A brief history of Chinese socialist thought in the past century

Abstract

Around the 1911 Revolution, socialist thought was introduced into China from the West and Japan. Sun Yat-sen and other revolutionaries regarded socialism as a suitable model upon which to construct the new republic. The Russian Revolution inspired the Chinese revolutionaries and urged them to adopt socialism to reform China, though different parties understood socialism in different ways and, accordingly, chose different plans to realize socialism in China. Sun Yat-sen's The International Development of China and Mao Zedong's On New Democracy and On Coalition Government were the representative fruits of the successful exploration of Chinese socialism fitting the Chinese reality. After the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the Chinese Communist Party was deeply influenced by the Soviet Union and Stalin's theory of the transitional period, so it gave up the theory of New Democracy and adopted radical policies in order to transform Chinese society directly into a socialist society. This policy, regardless of the Chinese reality, proved wrong in practice. After the Cultural Revolution, the Chinese Communist leaders returned to the original meaning of socialism defined by Marx and Engels and decided to develop the economy as their first priority so as to guarantee people's free and comprehensive development.

Keywords:

• socialism
• the Soviet socialist model
• New Democracy
• socialism with Chinese characteristics

Notes

¹ See Jiang Yihua, ed., Shehui zhuyi xueshuo zai zhongguo de chuqi chuanbo [The Early Spread of the Doctrines of Socialism] (Shanghai: Fudan daxue chubanshe, 1984), 430.

⁴ Ibid., 354.

² Sun Yat-sen, “Zai Shanghai da ‘wenhui bao’ jizhe wen”, in Sun Zhongshan quanji [The Complete Works of Sun Yat-sen], vol. 2, ed. Guangdongsheng shehuiyuan lishi yanjiu shi, Zhongguo shehui kexueyuan jindaishi suo zhonghua minguo yanjiu shi, zhongshan daxue lishi xi Sun Zhongshan yanjiushi (Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1982), 332.

³ Sun Yat-sen, “Zai Guangzhou baojie huanyinghui shang de yanshuo”, in Sun Zhongshan quanji, vol. 2, 340.

⁷ Ibid., 373.

⁵ Sun Yat-sen, “Fu bilishi guoji shehuiju gao yi geming jianguo lixiang han” [Letter Replying to the International Socialist Bureau Regarding the Ideal of Revolutionary National Reconstruction], in Guofu quanji [The Complete Works of the National Father], vol. 4, ed. Editorial Committee of the Complete Works of the National Father (Taipei: Jindai zhongguo chubanshe, 1989), 371. The translator cannot find the English original, so the quotations of this letter are translated from the Chinese translation.

⁶ Ibid., 372.

⁸ Ibid.

⁹ Shenshu (Liu Shipei), “Renlei junli shuo” [On Equalizing the Power of Mankind], Tianyi Bao 3 (July 1907). See Zhang Nan and Wang Renzhi, eds., Xinhai geming qian shinian jian shilun xuanji [Selected Political Essays in the Decade before the 1911 Revolution], vol. 2B (Beijing: Sanlian shudian, 1960), 908.

¹⁰ Anonymous, “Wuzhengfu geming yu nongmin geming” [Anarchist Revolution and Peasant Revolution] Hengbao 7 (June 1908).

¹¹ Zhang Taiyan, “Qiushu: tongfa” [Book of Urgency: General Laws], in Zhang Taiyan quanji [Complete Works of Zhang Taiyan], vol. 3 (Shanghai: Shanghai renmin chubanshe, 1984), 246.

¹² Zhang Taiyan, “Daiyi ranfou lun” [On the Pros and Cons of Representative Politics], in Zhang Taiyan quanji, vol. 4 (Shanghai: Shanghai renmin chubanshe, 1985), 307.

¹³ Ibid., 308.

¹⁴ Ibid., 307.

¹⁵ Ibid., 310–311.

¹⁶ Tao Chengzhang, “Longhuahui zhangcheng,” in Tao Chengzhang ji [Works of Tao Chengzhang], ed. Tang Zhijun (Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1986), 135.

¹⁷ Sun Yat-sen, “Zai Shanghai Zhongguo shehuidang de yanshuo” [The Speech Delivered to the Chinese Socialist Party in Shanghai], in Sun Zhongshan quanji, vol. 2, 517.

¹⁸ Ibid., 523.

¹⁹ Ibid., 509.

²⁰ Ibid., 508.

²¹ Ibid., 522.

²² In the joint declaration Sun Yat-sen signed with Joffe on 26 January 1923: “Neither Communism nor the Soviet system can be applied to China, because China does not have the conditions that enable the successful implementation of either communism or the Soviet system.” See Huang Yan, ed., Sun Wen Xuanji [Selected Works of Sun Yat-sen], vol. 2 (Guangzhou: Guangdong renmin chubanshe, 2006), 11. Here Sun most probably means the military communist system of Soviet Russia.

²³ Karl Marx and Friedrick Von Engels, The German Ideology, in Makesi Engesi quanji [Complete Works of Karl Marx and Friedrick Von Engels], vol. 3, trans. and ed. Zhonggong zhongyang makesi engesi lining sidalin zhuzuo bianyi ju (Beijing: renmin chubanshe, 1956), 40. The English quotation is from http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1845/german-ideology/ch01a.htm (accessed August 2, 2012).

²⁴ Sun Yat-sen, “Jianguo fanglue” [The International Development of China], in Sun Zhongshan quanji, vol. 6, 253.

