100-533: On Contradiction ( simplified Chinese : 矛盾 论 ; traditional Chinese : 矛盾 論 ; pinyin : Máodùn Lùn ; lit. 'To Discuss Contradiction') is a 1937 essay by the Chinese Communist revolutionary Mao Zedong . Along with On Practice , it forms the philosophical underpinnings of the political ideology that would later become Maoism . It was written in August 1937, as an interpretation of
200-417: A power struggle between competing interest groups . In such a model, revolutions happen when two or more groups cannot come to terms within the current political system 's normal decision-making process, and when they possess the required resources to employ force in pursuit of their goals. The second-generation theorists regarded the development of revolutionary situations as a two-step process: "First,
300-501: A change in social and political institutions. Jeff Goodwin offers two definitions. First, a broad one, including "any and all instances in which a state or a political regime is overthrown and thereby transformed by a popular movement in an irregular, extraconstitutional or violent fashion". Second, a narrow one, in which "revolutions entail not only mass mobilization and regime change , but also more or less rapid and fundamental social, economic or cultural change, during or soon after
400-443: A component—either a character or a sub-component called a radical —usually involves either a reduction in its total number of strokes , or an apparent streamlining of which strokes are chosen in what places—for example, the ⼓ ' WRAP ' radical used in the traditional character 沒 is simplified to ⼏ ' TABLE ' to form the simplified character 没 . By systematically simplifying radicals, large swaths of
500-449: A contradiction. These two concepts depend on each other for existence. Mao says the idea of these two characters is necessary in understanding dialectics. This subject focuses on the concept of one contradiction allowing other contradictions to exist. For example, in a capitalist society, the contradiction between the proletariat and the bourgeoisie allow the other contradictions, such as the one between imperialists and their colonies. There
600-434: A conversion table. While exercising such derivation, the following rules should be observed: Sample Derivations : The Series One List of Variant Characters reduces the number of total standard characters. First, amongst each set of variant characters sharing identical pronunciation and meaning, one character (usually the simplest in form) is elevated to the standard character set, and the rest are made obsolete. Then amongst
700-399: A dialectical idealism before Marx and Engels combined dialectics with materialism, and Lenin and Stalin further developed it. With dialectical materialism we can look at the concrete differences between objects and further understand their growth. The absoluteness of contradiction has a twofold meaning. One is that contradiction exists in the process of development of all things, and the other
800-407: A few revised forms, and was implemented for official use by China's State Council on 5 June 2013. In Chinese, simplified characters are referred to by their official name 简化字 ; jiǎnhuàzì , or colloquially as 简体字 ; jiǎntǐzì . The latter term refers broadly to all character variants featuring simplifications of character form or structure, a practice which has always been present as
900-465: A focus on political behavior "from below", but also a recognition of moments where "high and low" are relativized, subverted, or made irrelevant, and where the micro and macro levels fuse together in critical conjunctions. Economist Douglass North raised a note of caution about revolutionary change, how it "is never as revolutionary as its rhetoric would have us believe". While the "formal rules" of laws and constitutions can be changed virtually overnight,
1000-599: A newly coined phono-semantic compound : Removing radicals Only retaining single radicals Replacing with ancient forms or variants : Adopting ancient vulgar variants : Readopting abandoned phonetic-loan characters : Copying and modifying another traditional character : Based on 132 characters and 14 components listed in Chart 2 of the Complete List , the 1,753 derived characters found in Chart 3 can be created by systematically simplifying components using Chart 2 as
1100-568: A part of the Chinese writing system. The official name tends to refer to the specific, systematic set published by the Chinese government, which includes not only simplifications of individual characters, but also a substantial reduction in the total number of characters through the merger of formerly distinct forms. According to Chinese palaeographer Qiu Xigui , the broadest trend in the evolution of Chinese characters over their history has been simplification, both in graphical shape ( 字形 ; zìxíng ),
