In 1949, Mao Zedong stood over his people and proclaimed the founding of the People’s Republic of China1. He defined the new China as one’s who anti-imperialist, anti-feudalist, anti-capitalist and especially self-sufficient; one that will empower the people’s nation. Indeed in order to put the country back to its righteous path Mao implanted many reforms to accelerate the modernization of the country and to show the world what China is capable of.
Rural Revolution was an uprising in which the peasantry overthrew the power of the feudal landlord class2. The privileges of the feudal landlords had enjoyed for many years have been shattered to pieces. Their authority was completely gone. With the collapse of their power, the peasant association has then become the image of authority. They had monopoly on a lot of things and that switched the kind of social scale in which they once were at the bottom of it. People outside the associations could only speak well of them and could not say anything against them. Many middle class and landlords, who were previously opposed to the peasant association, were eventually seeking admission.
Many of the political propaganda that denounced imperialism, capitalism and feudalism have found their way into the people: young, old, men and women; and even the poorest of the peasants, living in the most remote area of the country. The use of propaganda was necessary in order to control the large population. It influenced the people to have some kind of sentiments regarding certain movements such as Anti-British demonstration, the celebration of the October Revolution and the victory celebration for the Northern Expedition. The government had the upper hand on what to write, what not to write, where to place stories etc… There was censorship on anything that was seen by the public.
In order to have a stronger connection with the people, Mao encouraged the destruction of the old china and the initiation of the new.
The movement of education sought to remove anything that was seen as “reactionary”; that is anything that was thought to favor the return of the old regime. In China, education was only permitted to the landlord or the gentry. They had control over the education. The old system of education seemed to focus on the urban ways of life and was unsuited to rural needs. It was similar to foreign-style education system. It was not suited to the needs of the peasant and at the same time, the peasants had no access to it.
In China, more than 90% of the population had no education and most of them were peasants. As soon as the power of the exploitating class (the landlords and the gentry) was overthrown in the rural areas, the peasants’ movement for education began. The peasants were establishing their own education. They created evening classes, which they called “peasant schools”; where they are taught skills that can improve their work. On average there was one school for every township peasant association. The creation of these schools had increased their cultural level. They were no longer seen as mere sewer rats but rather as the backbone of the economy. After the peasants