Ideology Matters: China from Mao Zedong to Xi Jinping
Contents: Preface. 1. Maoism : a Twenty-first century profile. 2. Mao’s portrait of Stalin. 3. Mao Deng and beyond: dialectics of early stage of socialism. 4. Between truth and revolution: will China opt for détente social sciences? 5. The political economy of development in PRC at socialism in the freedom scale. 6. Marxism and the Chinese practice. 7. Power of history: Mao Zedong thought and Deng’s China. 8. The new ideological Banner: Deng Xiaoping theory. 9. Jiang Zemin’s three represents. 10. China’s focus on Governance. 11. Hu Jintao’s scientific outlook on development CPC grapples with the success trap. 12. Harmonious society and beautiful country: Hu Jintao’s vision and the 18th party congress. 13. Xi Jinping and the the Chinese dream. 14. Conclusion: CPC ideology: some reflections. Appendices. Index.
China’s notable successes as well as the problems it has encountered have resulted from policy debates and choices made by the communist party of China from the time of Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping, to the less charismatic leaders Jiang Zemin, Hu Jintao and his successor Xi Jinping. The CPC’s distinct style is to put the policy perspectives in fresh theoretical terms. These essays scrutinise the ideological statements to help understand China’s reform strategy and the policy shifts.
One needs to know the contours of Maoism and its critical assessment by Deng Xiaoping to understand the reforms that he launched and the meaning of socialist market economy and the state guided market process that has produced the high rate of growth in China.
Deng’s successor Jiang Zemin led China’s accelerated growth with greater integration with the world economy and articulated his thinking as the three represents.
After him Hu Jintao’s decade of leadership called by some as a glorious decade by others a lost decade took China to become world’s second largest economy. How successful was he in addressing risings inequality and environmental degradation while practicing his scientific outlook on development? Xi Jinping after taking over in 2012 has given a stirring call for realizing the Chinese dream and has initiated cautious measures on crucial issues. (jacket)
