Land wars : the story of China's agrarian revolution / Brian DeMare.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

DeMare, Brian, Author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Mao, Zedong, 1893-1976--Political and social views.

Mao, Zedong.

Land reform--China--History--20th century.

Land reform.

Social conflict--China--History--20th century.

Social conflict.

Propaganda, Communist--China--History--20th century.

Propaganda, Communist.

Communism and agriculture--China--History--20th century.

Communism and agriculture.

Collectivization of agriculture--China--History--20th century.

Collectivization of agriculture.

China--Rural conditions--20th century.

China.

China--History--Civil War, 1945-1949.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (239 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Stanford, CA : Stanford University Press, [2020]

Language Note:

In English.

Summary:

Mao Zedong's land reform campaigns comprise a critical moment in modern Chinese history, and were crucial to the rise of the CCP. In Land Wars, Brian DeMare draws on new archival research to offer an updated and comprehensive history of this attempt to fundamentally transform the countryside. Across this vast terrain loyal Maoists dispersed, intending to categorize poor farmers into prescribed social classes, and instigate a revolution that would redistribute the land. To achieve socialist utopia, the Communists imposed and performed a harsh script of peasant liberation through fierce class struggle. While many accounts of the campaigns give false credence to this narrative, DeMare argues that the reality was much more complex and brutal than is commonly understood—while many villagers prospered, there were families torn apart and countless deaths. Uniquely weaving narrative and historical accounts, DeMare powerfully highlights the often devastating role of fiction in determining history. This corrective retelling ultimately sheds new light on the contemporary legacy of land reform, a legacy fraught with inequality and resentment, but also hope.

Contents:

Frontmatter

CONTENTS

PREFACE

INTRODUCTION. The Story of Mao’s Revolution

1. ARRIVING

2. ORGANIZING

3. DIVIDING

4. STRUGGLING

5. TURNING

CONCLUSION. Agrarian Revolution in Retrospect

APPENDIX. Major Land Laws and Rural Campaigns

NOTES

BIBLIOGRAPHY

INDEX

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 23. Jul 2020)

ISBN:

1-5036-0952-9

OCLC:

1178769933