The Chinese Communist Party, the Salvation of China?

Hello, intellectuals. Confucianism has failed China, we have failed to modernize and as a result, we are being pushed around by imperial powers. Confucianism abandons the peasant farmer and devalues women and the young. In theory farmers, the majority of this nation, should be second in the social hierarchy only to intellectuals. In reality, the peasant farmers who are the backbone of our nation are at the bottom living a miserable existence. They are exploited by all those above them and often live in poverty. The poorest 90% of peasants only own 18% of the land, while the richest 10% own half of it. Although Confucian ideology doesn’t consider women to be inferior, it places them in subordination to men for her entire life; her father before marriage, her husband when married, and her son after the death of her husband. This restricts women’s ability to own property, hold office, and have autonomy, often leading to their commodification in times of hardship. In both major and minor marriages women face unique challenges beyond the no autonomy men and women have in marriage. In a major marriage, since the woman goes to the husband’s household after marriage, she has to leave her old household and adjust to her new one. Often these women never get the chance to return to her old household. In minor marriages, since the wife is adopted into her husband’s house and raised there from a young age she is easily manipulated by the husband’s mother so she can remain in power. The concept of Filial piety is based on the strict principles of hierarchy and obligation where obedience to your parents and elders is more important than yourself. Rather than genuine care, youth feel an obligation to respect their elders, leading to strained relationships due to its often weaponization against them. Government officials are chosen through exams on Confucian classics, so in theory, anyone can become an official. In reality only those rich enough can afford private tutors and the cost of studying rather than helping support one’s family economically can memorize the classics for the competitive exams. In addition, ordinary people have little to no access to the government. This has led to the exploitation of the people and ineffective policy.      

Many Chinese citizens are influenced by the Chinese Communist Party’s vision of a classless, egalitarian society, its criticisms of traditional Chinese culture, and its focus on empowering women, peasants, and the young. The revolutionaries agree with the criticisms above and believe communism can fix them all. And They disagree with the elevated status of intellectuals. The “Communist Manifesto” by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels offers an appealing vision of a society to those at the bottom, a society devoid of class conflict and exploitation from those above. The Chinese people, who have long been oppressed by landowners and affluent elites, find a lot of resonance with this viewpoint. The Manifesto argues the case that capitalism is inevitably unsustainable and will be replaced by socialism and communism, enabling a possibility for a society that is more just and egalitarian. All people who suffer under the current government hope for a more equitable future and the Chinese Communist Party might be that future.