P'ai and the Hai-Lu-Feng SovietGerald Berkley, “The Canton Peasant Movement Training Institute”C. Martin Wi...
2020-09-1726 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Beginning of the Peasant Movement in Guangdong Province: How the Communist Party Got a Mass Base of Peasant Support in Spite of ItselfPeng Pai and the beginning of the peasant movement in Guangdong Province.Further Reading:Pang Yong-pil, “Peng Pai: From Landlord to Revolutionary”Yuan Gao, “Revolutionary Rural Politics: The Peasant Movement in Guangdong and Its Social-Historical Background, 1922–1926”Robert Marks, Rural Revolution in South China: Peasants and the Making of History in Haifeng County, 1570-1930Roy Hofheinz, The Broken Wave: The Chinese Communist Peasant Movement, 1922-1928Fernando Galbiati, P’eng P'ai and the Hai-Lu-Feng SovietSome names from this episode:Peng Pai, Communist peasant organizerLi Dazhao, Co-founder of the Communist Pa...
2020-09-1022 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe March 1926 Zhongshan Gunboat Incident: Coup and Countercoup in the Pearl River DeltaTensions come to a head between Chiang Kai-shek, Wang Jingwei and General Kuibyshev, as a Soviet plot backfires spectacularly.Further Reading:C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927Wu Tien-wei, “Chiang Kai-shek's March Twentieth Coup d'Etat of 1926”Barbara Tuchman, Stilwell and the American Experience in China, 1911-1945Some names from this episode:Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the GuomindangWang Jingwei, Leader of Guomindang government in Guangdong in late 1925 and early 1926Dai Jitao, Right-wing Guom...
2020-09-0321 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastFrom Quaker Peace Activist to Maoist Revolutionary: An Oral History of Personal Transformation from a 1971 American Delegation to ChinaAn oral history interview with Monica Shay (née Newbold, aka Kathryn) about her experience in China in 1971-72.Some names from this episode:William Hinton, author of Fanshen and other books on ChinaJiang Qing, leading radical during Cultural Revolution and wife of Mao ZedongRevolutionary Union (RU), pro-China communist group in the US in early 1970sDazhai, model agricultural communeSupport the show
2020-08-271h 36
People's History of Ideas PodcastBonus: New China Song by Prairie FireThe song "New China" by the band Prairie Fire, from the 1976 album Break the Chains. This song will be referenced in our next episode.Support the show
2020-08-2407 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Beginning of Maoism: Mao Zedong’s “Analysis of All the Classes in Chinese Society”Mao’s first major statement on the need for a strategic reorientation toward mobilizing the peasantry.The chart cited in the episode is now on the podcast website (as of 8-24-20): https://peopleshistoryofideas.com/episode-33-the-beginning-of-maoism-mao-zedongs-analysis-of-all-the-classes-in-chinese-society/.Further Reading:Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927Philip C. C. Huang, “Mao Tse-Tung and the Middle Peasants, 1925-1928”Some names from this episode:Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist PartyLi Dazhao, Co-founder of Communist PartySupport the show
2020-08-2026 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastPropaganda, Criticism and Corruption: Mao as Propagandist and Disciplinarian (October 1925 to early 1926)Mao as acting head of propaganda for the Guomindang.Further Reading:C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927Some names from this episode:Wang Jingwei, Leader of Guomindang government in Guangdong in late 1925 and early 1926Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the GuomindangChen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist PartyGregory Voitinsky, Comintern representative in China at various po...
2020-08-1323 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastStrike, Assassination and War: The Revolution/Counter-Revolution Dialectic in Guangdong in the Second Half of 1925The Hong Kong strike, the assassination of Liao Zhongkai, and the Second Eastern Expedition.Further Reading:C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927John Erickson, The Soviet High Command: A Military-Political History, 1918-1941Some names from this episode:Chiang Kai-shek, Japan-trained military officer, close confidant of Sun YatsenDeng Zhongxia, Communist labor leader, involved in Hong Kong strikeWang Jingwei, Potential heir apparent to Sun Yatsen as leader of GuomindangLiao Zhongkai, Potential heir apparent to Sun Yatsen as leader...