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#17328556948721200-412: A pattern of events arises that somehow marks a break or change from previous patterns. This change then affects some critical variable—the cognitive state of the masses, the equilibrium of the system, or the magnitude of conflict and resource control of competing interest groups. If the effect on the critical variable is of sufficient magnitude, a potentially revolutionary situation occurs." Once this point
1300-816: A recent military defeat, or economic chaos, or an affront to national pride and identity, or pervasive repression and corruption. Revolutions typically trigger counter-revolutions which seek to halt revolutionary momentum, or to reverse the course of an ongoing revolutionary transformation. Notable revolutions in recent centuries include the American Revolution (1775–1783), French Revolution (1789–1799), Haitian Revolution (1791–1804), Spanish American wars of independence (1808–1826), Revolutions of 1848 in Europe, Mexican Revolution (1910–1920), Xinhai Revolution in China in 1911, Revolutions of 1917–1923 in Europe (including
1400-638: A second trip to Peking, although he had not declared his new belief at that time. In 1920, he met Chen Duxiu in Shanghai and discussed the Marxist philosophy. Mao finally officially moved toward his new ideology when the Movement of Self-Government of Hunan failed. He found a more reasonable approach to fixing society's problems in Marxism. He once said, "Class struggle, some classes triumph, others are eliminated." He understood
1500-457: Is absolute and considered a struggle. Antagonistic contradiction ( Chinese : 矛盾 ; pinyin : máodùn ) is the impossibility of compromise between different social classes . The term is usually attributed to Vladimir Lenin , although he may never have actually used the term in any of his written works. The term is most often applied in Maoist theory, which holds that differences between
1600-440: Is actually more complex than eliminated ones. An example is the character 搾 which is eliminated in favor of the variant form 榨 . The 扌 'HAND' with three strokes on the left of the eliminated 搾 is now seen as more complex, appearing as the ⽊ 'TREE' radical 木 , with four strokes, in the chosen variant 榨 . Not all characters standardised in the simplified set consist of fewer strokes. For instance,
1700-426: Is always only one principal contradiction; however, the contradictions can trade places of importance. When looking at numerous contradictions, one must understand which contradiction is superior. One must also remember the principal and non-principal contradictions are not static and will, over time, transform into one another. This also causes a transformation of the nature of the thing, for the principal contradiction
1800-454: Is derived. Merging homophonous characters: Adapting cursive shapes ( 草書楷化 ): Replacing a component with a simple arbitrary symbol (such as 又 and 乂 ): Omitting entire components : Omitting components, then applying further alterations : Structural changes that preserve the basic shape Replacing the phonetic component of phono-semantic compounds : Replacing an uncommon phonetic component : Replacing entirely with
1900-439: Is internally contradictory because different social classes have conflicting collective goals. These contradictions stem from the social structure of society and inherently lead to class conflict , economic crisis , and eventually revolution , the existing order's overthrow and the formerly oppressed classes' ascension to political power. "The dialectic asserts that nothing is permanent and all things perish in time." Dialectics
2000-809: Is now discouraged. A State Language Commission official cited "oversimplification" as the reason for restoring some characters. The language authority declared an open comment period until 31 August 2009, for feedback from the public. In 2013, the List of Commonly Used Standard Chinese Characters was published as a revision of the 1988 lists; it included a total of 8105 characters. It included 45 newly recognized standard characters that were previously considered variant forms, as well as official approval of 226 characters that had been simplified by analogy and had seen wide use but were not explicitly given in previous lists or documents. Singapore underwent three successive rounds of character simplification , eventually arriving at
2100-467: Is only difference found in the world. Mao combats this saying that difference is made up of contradiction and is contradiction. "No society—past, present, or future—could escape contradictions, for this was a characteristic of all matter in the universe." Mao finds the best way to talk about the relativity of contradiction is to look at it in several different parts. "The contradiction in each form of motion of matter has its particularity." This contradiction
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#17328556948722200-467: Is particular to certain objects and gives objects identity. Understanding all of Mao's points will give one an understanding of this dense topic of Marxist thought. On Contradiction, along with Mao's text On Practice , elevated Mao's reputation as a Marxist theoretician. It became a foundational text of Mao Zedong Thought . After Mao was celebrated in the Eastern Bloc following China's intervention in
