Maoism

Maoism, officially termed Mao Zedong Thought, is a branch of Marxism–Leninism developed by Mao Zedong in the context of China’s pre-industrial and predominantly agrarian society during the early and mid-twentieth century. It emerged as an attempt to adapt Marxist–Leninist doctrine to the social, political, and economic conditions of Republican China (1912–1949) and later the People’s Republic of China. Maoism diverged from earlier orthodox interpretations by according primacy to revolutionary praxis and by expanding the revolutionary vanguard beyond the traditional urban proletariat to include a united front of progressive classes, particularly the peasantry, who in China formed the vast majority of the population. Later theorists further argued that Maoism reinterpreted Marxism–Leninism so fundamentally that it could be applied universally, an evolution reflected in the term Marxism–Leninism–Maoism.
From the 1950s until the economic reforms of Deng Xiaoping in the late 1970s, Maoism served as the guiding political and military ideology of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and inspired revolutionary movements worldwide. The Sino-Soviet split of the 1960s further entrenched Maoism as a competing interpretation of world communism, as both the CCP and the Communist Party of the Soviet Union claimed to be the legitimate heirs to Joseph Stalin’s doctrinal legacy.

Intellectual Background: Iconoclasm, Anti-Confucianism, and Nationalism

The intellectual roots of Maoism lay within broader currents of early twentieth-century Chinese thought, notably iconoclasm and nationalism. By the late Qing period and the turn of the nineteenth century, influential sectors of China’s traditional elite—including landlords, scholars, and bureaucrats—began to express scepticism toward Confucianism, questioning its relevance and moral authority in a rapidly changing world. This scepticism contributed to the rise of a modern intelligentsia that broke from the gentry class and called for radical cultural transformation.
The 1911 Revolution, which toppled the Qing dynasty, further eroded the standing of Confucian values, associating them with political conservatism and impotence. Intellectual dissent reached its height in the New Culture Movement (1915–1919), led by the reformist scholar Chen Duxiu and expressed through the influential periodical New Youth. Advocating a thorough rejection of old traditions, the movement championed science, democracy, and cultural renewal. This intellectual environment had a profound effect on the young Mao Zedong, whose earliest published writings appeared in New Youth.
Parallel to cultural iconoclasm, a powerful wave of nationalism shaped the attitudes of the emerging intelligentsia. The Treaty of Versailles in 1919, which transferred former German holdings in Shandong to Japan rather than returning them to Chinese control, fuelled widespread resentment. This disillusionment crystallised during the May Fourth Movement, when thousands of Beijing students protested the treaty’s terms and denounced officials viewed as subservient to Japanese interests. The movement awakened a broader political consciousness within Chinese society and reinforced the view that China’s salvation required fundamental social and political change.
The Russian Revolution of 1917 provided an additional catalyst, inspiring Chinese intellectuals to view Marxism as both a rejection of China’s feudal past and an alternative to Western imperialist domination. Although few initially believed that socialism could emerge from China’s pre-industrial conditions, the upheavals following the May Fourth Incident shifted opinion decisively, making Marxism an increasingly attractive ideological path.

The Yanan Era and the Formation of Mao Zedong Thought

Mao’s theoretical contributions matured significantly during the Yanan period (1935–1947), following the CCP’s relocation to the Yanan Soviet after the Long March. During these years, Mao consolidated his status as the party’s principal theorist. He authored a range of dialectical and strategic works that formed the core of what would later be canonised as Mao Zedong Thought.
This period also marked the CCP’s move towards ideological autonomy from the Soviet Union. The challenges inherent to leading a revolution from a rural base forced the CCP to rethink orthodox Marxist–Leninist assumptions, particularly those emphasising the centrality of the urban proletariat. Mao’s writings began to articulate a distinctly Chinese adaptation of Marxism, rooted in the belief that revolutionary conditions must be analysed through the lens of local historical and social realities.
Despite these intellectual advances, several major questions remained unresolved, especially concerning how a socialist revolution could be achieved while the party remained isolated from major urban centres. Nonetheless, Mao Zedong Thought provided a comprehensive revolutionary framework for the party’s expanding membership and became increasingly institutionalised within CCP political culture.

