monicaqm

= Quotations by Mao Zedong Summaries (Monica Suh) =

1. "A revolution is not a dinner party, or writing an essay, or painting a picture, or doing embroidery; it cannot be refined, so leisurely and gentle, so temperate, kind, courteous, restrained, and magnanimous. A revolution is an insurrection, an act of violence by which one class overthrows another."

__Summary:__ The message that Mao is trying to convey through this quote is that revolution are meant to involve force and violence, or else it would not be a revolution. Revolutions occur when a class tries to overthrow the other, while rebelling against the flawed government or ruler. Thus, Mao states that a revolution is always violent and never tranquil, in addition to believing that this is the only ways to bring change to the Chinese society.

2. "In the Western imperialism is still oppressing the people at home. This situation must change. It is the task of the people of the whole world to put an end to the aggression and oppression perpetrated by imperialism, and chiefly by the U.S. imperialism."

__Summary__: In this quote, it is evident that Mao has negative views towards imperialism and is completely against it. He states that the whole world should unite in order to destroy all means of Western imperialism. His hatred towards the U.S. imperialism is more specifically mentioned most likely because the U.S. was one of the most threatening countries being against Communism. This quote particularly portrays Mao's dedicated values to Communism and the disapproval of any others, such as imperialism.

5. "In any society in which classes exist, class struggle will never end. In classless society, the struggle between the new and the old and between truth and falsehood will never end. In the fields of the struggle for production and scientific experiment, mankind makes constant progress and nature undergoes constant change; they never remain at the same level. Therefore, man has constantly to sum up experience and go on discovering, inventing, creating, and advancing."

__Summary:__ Mao's main assertion here is that in any society, class struggles are inevitable and will continue to take in the future as well. Thus, because class struggles are unavoidable and are bound to take place, humans must be ready at all times to encounter conflicts, challenges, and changes, whether they are for the better or for the worse. Man must learn to overcome all the following consequences that result from class struggles and this shows that man can "never remain at the same level." Man has to continue to experience the world by further discovering, inventing, creating, and advancing both science and society.

6. "Where do correct ideas come from? Do they drop from the skies? No. Are they innate in the mind? No. They come from social practice, and from it alone; they come from three kinds of social practice, the struggle for production, the class struggle, and scientific experiment."

__Summary:__ In this quote, Mao's central argument is that all "correct" ideas derive from social experiences that include struggling for production, class struggles and conducting scientific experiments. Ideas such as these cannot be instantly thought up by or found by another source, experience is the only key. In conclusion, Mao believed that by practicing new things, producing unceasing scientific innovations, and creating a uproar in society will bring about changes that to society itself.

7. "The world is yours, as well as ours, but in the last analysis, it is yours. You young people, full of vigor and vitality, are in the bloom of life, like the sun at eight or nine in the morning. Our hope is placed on you."

__Summary:__ Mao believes that it is the young people who create the future of China. Mao carries hope and faith withing the future generations to come, trusting that the young will lead the country in the right direction. In addition to this, Mao wanted to implant hope and nationalism within the hearts of the young people during the disorderly times in the revolution. Particularly, this quote was targeted to the Red Guards and other revolutionary participants such as the university students during the revolution in order to provoke aspiration and courage.