2020-08-0625 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastGuangdong Spring 1925: Revolutionary Warfare Erupts and Workers Shut Down Hong KongThe National Revolutionary Army battles the warlords for supremacy in Guangdong, while the British and French escalate tensions by massacring supporters of a strike which shut down Hong Kong.Further Reading:C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927Some names from this episode:Chiang Kai-shek, Japan-trained military officer, close confidant of Sun YatsenVasily Blyukher, Soviet general who led military mission to aid GuomindangZhou Enlai, Communist head of the Whampoa Academy political departmentWang Jingwei, Potential heir apparent to Sun...
2020-07-3024 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Soviet Military Alliance with the Guomindang, and the Creation of the National Revolutionary ArmyThe first year of the Soviet military alliance with the Guomindang, including the creation of the Whampoa Military Academy, the formation of the National Revolutionary Army, and the crushing of the Merchant Corps.Further Reading:C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927John Erickson, The Soviet High Command: A Military-Political History, 1918-1941Some names from this episode:Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the GuomindangChiang Kai-shek, Japan-trained military officer, close confidant of Sun YatsenChen...
2020-07-2324 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastPeasant Revolution?: An Exhausted Mao Rediscovers His RootsMao gets sick of all the BS in Shanghai and returns to his hometown of Shaoshan, where he discovers a militant peasantry.Further Reading:Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927Yokoyama Suguru, “The Peasant Movement in Hunan”Some names from this episode:Li Lisan, Communist leader of the Shanghai General Labor UnionLiu Shaoqi, Communist leader just below Li Lisan in the Shanghai General Labor UnionLiu Hua, Union activist executed for leading role in May 30 MovementLiu Bolun, Stood...
2020-07-1628 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastGonzalo in the Middle Kingdom: What Abimael Guzmán Tells Us in His Three Discussions of His Two Trips to ChinaA podcast version of a recently published article which discusses what the leader of Peru's Shining Path, Abimael Guzmán, has to say about the time he spent in Maoist China.The article can be read on the podcast website.Support the show
2020-07-091h 08
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe May 30 Movement: The Chinese People’s Uprising Against the British and Japanese in 1925Workers, students and merchants in Shanghai take on the British authorities of the International Settlement and Japanese mill owners after protesters are massacred.Further Reading:Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927Some names from this episode:Li Lisan, Communist leader of the Shanghai General Labor UnionZhang Xueliang, son of Zhang Zuolin, occupied Shanghai’s Chinese cityZhang Zuolin, northern warlordGregory Voitinsky, Comintern representative in China in 1925Liu Shaoqi, Communist leader just below Li Lisan in the Shanghai General Labor UnionLiu Hua, Un...
2020-07-0228 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastLenin’s Ideas on Revolutionary Situations and the Situation in the United States TodayIn response to a listener request, we consider the situation in the United States today in light of historical thinking on the question of revolutionary situations.Further reading:Lenin, The Collapse of the Second International (chapter two)Lenin, Letters from AfarLenin, “Marxism and Insurrection”Support the show
2020-06-2524 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastBack to the Labor Front!: The Japanese Mills Strike of 1925The Communist Party tries to figure out how to put the workers in the lead of the nationalist revolution, and has some initial success.Further Reading:Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927Some names from this episode:Deng Zhongxia, Leading Communist labor organizerLi Dazhao, Co-founder of the Communist Party, often credited as China’s first MarxistLi Lisan, Leading Communist labor organizerChen Duxiu, Chen Duxiu, General secretary of the Communist PartyGregory Voitinsky, Comintern representative in China in 1925Yang Zhihua, Communist leader in...
