'Politics first': the maoist state and the political process during the cultural revolution

摘要

The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution inspired Gordon White politically and engaged him intellectually. Where Western commentators were either dismissive or seduced by the political theatre that characterised the Maoist project, Gordon, without abandoning his political commitments, demonstrated the need and the possibilities for serious social science analysis. Micropolitics in Contemporary China which he published with Marc Blecher was particularly important (1979). For although the Cultural Revolution intruded into most aspects of Chinese life, often in the most vicious ways, and although there was a personalisation of power through the cult of his personality and a politicisation of society through the cult of his writings, the Party-State managed to carry out its state functions.