Mao : the real story

746 Pages·2012·31.299 MB·English

by  Alexander Pantsov, Steven I Levine

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This major new biography of Mao uses extensive Russian documents previously
unavailable to biographers to reveal surprising details about Mao’s rise to power
and leadership in China.

Mao Zedong was one of the most important figures of the twentieth century, the most
important in the history of modern China. A complex figure, he was a champion of the
poor and brutal tyrant, poet and despot.
Pantsov and Levine show Mao’s relentless drive to succeed, vividly describing his
growing role in the nascent Communist party of China. They disclose startling facts about
his personal life, particularly regarding his health and his lifelong, serial affairs with
young women.
Mao brought his country from poverty and economic backwardness into the
modern age and on to the world stage. But he was also responsible for unprecedented
loss of life. A disciple of Stalin, he turned against the USSR after Khrushchev came to
power, shrewdly renewing relations with the U.S. as a counter to the USSR. He lived and
behaved as China’s last emperor. Now readers will have the full story of his life and rule
as never before.

[Photo of Mao & Stalin goes here, w/ caption below]
Caption: Mao and Joseph Stalin, Moscow, December 21, 1949 (The Museum of the
Chinese Revolution)

Alexander V. Pantsov is a professor of history at Capital University in Columbus, Ohio.
Born in Moscow, Pantsov graduated from Moscow State University Institute of Asian
and African Studies and has published more than ten books, among them The Bolsheviks
and the Chinese Revolution 1919-1927.

Steven I. Levine is Senior Research Associate at the Maureen and Mike Mansfield
Center at the University of Montana, and has published extensively in the fields of
modern Chinese politics and foreign policy as well as American-East Asian relations.
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Also by AlexAnder V. PAntsoV
the bolsheviks and the Chinese revolution, 1919–1927
Also by steVen I. leVIne
Anvil of Victory: the Communist revolution in Manchuria,
1945–1948
China’s bitter Victory: the War with Japan, 1937–1945
(co-editor with James C. Hsiung)
America’s Wars in Asia: A Cultural Approach to History and Memory
(co-editor with Philip West and Jackie Hiltz)
Arc of empire: America’s Wars in Asia from the Philippines to Vietnam
(with Michael H. Hunt)
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MAo : t He reAl st o r y
A l e xAn d e r V . PAn t s oV
WItH steVen I. leVIne
simon & schuster
new york london toronto sydney new delhi
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Simon & Schuster
1230 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10020
Copyright © 2007, 2012 by Pantsov A.V.
Introduction copyright © 2012 by Pantsov A.V.
English language translation copyright © 2012 by Steven I. Levine
Originally published in 2007 in Russian by Molodaia Gvardiia as Mao Tszedun.
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or
portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information address
Simon & Schuster Subsidiary Rights Department,
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.
First Simon & Schuster hardcover edition October 2012
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Pantsov, Alexander, date.
[Mao Tszedun. English]
Mao : the real story / Alexander V. Pantsov with Steven I. Levine.
— 1st Simon & Schuster hardcover ed.
p. cm.
Originally published in Russian: Moskva : Molodaia Gvardiia, 2007, under title
Mao Tszedun.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Mao, Zedong, 1893–1976. 2. Heads of state— China— Biography. 3. China—
Politics and government— 1949–1976. I. Levine, Steven I. II. Title.
DS778.M3P287613 2012
951.05092— dc23
[B] 2011053113
ISBN 978-1-4516-5447-9
ISBN 978-1-4516-5449-3 (ebook)
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To the memory of my grandfather,
Georgii Borisovich Ehrenburg (1902–1967),
A Russian Sinologist,
One of the first biographers of Mao Zedong,
And the author whose works inspired me greatly
— Alexander V. Pantsov
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C o n t e n t s
Cast of Characters ix
note on the spelling of Chinese Words xviii
Introduction: Myths and realities 1
PArt one: tHe APPrentICe
1 the Foster Child of the bodhisattva 11
2 on the threshold of a new World 21
3 “I think, therefore, I Am” 31
4 the sound of Footsteps in a deserted Valley 47
5 dreams of a red Chamber 56
6 the Great Union of the Popular Masses 68
7 breathing World revolution, or the Magic of
dictatorship 85
8 “Following the russian Path” 98
9 the lessons of bolshevik tactics 107
PArt tWo: tHe reVolUtIonAry
10 entering the Guomindang 119
11 Hopes and disappointments 131
12 Playing with Chiang Kai-shek 143
13 the Collapse of the United Front 161
14 the Path to the soviets 185
15 red banner over the Jinggang Mountains 200
16 A single spark Can start a Prairie Fire 216
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viii Contents
17 Under the Comintern’s Wing 233
18 dog eat dog, Communist-style 254
19 the long March 275
20 the xi’an Incident 289
21 the Flirtatious Philosopher 305
22 Consolidating Control over the CCP 322
23 stalin, Mao, and the new democratic
revolution in China 343
PArt tHree: tHe dICtAtor
24 Visit to the red Mecca 363
25 the Korean Adventure 374
26 the Contradictions of new democracy 390
27 socialist Industrialization 400
28 the Great turning Point 413
29 the emancipation of Consciousness 424
30 the Great leap Forward 449
31 Famine and Fear 470
32 “the dismissal of Hai rui from office” 491
33 to rebel Is Justified 507
34 the red Guard tragedy 522
35 the Mystery of Project 571 540
36 death of the red emperor 555
epilogue 573
Acknowledgments 579
Illustration Credits 581
Appendix 1: Mao Zedong’s Chronology 583
Appendix 2: Mao Zedong’s Genealogy 589
notes 593
bibliography 675
Index 715
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