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Red Scarf Girl Character Analysis

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“Once all struggle is grasped, miracles are possible.” Mao Zedong, the leader of the Cultural Revolution in China, explains the struggle that he underwent to change the Chinese people, which he considered a miracle. The Great Proletariat Cultural Revolution is a political movement in China that included the restructuring of the military and education system. During this, the People’s Republic of China was established and the Chinese Communist Party was introduced. In the historical memoir, Red Scarf Girl, the author, Ji-li Jiang writes about her own childhood during the Cultural Revolution, when many changes were made to her and her family’s everyday lives. She recounts on her personal struggles and her family’s hardships under the rule of …show more content…

Many doctors have studied Mao and his declining mental health as he ages. As Mao Zedong grew older, his mental state took a turn for the worse. In the article, “Mao in history”, Ross Terrill, an academic journalist who focuses his studies on the history of China, writes how Mao’s mental health effects many of his decisions made during the Cultural Revolution. Mao was plagued with anxiety, as many people are today, but his anxiety affected his decision-making. This was critical due to the mass amount of power Mao theoretically held in his hands. Terrill comments on Zedong’s anxiety versus the anxiety of his people when he writes, “The cause of anxiety differed as between Mao himself and his underlings. Mao felt a gnawing anxiety that people around him might be secretly disloyal. The underlings were simply afraid of dismissal, banishment, or death.” Mao’s fear of being betrayed by those he commanded affected him greatly, and was possibly the reason for his cruelty to the people. The strict rules forced amongst the people regard the disobeying of Chairman Mao and his law, as he worried constantly about his people and their loyalty. Despite his declining mental state, Mao continued to stay in command, for better or for worse. Mao’s …show more content…

Mao clearly expressed his beliefs and instilled them in the Chinese people throughout the Cultural Revolution. Mao made his beliefs known, and he conditioned the citizens to conform to his ideals. In her memoir, Red Scarf Girl, Ji-Li Jiang recounts how often the people heard his ideas when she writes, “Our beloved Chairman Mao had started the Cultural Revolution in May. Every day since then on the radio we heard about the need to end the evil and pernicious influences of the ‘Four Olds’: old ideas, old culture, old customs, and old habits. Chairman Mao told us we would never succeed at building a strong socialist country until we destroyed the ‘Four Olds’ and established the ‘Four News.’” Mao quickly ushered in his new beliefs, and he managed to convince the people of their effectiveness. Jiang also comments on how well she knew and believed Mao’s words when she says, “I told myself again and again. I repeated Chairman Mao’s quotation, ‘Be resolute, fear no sacrifice, and surmount every difficulty to win victory” (Jiang 236). The people convinced themselves to follow Chairman Mao with blind faith. They trusted that he was leading them in the right direction. The ideals of Mao are what define the Cultural Revolution, and his desire for change is what began it. Schram sums up the Cultural Revolution when states, “The movement that became known as

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