Chinese politics and government Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Chinese politics and government - Essay Example Key characteristics of the Leninist-Marxist Influence on the Chinese government include: 1. Inevitable goals and Philosophical absolutism. The Chinese communist regime claims to possess universal and absolute truth (Guo 110). Marx’s dialectic and historical materialism are the main source of the communist party’s declaration of inevitable goals and universal truths. 2. The communist party’s Leninist party-state official, paramount and exclusive ideology that serves to justify the CPC’s political actions and goals. (Guo 91-108) Confucianism The main philosophical base that shapes the traditional Chinese political history and culture is Confucianism. It is a philosophy that can arguably be described as being hostile to individualism and any autonomy on the part of the individual; instead it encourages the individual to make self sacrifices on behalf of the state. This is considered to be the highest ideal of citizenship (Guo 47-56). Confucianism started domi nating Chinese thought shortly after 200 BCE and it was generally the main Chinese orthodox ideology for a period of over 2000 years before 1911. Despite the changes to the social and political structure imposed by the communist government, many Confucian ideas still remain and play a prime role in influencing Modern China’s main political culture (Guo 47-56). Influence of Russian Communism The inspiration for the formation of the Chinese Communist Party (CPP) came from the Russian Revolt. The party was formed by Li Dazhao and Chen Duxiu in June 1921. Mao Zedong quickly became the most important member of the newly formed CPP and he adapted ideas that Lenin had used to achieve a successful revolution in Russian in the year 1917 (Guo 59-62). The May 4th Movement Due to the influence of the Chinese October Revolution, the May 4th Movement quickly came. The movement sprang up on May 4th 1919 and was in protest of the government’s perceived feeble reaction to the Treaty of Versailles; this is especially in the light of the Shandong problem. The movement had anti-feudal and anti-imperialist principles and set the stage for the continuous funding of the Communist Party of China. This is as a result of Marxism-Leninism ideologies linking themselves with the ongoing revolutionary practices of the people of China. Effect of Foreign Invasion and Historical Trauma The Communist Chinese government adopted the principle of â€Å"taking what is best† from the outside world during the 19th and 20th centuries. This was done in an effort to import only the positive things from the Western world while keeping out of China all the influences that they perceived as having a humiliating or weakening effect on China. This was especially manifested between 1946 and the late 1970s when mainland China was nearly closed to much of the outside world. The negative feelings that China derived from its foreign contact are still evident and linger under the surface in m odern day China. Similarities and Differences in Organization, Ideology and Power in Contemporary and Traditional China. Throughout the history of China, there has been a continuous emphasis centered on the maintaining and creation of order via the establishment of a benevolent authority that is usually perceived as playing what is considered to be a central role in