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| On October 1, 1949 a grand ceremony was witnessed by 300,000 people in Beijing's Tienanmen Square, and Mao Zedong, chairman of the Central People's Government, solemnly proclaimed the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC). |
STUDY SKILLS WORKSHOP FRIDAY
I am finishing the last of the two study skills workshops tomorrow during lunch in room 204. It will be geared specifically toward the Rise of Mao Paper 2 essay exam to be given on Tues., Dec. 20. I will point you toward what you should study over the weekend in preparation for class on Monday.
The following is due Monday, Dec. 19 at 8:20 a.m.
I've shared with you two readings: China 1900-49 - Why CCP Won Civil War.pdf AND China 1900-49 - Why Nationalist Lost Civil War.pdf
Please place the following on your Rise of Mao worksheet under question #31.
Consider the following prompt: "'Political strength was the main reason why the Communists were successful in the civil war.' Assess this claim."
Don't consider why the Civil War happened, but instead assess why one side one over the other. Also, you may not consider political strength as the main factor, but another factor that favored the Communists. And, don't forget the Nationalists. They might have won, especially as they had the support of both the USA and the Soviet Union.
Divide your answer into two sections:
Reasons why the Communists won
Reasons why the Nationalists lost
Try to rank your reasons in each category from greatest to least important.
Consider several of the following causal factors:
- The series of major strategic military errors made by the Nationalists compared to the CCP's military successes from 1947 (p. 140)
- The better training and morale of CCP troops compared to the Nationalist army (p. 148)
- The treatment of the people by the Nationalists versus treatment of the people by the Communists - a case of more effective terror? (p. 140)
- The greater ability of the CCP to win the hearts of many people (by offering land) (pgs. 140-1).
- The long record of limited Nationalist success in government compared to the fresh hopes offered by the CCP. (pgs. 141-4).
- The CCP's strong internal discipline versus the willingness of key Nationalists to betray their side (pgs. 145-6 and 148).
- The CCP's greater skills in political propaganda. (pg. 148).
- The soaring inflation and economic collapse of the Nationalist government years (pg. 142).
