Demonizing Discourse in Mao Zedong's China: People vs Non-People
(2007) In Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions 8(3-4). p.465-482- Abstract
- This article examines the use of demonizing rhetoric by the Chinese Communist Party during the first decades of the People’s Republic after 1949. It chronicles the rise, flourishing, and ultimate post-Mao demise of a political discourse predicated on an ‘essential’ distinction between people and non-people. With the help of illustrations lifted from public and until recently classified sources, it sheds light on the strategic reasoning behind official as well as popular deployment of dysphemisms like ‘ox-monster’ and ‘snake-demon’. Noting the extremes to which demonization was taken during the Cultural Revolution, when some party leaders were made to self-criticise for mis-speaking of class enemies as actual human beings, it hints at the... (More)
- This article examines the use of demonizing rhetoric by the Chinese Communist Party during the first decades of the People’s Republic after 1949. It chronicles the rise, flourishing, and ultimate post-Mao demise of a political discourse predicated on an ‘essential’ distinction between people and non-people. With the help of illustrations lifted from public and until recently classified sources, it sheds light on the strategic reasoning behind official as well as popular deployment of dysphemisms like ‘ox-monster’ and ‘snake-demon’. Noting the extremes to which demonization was taken during the Cultural Revolution, when some party leaders were made to self-criticise for mis-speaking of class enemies as actual human beings, it hints at the role that the trauma of Mao’s final decade in power played in problematizing the people vs. non-people distinction and finally discarding it altogether as incompatible with the needs of political reform. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/571691
- author
- Schoenhals, Michael LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2007
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Revolution, Communism, Mao Zedong, Class, Discourse, Demonization, Politics, Society, China
- in
- Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions
- volume
- 8
- issue
- 3-4
- pages
- 465 - 482
- publisher
- Routledge
- ISSN
- 1469-0764
- project
- Mass Dictatorships of the 20th Century
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 200dabe0-5955-4999-9c7a-5e8c9644396e (old id 571691)
- date added to LUP
- 2016-04-01 16:12:02
- date last changed
- 2018-11-21 20:39:31
@article{200dabe0-5955-4999-9c7a-5e8c9644396e,
abstract = {{This article examines the use of demonizing rhetoric by the Chinese Communist Party during the first decades of the People’s Republic after 1949. It chronicles the rise, flourishing, and ultimate post-Mao demise of a political discourse predicated on an ‘essential’ distinction between people and non-people. With the help of illustrations lifted from public and until recently classified sources, it sheds light on the strategic reasoning behind official as well as popular deployment of dysphemisms like ‘ox-monster’ and ‘snake-demon’. Noting the extremes to which demonization was taken during the Cultural Revolution, when some party leaders were made to self-criticise for mis-speaking of class enemies as actual human beings, it hints at the role that the trauma of Mao’s final decade in power played in problematizing the people vs. non-people distinction and finally discarding it altogether as incompatible with the needs of political reform.}},
author = {{Schoenhals, Michael}},
issn = {{1469-0764}},
keywords = {{Revolution; Communism; Mao Zedong; Class; Discourse; Demonization; Politics; Society; China}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{3-4}},
pages = {{465--482}},
publisher = {{Routledge}},
series = {{Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions}},
title = {{Demonizing Discourse in Mao Zedong's China: People vs Non-People}},
volume = {{8}},
year = {{2007}},
}