2020-06-1820 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Proletarian Nation vs. The Theory of the Productive ForcesThe thinking of Chinese Communism’s two founders, Li Dazhao and Chen Duxiu, diverges as revolutionary experience is gained.Further Reading:Maurice Meisner, Li Ta-Chao and the Origins of Chinese MarxismSome names from this episode:Li Dazhao, Co-founder of the Communist Party, often credited as China’s first MarxistChen Duxiu, Co-founder and first general secretary of the Communist PartyZhang Guotao, Communist leader and opponent of ‘united front from within’ with GuomindangSupport the show
2020-06-1127 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastFriends Close, Enemies Closer: The United Front in ActionAs both the Guomindang and the Communist Party benefit from their collaboration, tensions build.Further reading:Tony Saich, The Origins of the First United Front in ChinaSteve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927Alexander Pantsov, The Bolsheviks and the Chinese Revolution, 1919-1927C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927Arif Dirlik, “Mass Movements and the Left Kuomintang”Some names from this episode:Sun Zhongshan/Sun Yatsen, leader of the GuomindangMikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head...
2020-06-0423 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Road Is Tortuous: The Chinese Revolution and the End of the Global SixtiesA podcast version of a recently published article which argues that the rightward turn of Chinese politics in the 1970s was a key contributing factor in ending the revolutionary era of the long and global 1960s and ushering in the neoliberal age of reaction which followed.The article can be read on the podcast website.Support the show
2020-05-2842 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Loneliest United Front: The Chinese Communist Party in 1923The Communist Party of China tries to find a way to implement the united front with the Guomindang in 1923, but ultimately has to wait for the Soviet-Guomindang alliance to mature.Further reading:Tony Saich, The Origins of the First United Front in ChinaStuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 2Some names from this episode: Sun Zhongshan/Sun Yatsen, leader of the GuomindangWang Jingwei, leader of Guomindang left-wing, later president of Japanese puppet state in ChinaCao Kun, northern warlord who controlled BeijingLi Yuanhong, president of...
2020-05-2122 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastCommunist Unionizing and the Genesis of the United Front with the GuomindangThe Communist Party begins its labor organizing drive, and the Comintern pushes for a united front with the Guomindang.Further reading:Elizabeth Perry, Shanghai on StrikeTony Saich, The Origins of the First United Front in ChinaSteve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai 1920-1927 Some names from this episode:Henk Sneevliet, alias Maring, Dutch Communist and Comintern leader in China beginning in 1921Zhang Guotao, emerged from founding congress as an important Communist leaderSun Zhongshan/Sun Yatsen, leader of the GuomindangLi Qihan, communist teacher a...
2020-05-1425 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastWorkers' Revolution or Nationalist United Front? Early Strategic Decisions of the Chinese Communist PartyThe early divergence in strategic thinking and revolutionary priorities between the CCP and the Comintern. Further reading:Tony Saich, The Origins of the First United Front in ChinaSome names from this episode:Chen Gongbo, Founding Chinese Communist who studied at Columbia and later joined the Japanese puppet regimeHenk Sneevliet, alias Maring, Dutch Communist and Comintern leader in China beginning in 1921Sun Zhongshan/Sun Yat-sen, leader of the GuomindangGeorgii Chicherin, People’s Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the Soviet UnionLao Xiuchao, Chinese Bolshevik who attended the fir...
2020-05-0824 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastDemarcation and Organization: The Chinese Communist Party is FoundedPolemics with non-revolutionary Marxists and anarchists, and then the party congress in July 1921.Further reading:Arif Dirlik, The Origins of Chinese CommunismSome names from this episode:Chen Duxiu, editor of New Youth and leader of Shanghai Communist nucleusGregory Voitinsky, Leader of Comintern delegation to China in 1920Karl Kautsky, Second International theorist of economic determinist MarxismLi Dazhao, Beijing-based revolutionary Marxist leaderZhang Dongsun, Exponent of a non-revolutionary interpretation of MarxismOu Shengbai, Guangzhou anarchist and former student of Chen DuxiuHenk Sneevliet, alias Maring, Dutch...