Mao Zedong’s Intellectual Development

Mao’s intellectual evolution may be broadly categorised into five distinct periods, each reflecting shifting political conditions and his changing theoretical orientation.
Initial Marxist Period (1920–1926): During this early phase, Mao adopted aspects of Marxist thought while grounding much of his reasoning in moral and political enthusiasm rather than systematic socio-economic analysis. He argued that education alone could not resolve class contradictions. Instead, he maintained that:

• capitalist classes would not voluntarily relinquish power
• oppressive rulers had to be overthrown by popular force
• proletarian discontent created objective conditions for revolution

Formative Maoist Period (1927–1935): In this interval, Mao’s writings became less concerned with theoretical elaboration and more focused on immediate political struggles. His use of Marxist analytical categories remained limited, and his works did not yet provide a clearly developed method of class or political analysis.
Mature Maoist Period (1935–1940): This was the most intellectually active stage of Mao’s career. His pamphlet Strategic Problems of China’s Revolutionary War (1936) attempted to synthesise practical military concerns with ideological reasoning. Mao declared that China’s unique conditions necessitated a distinctive application of Marxist theory. This conceptual shift marked the beginning of the “Sinicisation of Marxism,” a process through which Marxist–Leninist principles were reinterpreted to suit China’s agrarian environment, political fragmentation, and revolutionary requirements.
Rather than presenting a completed doctrine, Mao portrayed his ideas as evolving. He thus rejected the label “Maoism,” preferring the more flexible designation “Mao Zedong Thought,” which emphasised continual development rather than doctrinal closure. From the Yanan period onward, this body of thought guided cultural transformation and social mobilisation within the CCP.
Civil War Period (1940–1949): This phase emphasised revolutionary practice over theoretical innovation. Mao consistently argued that theory must serve political action. During the 1942 Rectification (Cheng Feng) campaign, he articulated a metaphor summarising his view of Marxism’s relationship to Chinese conditions: Marxism–Leninism was the “arrow,” and the Chinese revolution the “target.” The principal theoretical concern of this period was combating subjectivism—forms of thought that deviated from the material realities of revolutionary struggle.

Maoism within the Chinese and International Communist Movements

From the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, Mao Zedong Thought became the foundational ideology of the CCP. It guided domestic policies ranging from land reform to mass mobilisation campaigns. Internationally, Maoism served as the ideological engine for various guerrilla movements, particularly in Asia, Latin America, and parts of Africa. These groups often embraced Mao’s emphasis on protracted people’s war, rural insurgency, and the political primacy of the peasantry.
The Sino-Soviet split transformed Maoism into an alternative pole of global communism. As relations deteriorated, both Beijing and Moscow asserted their authority as the legitimate interpreters of Marxism–Leninism. Mao’s critiques of Soviet “revisionism” became central to CCP foreign policy and shaped the rhetoric of other anti-Soviet revolutionary groups.

Features and Significance of Maoism

A number of distinctive features characterise Maoism within the broader Marxist tradition:

• Primacy of Praxis: Revolutionary practice is elevated above theoretical orthodoxy.
• Peasant Vanguard: The rural peasantry becomes the principal revolutionary class.
• Mass Line: Leadership must synthesise ideas “from the masses, to the masses,” ensuring continuous interaction between party and people.
• Continuous Revolution: Even after socialist victory, class struggle is seen as enduring, requiring ongoing mobilisation.
• Sinicisation: Marxism must be adapted to local historical and cultural conditions rather than applied mechanically.

Maoism’s significance lies in its influence on twentieth-century revolutionary politics, its reshaping of Marxist–Leninist doctrine, and its role in defining the ideological trajectory of the People’s Republic of China. Although many elements of Maoist policy were later revised or repudiated following the 1978 reforms, Mao Zedong Thought remains enshrined in the CCP’s official doctrine and continues to shape political discourse within China and beyond.