Ideology and Organization in Communist China

In 1949, a powerful political-military movement led by the Chinese Communist party gained control of war-ravaged China, inheriting a disorganized administration and a society eroded by decades of revolution. This book analyzes the Chinese Communist organization's functions and success, emphasizing the conflict between professional and political elements. It describes how the Chinese Communists attempted to emulate the Soviet organizational experience during the First Five-Year Plan and use their own methods to achieve economic progress during the Great Leap Forward.

Format: Hardback
Length: 704 pages
Publication date: 29 April 2022
Publisher: University of California Press

In 1949, a remarkable political-military movement, under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, assumed control of a war-ravaged China, inheriting a disorganized administration and a society deeply affected by decades of revolution. Within a span of mere years, China underwent a profound transformation that left it seemingly disconnected from its past. Ideology and organization played pivotal roles in shaping this radical shift. Seventeen years later, these elements continue to wield immense power, holding China together politically and influencing its economic and social development. This book, which begins by exploring ideology, aims to answer the question of how the Chinese Communist organization functions and why it has achieved such remarkable success. The second part delves into the organization of the Party and government, emphasizing command and administration methods. The third part examines industrial organization, focusing on management and control challenges, particularly the ongoing conflict between professionals and politicians. The fourth part explores the Chinese Communist approach to organizing cities and villages, tracing the history of village organization from traditional times to the Yenan period, the land reform of the late 1940s, and the collectivization of the mid-1950s to communization in 1958. While organization in China has undergone continuous evolution, certain fundamental patterns emerge. The book analyzes the most prominent pattern observed in all aspects of organization, namely the clash between two incompatible elements or, as referred to in Chinese Communist terms, contradictions. The primary contradiction revolves around the professional (expert) and political (red) elements. This contradiction dominates the organizational landscape and shapes the dynamics and strategies of the Chinese Communist Party and its government.

Weight: 1179g
Dimension: 234 x 156 x 43 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780520357693