Brandon Lightly on the Mass LIne and New Democracy, Part 2

In part two of our deep dive into China (and part four of our socialist organization series), we break down how Mao attempted to dialectically sublate a national front and a united front. We explore the structural inclusion of the "patriotic national bourgeoisie" into the block of four classes (symbolized by the stars on the Chinese flag) and contrast it with classical Soviet developmental theory and orthodox Marxism.We also dive into:- The historical debate between Chen Duxiu, Li Dazhao, Lenin, and Trotsky.- Why modern "Hoxhaists" and Left Communists consider New Democracy to be revisionist.- The evolution of class structures under Deng Xiaoping and Jiang Zemin's "Three Represents" doctrine (allowing billionaires into the Party).- The reality of modern China's development: Is it a transitioning socialist project, or an hyper-competent form of state capitalism and developmental liberalism?Don't forget to like, subscribe, and hit the notification bell for Episode 5, where we pivot to National Frontism and National Bolshevism.Journal ArticlesDirlik, A. (1970). The ideological foundations of the Chinese Revolution. Journal of Contemporary History, 5(3), 39–54.Dittmer, L. (1977). Line struggle: Notes on its organizational context and theoretical development. Modern China, 3(3), 303–312.Fogel, J. A. (1980). Ai Siqi, establishment intellectual by Joshua A. Fogel. Modern China, 6(1), 23–47.Hammond, E. R. (1978). Marxism and the mass line [Doctoral dissertation, University of California, Berkeley]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global.Korolev, A. (2017). De-ideologized mass line, regime responsiveness, and state-society relations. China Review, 17(2), 7–36.Lyman, S. V. (1970). The Chinese Communist Party in the United Front, 1937–1945 [Doctoral dissertation, University of California, Berkeley]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global.Mazur, M. G. (1995). The United Front of the 1940s: A social and cultural perspective. Modern China, 21(4), 431–456.Selden, M. (1971). The Yenan Way in revolutionary China. The China Quarterly, (45), 263–294.Steiner, H. A. (1951). Current mass line tactics in Communist China. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 277(1), 422–436.Teiwes, F. C. (1978). The origins of rectification: Inner-party purgation in the 1930s. The China Quarterly, (74), 181–201.Tokuda, N. (1971). The mass line during the Yenan period. The China Quarterly, (47), 1–18.Townsend, J. R. (1967). Political participation in Communist China. University of California Press.Womack, B. (1980). The phase of de-Maoization in China. China Report, 16(1), 7–21.Womack, B. (1991). Mao Zedong and the sinification of Marxism. The China Quarterly, (126), 1–15.Young, G. (1980). On New Democracy and the transition to socialism. Modern China, 6(1), 3–22.Books & Primary SourcesCoble, P. M. (2023). The collapse of Nationalist China: How Chiang Kai-shek lost China’s civil war. Cambridge University Press.Elbaum, M. (2018). Revolution in the air: Sixties radicals turn to Lenin, Mao and Che. Verso Books.Hirata, K. (2024). Making Mao’s steelworks: Industrial Manchuria and the transnational origins of Chinese socialism. Cambridge University Press.Karl, R. E. (2010). Mao Zedong and China in the twentieth-century world: A concise history. Duke University Press.Li, H. (2024). Fighting on the cultural front: U.S.-China relations in the Cold War. Columbia University Press.Lin, C. (2019). Mass line. In C. Sorace, I. Franceschini, & N. Loubere (Eds.), Afterlives of Chinese Communism: Political concepts from Mao to Xi (p. 122). ANU Press.Lovell, J. (2019). Maoism: A global history. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group.Lowe, D. M. (1966). The function of "China" in Marx, Lenin, and Mao. University of California Press.Mao, Z. (1940). On New Democracy. Marxists Internet Archive.Mao, Z. (1977). A critique of Soviet economics. Monthly Review Press.Moufawad-Paul, J. (2016). Continuity and rupture: Philosophy in the Maoist terrain. Zero Books.Schram, S. R. (Ed.). (2005). Mao’s road to power: Revolutionary writings 1912–1949: Vol. VII. New Democracy, 1939–1941. M.E. Sharpe.Zheng, Q. (Ed.). (2020). An ideological history of the Communist Party of China (Vol. 2) (L. Sun & S. Bryant, Trans.). Royal Collins Publishing Group.Send us Fan Mail Musis by Bitterlake, Used with Permission, all rights to BitterlakeSupport the showCrew:Host: C. Derick VarnIntro and Outro Music by Bitter Lake.Intro Video Design: Jason MylesArt Design: Corn and C. Derick VarnLinks and Social Media:twitter: @varnvlogblue sky: @varnvlog.bsky.socialYou can find the additional streams on YoutubeCurrent Patreon at the Sponsor Tier: Jordan Sheldon, Mark J. Matthews, Lindsay Kimbrough, RedWolf, DRV, Kenneth McKee, JY Chan, Matthew Monahan, Parzival, Adriel Mixon, Buddy Roark, Daniel Petrovic,Julian, Drea, Free Beer