2020-04-3022 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastFrom Russia with Organizational Expertise: The Comintern Comes to ChinaGregory Voitinsky comes to China and helps get the ball rolling to found the Communist Party. Also, a few words on commodity fetishism as the keystone of Marx's Capital and how this leads to Lenin's innovations in conceptualizing communist party formations.Some names from this episode:Gregory Voitinsky, Comintern organizer who arrived in China in March 1920Li Dazhao and Chen Duxiu, two of the key figures in founding the Chinese Communist Party (their background is discussed in past episodes)Support the show
2020-04-2424 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Communist InternationalExplaining how the strategic thinking of the Communist International developed, as background to the key role the ComIntern played in facilitating the founding of the Chinese Communist Party.Support the show
2020-03-2625 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastMao's Anarchist Years (The Young Mao Zedong Part Two)In this episode we continue our examination of Mao Zedong’s ideological development by discussing his anarchist period. Further reading:Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 1: The Pre-Marxist Period, 1912-1920 is the indispensable source here. Some names from this episode:Li Dazhao, leading proponent of learning from the Russian RevolutionHu Shi, student of John Dewey and advocate for pragmatismChen Duxiu, editor of New Youth and leading New Culture intellectual Support the show
2020-02-2025 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastLiberals Becoming Marxists: The New Culture and May 4th Movements (1915-1919)In this episode we explore the move from liberalism toward Marxism among progressive intellectuals in the 1915-1919 period, and how those ideas began to be brought to the working class in China’s cities. This includes the New Culture Movement, the May 4th Movement, and the June 5th Movement.Further reading:Maurice Meisner, Li Ta-Chao and the Origins of Chinese MarxismArif Dirlik, The Origins of Chinese Communism Some names from this episode:Yuan Shikai, leader of the Beiyang Army and dictator after the fall of the Qing
2020-01-2926 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Young Mao ZedongIn this episode we look at Mao Zedong’s childhood, family background, and see what he was thinking in 1912. Further reading:Edgar Snow, Red Star Over ChinaStuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 1: The Pre-Marxist Period, 1912-1920Lee Feigon, Mao: A ReinterpretationJonathan Spence, Mao Zedong: A Life Some names from this episode:Ba Jin, anarchist novelist who wrote The FamilyShang Yang, founder of the Legalist schoolSima Qian, author of Records of the Gra...
2019-12-2122 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe 1911 RevolutionThe overthrow of the Qing Dynasty, followed by the first years of the Republic of China. Further reading on the 1911 Revolution:Joseph Esherick and C.X. George Wei, editors, China: How the Empire FellSome names from this episode:Mao Zedong, leader of the Chinese Revolution and revolutionary communist par excellenceSun Zhongshan/Sun Yat-sen, leader of the Revolutionary AllianceHuang Xing, Vice-President of the Revolutionary Alliance and military leader of the April 1911 uprising in GuangzhouPuyi, child emperor who abdicated his t...
2019-12-1423 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastRevolutionary Voices from the End of the Qing DynastyIn this episode, we explore some of the major voices of revolution from the decade preceding the end of the Qing Dynasty in 1912: Zou Rong, Qiu Jin and Sun Yat-sen [Sun Zhongshan].Some names from this episode:Kang Youwei, Confucian advocate of liberal modernization and focus of episode 8Guangxu Emperor, Emperor of China who was put under house arrest by Cixi after attempting to assert his power during the Hundred Days Reform (episode 8)Empress Dowager Cixi, ruler of China during this periodLiang Qichao, disciple of Kang YouweiZou Rong, author of...
2019-11-2124 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Boxer Uprising of 1900In the face of foreign aggression and natural disaster, masses of Chinese people turn to traditional folk religion and martial arts to attempt to throw out the imperialists.A couple sources for reading more, and which I used in preparing this episode:Joseph Esherick, The Origins of the Boxer UprisingPaul Cohen, History in Three Keys: The Boxers as Event, Experience, and MythSome names from this episode:Wang Lun, leader of White Lotus rebellion in the 18th centuryEmpress Dowager Cixi, ruler of China during this periodKang Youwei...
