James C.F. Wang - The Cultural Revolution in China: An Annotated Bibliography

To my wife, Sally, for her infinite
patience and invaluable assistance

The Cultural Revolution in China has generated a cascade of commentaries and interpretations on the development and meaning of the upheaval. Many students and researchers of contemporary China, especially those interested in the period of the Cultural Revolution, have often found it inconvenient, if not difficult at times, to locate and identify literature on the period. This annotated bibliography is an effort to correct this situation. The bibliography includes all books, monographs, and journal articles in English on the Cultural Revolution which are commonly available to students and researchers. Each entry is annotated to show its relevance to the study of the Cultural Revolution. The bibliography is designed as a reference tool for use by both the university community and the general public in locating published works and ascertaining the coverage and major themes in each.

The bibliography covers a wide range of topics related to the Cultural Revolution and its impact on China. For the readers convenience, the material is arranged by general topics in nine chapters. An introduction to each chapter outlines the main themes and major points of discussion to orient the user. cover the major controversies emanating from the formation or the inability to form Revolutionary Committees at the regional and local levels and include questions such as the extent of the party control over the regional and local jurisdictions, the rivalry among the feuding revolutionary mass groups, and participation in the decision-making process.

The impact of the Cultural Revolution on economic policy and the functioning of the economy is covered in covers works which assess the Cultural Revolution from the perspective of the aftermath period. Included are the relationship of the Cultural Revolution to the demise of Lin Piao, the leadership succession question, the reorganization of the partys Central Committee, the reestablishment of the party structure, profound changes in education, and the party-army relationship.

A few words must be said about the items in this bibliography. No items originating from the Chinese source, either in English or in translation, are included. The reason for this omission is two-fold. First, there are several reference tools now available which provide a comprehensive collection of official documentation on the Cultural Revolution. Four are included in this bibliography: the Asian Research Centres The Great Cultural Revolution in China and The Great Power Struggle in China, Union Research Institutes CCP Documents of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution: 1966-1967, and Dr. Chis Readings in the Chinese Communist Cultural Revolution. Second, the main purpose of this bibliography is to assemble and annotate works in English which provide interpretations and analyses of the Cultural Revolution by China scholars and commentators from the West. Books and articles from American and British publications are cited as well as a few from Indian and the Soviet Union sources. Most, however, are American. No unpublished papers are included for the simple reason that these are not generally available to college and public libraries not specializing in research on contemporary China.