c**i
发帖数: 6973 | 1 Chris Patten, Deng's Dragons; The leader who brought markets to China but
denied it democracy. Financial Times, Oct 15, 2011.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/a1b03b56-f33c-11e0-8383-00144feab49a.
(book review on Ezra Vogel, Deng Xiaoping and the transformation of China.
Harvard University Press, 2011)
(a) Excerpt in the window of the print: In 1978, which saw the beginnings of
the change, China exported about as much in a year as it now exports in a
day.
(b) Quote:
"Deng’s role as Mao’s enforcer during the “anti-rightist campaign” of
the 1950s is hardly mentioned. Half a million intellectuals were shipped to
labour camps. His careful avoidance of personal trouble during the
disastrous Great Leap Forward of 1958-61, which led to 45m or more deaths (
he broke a leg playing billiards and used a sick note as an excuse for
missing difficult meetings) was not heroic. Almost 10m of his fellow
Sichuanese starved to death.
"Both propositions are probably true and China's main existential challenge
remains the issue of resolving this dilemma.
"Vogel chronicles very well Deng’s role in stabilising China after the
chaos of the Cultural Revolution (1966-76), in which he and his family had
themselves suffered, literally getting the trains running again, making
people work together without reprisals, and re-establishing schools and
universities.
"How should we describe what has happened? It does not seem to have much to
do with socialism, given for example that in the decade of fast growth after
1997, workers’ wages as a proportion of gross domestic product fell from
53 per cent to 40 per cent.
(c) My comment:
(i) Regarding quotation 2. The two propositions refers to hardliner Chen Yun
's "argument that if the party gave up control over the economy it would
sooner or later lose control of the state. For Deng and his circle, stepping
back from command economics was essential for growth and job creation, and
without them the Communist party would certainly lose control of the state."
(ii) For masterclass, see master class (n; First Known Use 1952):
"a seminar for advanced music students conducted by a master musician"
www.m-w.com
(iii) XI Zhongxun 习 仲勋
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xi_Zhongxun
(1913-2002; Deputy Prime Minister 1959-1962, and Governor of Guangdong 1979-
1981)
(iv) In my view, on such a bland book book reviewers are more interesting than the book itself. |
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