Mao

So, I've taken a stab at starting Mao:the unknown story. I only got about an hour into it - but wow! Is it ever biased and unobjective! The first sentence is something about how ruthless he was and how many people he killed, before even mentioning that he was born (which was the 2nd sentence)! Knowing next to nothing about the time or the person, and not being informed enough to form my own opinions one way or the other, I'm looking for some bit of general background or history on which to ground myself. I'm afraid this is not it. Even with my lack of understanding or reference, this just appears to be completely partial and revisionist history making. It's definitely peaked my curiosity, but that will just mean I'll need to read something else as well. Any thoughts on this book? Any suggestions for more objective background reading on Mao and China during that time? Thanks!

I don't claim to be an expert about Mao, but one can hardly call a book that begins with a statement on the vast number of deaths he caused biased and unobjective on this basis. Mao has for some reason not attracted the opprobrium that Stalin and Hitler have done, but is still way up there as one of the great mass murderers of the 20th century. No doubt there are differing opinions about his policies and practices, but I don't think that anyone now would seriously dispute this fact (except perhaps a member of some tiny Maoist groupuscule whose total membership could fit in an average sized living room).

1> Please DO finish the book, before trying to find one less biased! I've been saving up for that one for months, and things keep distracting me....

Many, many good books both about Mao and Chinese Communism; I would venture to say that the jury is pretty much in on him as far as 'ruthlessness' and 'murder' goes, and he and his minions made little effort to conceal it, at least when they were 'purging class enemies' in the 50's and 60's. And he got crazier (and less relevant to 'social progress') as he got older.

I think the problem has MORE to do with the perceived 'alienness' (is that a word?) of China and Chinese culture; Western historians seem to have a tendency to write off the horrible historical tragedies in Asia as par-for-the-course. A particularly unfortunate and repulsive type of cultural chauvinism.
In fact, some writers have even 'justified' the atrocities of the Bolsheviks by asserting that Russians are more Asian than European, and therefore their actions are (more) explainable (???) in that way.

Bah! Even if Mao: The unknown story IS biased, it is strikes a healthy balance with the many biographers that did their best to white-wash his career.

As for some interesting books:

The Gate of Heavenly Peace
- his relations with other people

Mao (Profiles in Power Series) by Stuart Schram
- somewhat of a 'whitewash' but lots of biographical details. My editions stopped in the mid-sixties, before he really got wound up.

The Long March: The True History of Communist China's Founding Myth
- brand new, and a real eye-opener by a Chinese oral historian. I downloaded it as an audio book from Audible.com.

I'm certainly no knee-jerk Commie hater (I think rather well of Ho Chi Minh, for example), but at this late date it is very hard to find anything about Mao to like..

I have done some reading on Mao and the Chinese revolution. As a leader Mao had no real concern for the effect of his grand plans. He was intent on destroying the old order and used violence as a primary tool. Some of the deaths attributed to him, such as the great famine of the early 60's were simply his plans run amuck.
Mao was deliberately cruel to many who helped him. During the Cultural revolution many of the long march comrades were singled out for brutality. He supposedly withheld treatment for Zhou Enlai when he was dying of cancer.
One book I found interesting was The Private Life of Chairman Mao written by his private doctor. He hated and feared Mao and his outlook is definitely biased.

Thank you for the suggestions! I will have keep learning as I go, as always, I suppose. Please bear with me as I am effectively starting out from scratch on this era.

John, by my original posting, I hadn't meant to suggest that by itself the accounting of deaths Mao caused was biased, but rather that the immediacy, and thus implied importance, of the statement suggested to me that the author had a bit of an agenda. Really, though, this is only one of many many statements that are made to illustrate the view that Mao was at root a bad man. They point to an aversion to manual labor/peasants, a complete lack of sympathy for fellow human beings, and little regard for his wives, and initial ineffectiveness at party politics in addition to his more thuggish philosophies.

I do intend to continue reading this book along with others. my goal is to learn.

'it strikes a healthy balance with the many biographers that did their best to white-wash his career.'

wrdchao, that's an interesting point you make - I presume the whitewashing was done during/under his rule.. How much anti-Mao literature would it take to balance the scales? Is this the method to do so?

The New Emperors: China in the Era of Mao and Deng by Harrison E. Salisbury is worth pursuing.

I have just finished reading China Road by Rob Gifford who was a reporter in China for a number of years. It is a journey across China following Route 312 from Shanghai right across the country to the border with Kzakhstan talking to the people as he journeys. As part of this he looks at the political history of the country in an even handed way. Not a lot specifically on Mao as he is looking at where they are now but quotes Mao as saying 'revolution is not a dinner party'. Staggering number of deaths in the 'Great Leap Forward' and lives and culture decimated in the Cultural Revolution however mentions two positives he initiated which were improvement in public health and therefore life exectancy and improvement in the status of women.
Think the Chinese people had a tough 20th Century.

Cloud9, thanks for the info on China Road. I was intrigued by it, but was waiting to make a decision until I heard how others liked it.

Mao: A Life by Philip Short is an excellent book, described by some as a definitive biography. Recognises Mao as one of the three 'great' tyrants of the 20th century but also concentrates on the man & delves deeper into the complex character he was. Highly recommended.

ditto # 9. I'm doing a comparison of Short's book and Jung Chang's book over in the Books Compared group, if anyone here is interested.

Anyone with university access to academic journals should check out "MAO: THE UNKNOWN STORY—AN ASSESSMENT," in THE CHINA JOURNAL, NO. 55, JANUARY 2006. This is an extended, multi-author review.

ooh great, #11. Thanks for the reference.

I found rave review as well. http://www.leyton.org/diary/2005/07/06/mao-the-unknown-story/

I just wanted to add three titles that are great reads - personal experiences from women growing up in the Cultural Revolution:

Red Azalea by Anchee Min
Red Scarf Girl by Ji-li Jiang
Revolution is not a dinner party by Ying Chang Compestine

I got into this topic a bit late. Mao: The Unknown Story may be biased, however, before being to harsh on Jung Chang you should read her book Wild Swans. It tells about her, her mother's and grandmother's experience in China before, during and after the revolution. Those were not pleasant times for her family.

An interesting book about the cultural revolution is Life and Death in Shanghai.