Unit 9: China in the Modern Era

Unit Main Themes

1. The Chinese Civil War
2. Maoism: The Great Prolitarian Cultural Revolution
3. Deng's Four Modernizations and Contemporary China

Lesson 1: Read Spielvogel, pp. 776 - 778, down to "Era of civil war" AND pp. 885 - 887, down to "In 1933"

Note Headings
1. China after the fall of the Manchu dynasty: problems for the new government.
2. Nationalists and Communists working together.
3. Jiang Jieshi (know more generally in the West as "Chiang Kai-shek"
4. Mao Zedong's belief about how revolution could succeed.
5. Mao's 4 rules of guerrilla warfare

Lesson 2: Read Handout, "Report on an Investigation of the Peasant Movement in Hunan" by Mao Zedong (1927)

Note Headings
1. What did Mao Zedong report to the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee?
2. According to Mao, why should the central committee support the peasant revolt?
3. Why would the committee be opposed to supporting a revolt?
4. TQ: Remembering what you learned from previous units on China why is a peasant revolt not a new thing?

Lesson 3: Read Speilvogel pp. 887b - 890, down to "Nationalism"

Note Headings:
1. Mao's PLA and the Long March
2. The many problems faced by the Nationalists under Chiang Kai-shek (there are at least 9 problems)
3. Which Chinese people supported Chiang Kai-shek?
4. What was Japan was doing in the 1930s?

Lesson 4: Read Handout Part 1, from another textbook by Spielvogel pp. 765-768, starting at "The East is Red" down to "From Mao to Deng." Do not read the shaded sections.

Note Headings:
1. New Democracy - a) What was its intention? b) Successes and failures
2. The Great Leap Forward - Why was it a complete failure?
3. The Great Prolitaria Cultural Revolution - What was its intended purpose?
4. The Red Guards (more info on the Red Gaurds, please read)

Lesson 5: Read Handout Part 2, pp. 768-772 starting at "From Mao to Deng." Do not read the shaded sections.

Note Headings:
1. Who was Deng Xiaopeng?
2. What were the Four Modernizations?
3. What was the supposed "Fifth Modernization?" And why couldn't it be achieved?
4. What happened at Tiananmen Square? Summarize.
5. Why did the Chinese government start promoting a return to Confucius values?
Read the remainder (p. 772) but there is no need to take notes.

Lesson 6: Read Handout Part 3, pp. 773-776 starting at "Serve the People" down to "Social Problems."

Note Headings:
1. Reforms made by Deng controlled government in the Post-Mao era.
2. Rural responsibility system. Success?
3. Consequences of "rapid growth of the economy." (There are several paragraphs that address this issue)
4. Major environmental problems facing China.

Lesson 7: Review for Test