Interview with Mao Zedong

Mao Zedong

Interviewer: What was your childhood like? When did you decide to become a politician?
Mao Zedong: Well, I was born in Shaoshan in the Hunan province. I was born into a very poor family, as my father was a peasant father. He was very strict and demanding, however my mother was a caring and gentle person, and a devout buddhist. I didn’t begin primary school until I was 8 years old, but I dropped out at 13 to work on the family farm. I eventually returned to my studies at a secondary school in Changsha, the Hunan capital. When the revolution against the Qing dynasty began, I joined the revolutionary army. After the fall of the Qing dynasty and the establishment of the Republic of China, I returned to school and graduated from the First Provincial Normal School of Hunan in 1918. When I was 27, in 1921, I attended the first session of the National Congress of the Communist Party of China, which was my entry into Politics.


I: Why do you discourage religion so much if your mother was a devout Buddhist?
MZ: The reason I discourage religion is that the success of this country is much more important than each of our individual beliefs. Religion is emblematic of feudalism, and feudalism of course leads to Capitalism leads to failure. By maintaining Atheist beliefs, we can prevent the downfall of China.

I: What exactly is Maoism?
MZ: Maoism is a theory that I have developed over the last few decades. It’s basically my own interpretation of Marxism, a theory created by a German philosopher named Karl Marx. Many people consider Maoism an anti-Revisionist form of Marxism. Guerilla warfare is a big part of Maoism. Another main point is my substitution of the dormant power of the peasantry for the urban proletariat, or lower/working class people, that China had been missing. It’s a very complex concept, that takes a lot of time to understand.

I: What are your goals for the Cultural Revolution?
MZ: My main goal when I launched the Cultural Revolution was to enforce Socialism by destroying all elements of Capitalism, culture, and traditions. I felt like by achieving true Socialism, we would be able to become a world power. I also wanted to get rid of as many religious aspects as I could, the reasoning for which I explained earlier. I also wanted to destroy what I dubbed the “fourolds”, old customs, old ideas, old culture, and old habits. I felt like these fourolds were the leading factors in keeping this country for competing with countries like the United States, the Soviet Union, Great Britain, and France