2019-11-0526 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastKang Youwei and the Hundred Days ReformIn the wake of the Sino-Japanese War, Kang Youwei works with the Guangxu Emperor to try to replicate Japan's Meiji reforms, before being crushed by Cixi and other Manchu conservatives.At the beginning of the episode, I talk some about how westerners have written about Chinese history. A good book that goes really deep into this is Paul Cohen's Discovering History in China. If you're into that topic, you may also want to read Fabio Lanza's End of Concern: Maoist China, Activism, and Asian Studies.Some names from this episode:Kang Youwei, Confucian advocate of...
2019-10-1226 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastLosing the Tributaries: The Sino-French and Sino-Japanese Wars in Vietnam and KoreaIn this episode we do some Q&A and then cover the Sino-French War of 1884-1885 and the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895.A couple names from this episode:Emperor Qianlong: ruled China from 1735 to 1799Li Hongzhang: high level Chinese statesman and advocate of self-strengtheningSupport the show
2019-09-2927 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastBook Review of The Shining Path: Love, Madness, and Revolution in the AndesA review of the new book about the civil war in Peru, The Shining Path: Love, Madness, and Revolution in the Andes, by Orin Starn and Miguel La Serna. This book is the first history of the Shining Path aimed at the general reading public to come out in a long time. Next episode, we'll return to our series on the historical background to the Chinese Revolution.Support the show
2019-08-1821 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Self-Strengthening Movement: Too Little Too Late?This episode focuses on the 1862-1895 period, when the Empress Dowager Cixi ruled and reformers tried to make China strong enough to stand up to foreign powers by modernizing the military and promoting 'new learning.' Also, a few words on the surge in overseas Chinese migration during this time, and its relationship to revolutionary nationalist movements to overthrow the Qing Empire.The books that I quote from in the episode are:Zheng Yangwen, Ten Lessons in Modern Chinese History (https://www.manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9780719097737/)Stephen Platt, Autumn in the Heavenly Kingdom: China, the West...
2019-08-1225 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Second Opium War and the End of the Taiping Civil WarThe episode wraps up the events of the Taiping Revolution (1850-1864) and also deals with the events and outcome of the Second Opium War (1856-1860). The Qing Dynasty is weakened and the British, French, American and Russian powers extract new unequal treaties. Then the British help the Qing to put down a peasant-based revolution.Support the show
2019-07-0331 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Taiping RevolutionThe strange story of Christian peasant revolutionaries in 19th century China. This episode is about the origins and early years of the Taiping Revolution (1850-1864). Both the early Nationalist revolutionaries, like Sun Yat-sen, and later Communists, like Mao Zedong, were inspired by the peasant war led by Hong Xiuquan. But the Taipings were more than just a very large peasant rebellion, as their leader, Hong, thought he was the younger brother of Jesus Christ.Good resources for more information:Jonathan Spence, God's Chinese Son: The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom of Hong Xiuquan (https://wwnorton.com/books/Gods-Chinese-Son/)
2019-06-1527 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastThe Opium War and the Beginning of China's Century of HumiliationThis is the first of several episodes which will give broad historical background for our upcoming discussion of the Chinese Revolution and the international spread of ideas related to the Chinese Revolution. This episode focuses on the background to and events of the First Opium War (1839-1842). China's defeat in the First Opium War began the Century of Humiliation at the hands of imperialist powers (Britain, France, Russia, Germany, USA, Japan) that ended with the revolution's victory in 1949.Good resources for more information on these events:Zheng Yangwen, The Social Life of Opium in China (https...
2019-05-3134 min
People's History of Ideas PodcastIntroducing the People's History of Ideas PodcastThis is a short episode just introducing you to the podcast. Matthew Rothwell is your host. The theme is the history of revolutionary ideas, starting with background to the Chinese Revolution.For Dr. Rothwell's book on Maoism in Latin America, see here: https://www.routledge.com/Transpacific-Revolutionaries-The-Chinese-Revolution-in-Latin-America/Rothwell/p/book/9781138108066For a shorter introduction to his work, see this article: http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/1531961/1/Rothwell_RA.pdfFull audio of the Malcolm X speech excerpted in this episode, "Message to the Grassroots," is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a59Kwp35...
2019-05-2912 min