²⁵ Sun Yat-sen, “Zai Anhui dudu fu huanying hui de yanshuo” [Speech Delivered to the Reception at the Anhui Governor's House], in Sun Zhongshan quanji, vol. 2, 533.

²⁶ Sun Yat-sen, “Jianguo fanglue”, in Sun Zhongshan quanji, vol. 6, 398.

²⁸ Mao Zedong, “Zai Jin-Sui ganbu huiyi shang de jianghua” [Speech Delivered to the Meeting of Cadres from Shanxi and Suiyuan Provinces], in Muqian xingshi he women de renwu (biaozhun ben) [Current Situation and Our Tasks (Standard Edition)], ed. Jiefangshe (Handan: Huabei xinhua shudian, 1948), 81–82.

²⁷ Mao Zedong, “Gei Qin Bangxian de xin” [A letter to Qin Bangxian], in Mao Zedong wenji [Collected Writings of Mao Zedong], vol. 3 (Beijing: renmin chubanshe, 1996), 207.

²⁹ Mao Zedong, “Guanyu nongye shehui zhuyi de wenda” [Q and A regarding Agro–Socialism], in Muqian xingshi he women de renwu (biaozhun ben), 143–144.

³⁰ Mao Zedong, “Zai Zhongguo gongchandang di qi ci quanguo daibiao dahui shang de jielun” [Concluding Remark at the Seventh Congress of the Chinese Communist Party], in Mao Zedong wenji, vol. 3, 384–385.

³¹ Mao Zedong, “Muqian de xingshi he women de renwu” [Current Situation and Our Tasks], in Mao Zedong xuanji, vol. 4 (Beijing: renmin chubanshe, 1964), 1260.

³³ Ibid., 346.

³² Deng Yanda, “Zhongguo guomindang linshi xingdong weiyuanhui zhengzhi zhuzhang” [The Political Proposals of the Provisional Action Committee of the Chinese Nationalist Party], in Deng Yanda wenji [Collection of Deng Yanda's essays] (Beijing: renmin chubanshe, 1981), 343.

³⁴ Zhang Junmai, “Shehui suoyou zhi yiyi ji deguo meikuang shehui suoyou fa caoan” [The Significance of Social Ownership and the Draft of the German Coal Mines Ownership Law], in Zhang Junmai, Xin deguo shehui minzhu zhengxiang ji [An Account of the Politics of Social Democracy in New Germany] (Shanghai: Shangwu yinshu guan, 1922), 304–331.

³⁵ Zhang Junmai, “Women yao shuo de hua” [The Words We Want to Say], Zaisheng [Rebirth] 1 (20 May 1932).

³⁶ Ibid.

³⁷ Ibid.

³⁸ Zhang Dongsun, Minzhu zhuyi yu shehui zhuyi [Democratism and Socialism] (Shanghai: Shanghai guancha she, 1948), 178.

⁴⁰ Ibid., 63.

³⁹ Jiefangshe, ed., Guoji zhuyi yu minzu zhuyi [Internationalism and Nationalism] (Tianjin: Xinhua shudian, 1949), 62.

⁴² Ibid.

⁴¹ Presidential Archives of the Russian Federate, archive number 39, catalogue 1, case number 39, cited in Andrei Ledovskii, “Migaoyang yu Mao Zedong de mimi tanpan (1949.1.30–2.8)” [Mikoyan's Secret Negotiation with Mao Zedong (January 30 to February 8, 1949)], in Dang de Wenxian [Documents and Materials of the Party] 3 (1996), 82.

⁴⁴ Ibid., 21.

⁴³ Mao Zedong and Bo Yibo, “Guanyu guodu shiqi zong luxian wenti wenxian xuanzai” [Selected Documents Regarding the General Line in the Transitional Period], in Dang de Wenxian 4 (2003), 20.

⁴⁵ Mao Zedong, “Dui guodu shiqi zong luxian xuanchuan tigang de piyu he xiugai” [Comments and Revisions Regarding the Propaganda Outlines for the General Line of the Transitional Period], see Jianguo yilai Mao Zedong wengao [Articles and Writings of Mao Zedong since the Founding of the People's Republic of China], vol. 4, ed. Zhonggong zhongyang wenxian yanjiushi (Beijing: Zhongyang wenxian chuabanshe, 1991), 405.

⁴⁶ Ibid., 404.

⁴⁷ Zhonggong zhongyang xuanchubu [Department of Propaganda of the CCP], “Wei dongyuan yiqie liliang ba wo guo jiashe chengwei yige weida de shehui zhuyi guojia er douzheng” [Fight for Building Our Nation into a Great Socialist Country by Mobilizing All Forces], in Jianguo yilai zhongyao wenjian xuanbian [Selected Compilation of Important Documents since the Founding of the People's Republic], vol. 4, ed. Zhongguo zhongyang wenxian yanjiushi (Beijing: Zhongyang wenxian chubanshe, 1992), 405–406.

⁵⁰ Ibid.

⁴⁸ Karl Marx, “Gei Zuguo jishi zazhi bianjibu de xin” [Letter to the Editorial Office of the Motherland Chronicle], in Makesi Engesi quanji, vol. 19 (Beijing: renmin chubanshe, 1963), 130. This quotation is translated from the Chinese translation.

⁴⁹ Jiang Zemin, “Zai qingzhu zhongguo gongchandang chengli bashi zhounian dahui shang de jianghua” [Keynote Speech Delivered at the Meeting to Celebrate the 80th Anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party], Renmin ribao [People's Daily], July 2, 2001.