China

A detailed Summary of China


Great Leap Forward (1958-1960), economic and social plan initiated by Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong (Mao Tse-tung), with the intent of radically increasing agricultural and industrial production in the People's Republic of China, and of bringing China to the brink of a utopian communist society.

The Great Leap Forward was a reaction to the Hundred Flowers Campaign, a more moderate development program in China in 1957. In this earlier program, Mao Zedong tried to win the support of Chinese intellectuals by calling for their constructive criticism of the policies of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). However, such an unexpected torrent of dissatisfaction fell on party leaders that in June 1957 the CCP abandoned the Hundred Flowers plan and moved in much more radical directions, imposing strict controls on freedom of expression and dismissing or imprisoning many intellectuals.


During 1959 party leadership tried to correct some of the problems of the Leap. But these efforts were not sufficient for the Defense Minister, Peng Dehuai (P'eng Te-huai), who in mid-1959 criticized Leap policies and argued strongly for a more moderate stance. Mao Zedong took exception to Peng's ideas and had him removed from power. Mao's harsh response to Peng's criticism essentially intimidated the party into giving up the idea of retrenchment, enabling Mao to reassert the policies of the Leap.

In 1958, as an immediate result of the massive peasant mobilization, industrial and agricultural output increased significantly. In 1959, however, agricultural production started to fall, reaching its low in 1962, when it was only about two-thirds of the 1958 total. Industrial production gradually fell as well, but less severely, always surpassing production totals for 1957. Socially, the Leap produced grea

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Approximate Word count = 610
Approximate Pages = 2 (250 words per page double spaced)

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