China 1958-1965

In Chapter 13 of Wild Swans, the author narrates some personal recollections of growing up at this time. You will hear insights into social practices. What stays in your mind, or seems to explain some of the culture around you in Hong Kong?

Famine 1958-1962

The Great Leap Forward took agricultural workers away from the normal patterns of planting and harvest, set people working on steel production, and developed the commune organisation.

The technological 'progress' took place alongside a policy of exaggerating crop yield, transplanting crops to demonstrate 'success' for Mao, and a culture of self-deception/self-protection within the local organisations. Soon, people began to starve.

There is a more information about this history here, on the History Learning Site. A video on Youtube tells the story with recollections of people who were children at this time.

1956-1958 the Anti-rightist campaign

These years are a key point in China's recent history; the impact of the Anti-rightist campaign conducted during this time continues to be felt today.

I'll read Chapter 11 of Wild Swans, let's read the voices of the time, find out about the Anti-rightist campaign, and find out a little about Ding Ling.

State nurseries

The four children in the family are sent to boarding nurseries while the author's mother is put under investigation. Chapter 10 of Wild Swans outlines how this works under the Mao campaign to discover the hidden 'counterrevolutionaries'.

There are many examples in history where a ruling power, government or state seeks to split apart families or separate mothers from children. Why might they do that?

'When a man gets to power, even his chickens and dogs rise to heaven'

In Chapter 9 of Wild Swans we read more how a Communist Party official must be seen to behave in power.

Can anyone in power ever be totally 'fair'? Should it even be expected? Is it desirable? How do you think you would you behave with your family, friends, neighbours and community if you rose to a position of power?

From Mao's position, it was useful to have a campaign to 'stamp out corruption' because it both gave him the 'moral high ground' and provided an opportunity to introduce stringent measures to scrutinise people close at hand. This allowed him to continue to centralise power.

Information about the 3-anti and 5-anti campaigns here.

Old traditions and new promises

In Chapter 8 of Wild Swans, we read how the author's mother is now in Yibin, miles away from Manchuria. Locate these places on the map. Listen how life in Yibin is described.

In this place and time, the new Communist reforms and old Chinese customs are at odds. Can you spot those moments where people are dealing with those differences?

Where do you think your sympathies would lie at this moment? With the old traditions or the new promises?

Endings and beginnings

Chapter 6 of Wild Swans gives us a good insight into transitional points in history.

In China 1949, families might have loyalties and histories embedded in both the Kuomintang and Communism. It could be dangerous to reveal too much loyalty or previous involvement to any side, and families might have to change allegiance quickly, depending on where people lived and who at that time was in power.

At these points in history - when there is rapid social and political change - people might feel the imperative to change their own beliefs - or say they had done so - as part of daily survival.

Can you think of other points in history where this might be true?

In Chapter 7 we read the circumstances of the author's family as Mao proclaims the founding of the People's Republic of China; 1 October 1949.

Communism

In Chapter 5 of Wild Swans, we learn how the author's mother is attracted by the Communist movement.

Read here. Let's talk about some of the ideas in Communism at this time that might have seemed attractive to a young woman in 1947. Your grannies would have been aged in their twenties.

In Chapter 6 there are indications that the Party is seeking to take over from the family as the source of guidance and support. What areas of life does the Party attempt to control?

War and conflict is often used as the rationale why control is needed over a citizen's life. Do you remember the author's father talking about discipline in the revolution? What's your opinion?

For an updated version on how China is run today, visit this BBC article.

Struggles between Communism and the Kuomintang

In Chapter 4, we are starting to read a lot more about the struggles between the Communists and the Kuomintang.

Let's find out as much as we can about these forces. We could visit the Sun Yat-Sen and History Museums again.

Search out what you can. There is some good information with plenty of links here, here and a video covering the period here; it's taken from CCTV, the Chinese television station.

Keep looking out for sources and share them.

A lecture on the Chinese civil war here. The graphics are not very clear but the narrative is straighforward.

The Soviets arrive

In Chapter 4 of Wild Swans, we are told that after the Japanese surrender in Manchukuo, the Soviet Red Army entered this north-eastern area.

Tell me about the events you would expect to happen immediately after any major conflict. What do you think might happen to the borders of a country? Or to the rulers of 'winning' sides? And the rulers of 'losing' sides? To the people who fought and survived the battle?

Incidentally, there is a resource here to locate conflicts through history. You could spend some time exploring this site.

Life under the Japanese

In Chapter 3 of Wild Swans we find out about the Japanese invasion of Manchuria.

We need to visit two museums again! One, the Coastal Defences Museum, and two, the History Museum. Make sure that you visit the galleries explaining the Japanese occupation.

When we are in England, let's visit the Imperial War Museum in London, and look at the history of Japan in the twentieth century.

Kitchen God

In Chapter 2 of Wild Swans we are told about the Kitchen God.

Here's some information on Zao Jun. Can you find out information about other Chinese deities?

Chinese Medicine

Let's visit the Chinese Medicine gallery again!

(I promise next time not to make you walk past the model of the rat dissection.)

What can you recall about the principles and practices of Chinese Medicine? This page might help remind you.

When we walk through Sheung Wan again, peer into the shops. Let's hope none of us falls ill.

The Manchu Doctor

In Chapter 2 of Wild Swans we find out a little about Manchu (or Qing) customs.

You can see some elements of Manchu lifestyle in this video: the kang, rich embroidery, ancestor table for worhip, the drum, and dance.

The resolution on this video is not high, so the visual quality is poor, but it might help. Can you find any other sources of information about lives that we can share?

Here is a map for the Manchu or Qing dynasty and shows the borders in 1910.

The book is explaining a family set against political events. Useful visuals and story here, charting the transition from the Imperial court to the revolution set in place by Sun Yat Sen.

Where is it?

See if you can find the locations mentioned in the book Wild Swans.

You can use a conventional map. Let's look for a good map book at the library.

This site provides a search box.

Try typing in the following:

Yixian, Shanghai, Jinzhou, Hebei.

Then follow the links to see if you can locate where these places are. Are they in the North, South, East, West of China? If you can find the locations, then you can find the routes mentioned in the book.

What should a female be like?

Although Wild Swans is set at a time of great political and social change, the book tells us stories about people, too. In particular, girls and women, their identities and relationships.

The book describes how girls and women are brought up; how each culture determines how they should behave; what their goals and ideals should be; what customs, duties, ideals they should have.

How are women described and presented in the opening pages of Wild Swans?

Scroll down this page, a text from Ban Zhou. Read the headings in her Lessons for Women. Read any of the lessons too if you wish. I am sure you will have plenty of opinions about this that you would like to share.

(For a more up to date insight, you could try this documentary; I haven't watched it all. But I'm reading Factory Girls, and am trying to get a better understanding of women in China.)

Speed tour

Follow this speed tour through the dynasties of China (Han/Tang/Song/Yuan/Ming) to arrive at the Qing (let's pronounce it as Ching).

For a reference timeline, look here.

The Qing was the final dynasty (1644-1911). The video and recap on the dynasties will help set the background to extracts of the book I'll read aloud; Wild Swans by Jung Chang.