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Essay On The Impact Of The Chinese Cultural Revolution

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The impact of the Chinese Cultural Revolution on the arts and education
The Chinese Cultural Revolution was a deadly weapon used by Mao Zedong to enforce his political power and wipe out the Chinese intelligentsia for the next few decades. It was a turning point in Chinese art, education and other traditions. When Mao officially encouraged his student army to destroy the “Four Olds”: old customs, culture, habits and ideas, China made a sharp turn towards cultural and intellectual decline.
Visual art in late 1960s China was heavily influenced by politics and the wishes of the Chinese Communist Party. One of those policies was the cult of Mao Zedong. Chinese traditional artwork, being a huge part of Chinese traditional culture, one of the “Four Olds”, was forbidden and destroyed. This was accomplished through Mao’s Red Guard student army. Revolutionary posters with smiling faces of Chairman Mao and catchy slogans were hung all around the country. Louise Slavicek in The Chinese Cultural Revolution, summarized the propaganda and explained how it was also attempted to be used as means of expressing criticism of the CCP. Slavicek recalls the 16 points published by the CCP Central Committee. “The cultural revolutionary groups … are something new and … are an excellent bridge to keep our party in close contact with the masses.” …show more content…

It used the visual and performing arts as well as education to replace the traditional Chinese values with socialist ideology and governmental propaganda. This revolution was a huge mistake in Chinese history and triggered a subsequent radical intellectual and cultural downfall, which lasted for various decades. The effects of this downfall are now behind us, but remain somehow reflected in Chinese culture to this

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