Sarah's+essay

The victory of the Chinese communist party (CCP) cannot be explained by a sole event, persona or ideology. In order to fully understand it, one must take into account an array of concepts, which all combine to create a well-rounded understanding. In simplistic terms, the success of the CCP can be explained by three vital factors; the Sino-Japanese War, Leadership and policies of Mao Zedong and the General inadequacies of the Guomindang (GMD). Within these factors consists an array of events and influential people, in conjunction with economic circumstances, all combining to explain the reasons for the communist victory in 1949. The Sino-Japanese War, at the beginning, seemed to greatly favour the Nationalists, with them playing a more active role then the communists in the attempt to defeat the Japanese. This activity gained them support from the civilians who appreciated the military advancements Chiang Kai-shek was making. However, what emerged from this battle was an exhausted and demoralised Nationalist army and government whose “spirit was unwilling and [their] flesh was weak” (Immanuel Hsu). The communists on the other hand, not engaging in as much warfare as the Nationalists, emerged strong, revitalised, and ready to initiate civil war. In regards to the civil battle, the communists victory of Manchuria was seen as the “beginning of the end” (General David Barr) for the Nationalists, who lost 470 000 of their 500 000 best-trained troops stationed at Manchuria and with the communists now in control of “China’s richest and most industrially developed province” they began to prosper. This was not the beginning, but rather a milestone in the communist quest for victory. Despite it being the role of a single person, one of the greatest discerning factors in the communist victory is Mao Zedong himself, leader of the CCP, and creator of communist ideology, Maoism. Mao was not just a militant and a political activist, but he was a tactician, a leader and a teacher. Mao’s guerrilla tactics were key to winning to war against the Nationalists, who were kept “off balance and defensive” (Immanuel Hsu). Mao the teacher was ever so oppurtunistic, using the Sino-Japanese war to advance the communist cause by expanding and spreading Maoism through all parts of China. Tutelage became of grave importance to him, and he saw the benefits of education and literacy. In conjunction with this, Mao’s leadership was of the utmost importance in maintaining and re-enforcing the Maoist ideals. Not only did he promote a unity between himself and others within the party, but he was able to establish a party, where each commander, soldier and peasant alike was fighting for the same cause, under the same conditions. It was through such selflessness and equality that Mao was able to gain the support of the masses, thus enabling for the ultimate communist victory. However, above all else, one could argue that the establishment of a communist government in 1949 was not the result of a “communist victory” per say, but rather a “Nationalist defeat”, due to the general inadequacies of the Guomindang. Internally, there were many factors that undermined the authority of Chiang Kai-shek, which eventually began to leek through, and affect the entire party. During the Sino-Japanese war, Chaing greatly relied on the mediation and aid of America. This however, was a mistake on his behalf, with differing opinions disallowing for complete co-operation between Chiang and Hurley or Marshall. This eventually saw Chiang deliberately disregarding all American suggestions, which ultimately resulted in him sending his finest troops to Manchuria, only to have majority of them slaughtered or captured. This resulted in a great loss of support from the military and the people alike, which was only escalated through economic instability under the Nationalist governing. During the Sino-Japanese war inflation was already rampant, however, towards the end this problem only worsened. There was a flagrant increase in note issues (30% per month from 1945-1948), which meant that it cost more money to print a note, then the face value it was worth. This economic neglect was partially due to circumstances out of Chiang’s control, and partly due to the fact that he did not understand the peasants potential, and therefore saw no urgency in solving their problems. However “the stone that one builder had rejected had become the cornerstone of the others house” (Immanuel Hsu) with Mao able to utilise this neglect in order to gain the support of the masses. It is evident, therefore, that because of such extensive inadequacies of the GMD, as oppose that of the CCP, this was one of, if not the most important factor which one needs to investigate in order to understand the communist victory in China. There are an immeasurable number of factors which all combine to create an understanding of the communist victory. However, it is impossible for one to take into account each factor, and therefore it is vital for one to decipher which factors are most relevant, and therefore will able to best help benefit them in their understanding. Three of the most important factors are the Sino-Japanese War, Mao Zedong, and the general inadequacies of the Guomindang, which all combine to allow one to best understand the reason behind the communist victory.  Your stance in this essay is really interesting, I don't know if it's just me, but it almost sounds like you're putting all the facts on the table and kind of taking an objective stance allowing the reader to keep thinking. Overall it's a really good essay, you supported your essay with alot of evidence and I think you articulated it well :) I also think your essay was done well. You assessed well through showing which were the most important reasons for the communists victory. Like said above, your use of evidence was good for supporting your arguments =)
 * Assess the reasons for communist victory **

I also believe that you have taken an interesting stance on the question. I like the way your argument did not restrict the reasons for victory to two or three-you allowed for people to understand that there are countless reasons. You answered the question comprehensively and objectively.