2300-599: Is reached, a negative incident (a war, a riot, a bad harvest) that in the past might not have been enough to trigger a revolt, will now be enough. However, if authorities are cognizant of the danger, they can still prevent revolution through reform or repression. In his influential 1938 book The Anatomy of Revolution , historian Crane Brinton established a convention by choosing four major political revolutions— England (1642) , Thirteen Colonies of America (1775) , France (1789) , and Russia (1917) —for comparative study. He outlined what he called their "uniformities", although
2400-609: Is referred to as the " big seal script ". The traditional narrative, as also attested in the Shuowen Jiezi dictionary ( c. 100 AD ), is that the Qin small seal script that would later be imposed across China was originally derived from the Zhou big seal script with few modifications. However, the body of epigraphic evidence comparing the character forms used by scribes gives no indication of any real consolidation in character forms prior to
2500-508: Is that in the process of development of each thing a movement of opposites exists from beginning to end. Contradiction is the basis of life and drives it forward. No one phenomenon can exist without its contradictory opposite, such as victory and defeat. "Unity of opposites" allows for a balance of contradiction. A most basic example of the cycle of contradiction is life and death. There are contradictions that can be found in mechanics, mathematics, science, social life, etc. Deborin claims that there
2600-420: Is the "logic of change" and can explain the concepts of evolution and transformation. Materialism refers to the existence of only one world. It also verifies that things can exist without the mind. Things existed well before humans had knowledge of them. For materialists, consciousness is the mind and it exists within the body rather than apart from it. All things are made of matter. Dialectical materialism combines
2700-408: Is the essence of a thing. When one can identify the particular essence, one can understand the object. These particular contradictions also differentiate one object from another. Knowledge is developed from cognition that can move from general to particular or particular to general. When old processes change, new processes and contradictions emerge. Each contradiction has its own way of being solved, and
2800-540: Is used instead of 叠 in regions using traditional characters. The Chinese government stated that it wished to keep Chinese orthography stable. The Chart of Generally Utilized Characters of Modern Chinese was published in 1988 and included 7000 simplified and unsimplified characters. Of these, half were also included in the revised List of Commonly Used Characters in Modern Chinese , which specified 2500 common characters and 1000 less common characters. In 2009,
2900-466: Is what primarily defines the thing. These two different contradictions prove that nothing is created equally by showing the lack of balance that allows one contradiction to be superior to another. Mao uses examples in Chinese history and society to symbolize the concept of a principal contradiction and its continual changing. "Neither imperialist oppression of the colonies nor the fate of the colonies to suffer under that oppression can last forever." Based on
3000-455: The American Revolution deviated somewhat from the pattern. As a result, most later comparative studies of revolution substituted China (1949) in their lists, but they continued Brinton's practice of focusing on four. In subsequent decades, scholars began to classify hundreds of other events as revolutions (see List of revolutions and rebellions ). Their expanded notion of revolution engendered new approaches and explanations. The theories of
3100-656: The Chinese language , with the other being traditional characters . Their mass standardization during the 20th century was part of an initiative by the People's Republic of China (PRC) to promote literacy, and their use in ordinary circumstances on the mainland has been encouraged by the Chinese government since the 1950s. They are the official forms used in mainland China and Singapore , while traditional characters are officially used in Hong Kong , Macau , and Taiwan . Simplification of
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3200-714: The Korean War , both texts became widely read in the USSR. In April 1960, Petroleum Minister Yu Qiuli stated that On Contradiction (along with On Practice ) would be the ideological core of the campaign to develop the Daqing Oil Field in northeast China . Yu's efforts to mobilize workers in Daqing focused on ideological motivation rather than material incentives. The Ministry of the Petroleum Industry shipped thousands of copies of
3300-519: The Russian Revolution and German Revolution ), Chinese Communist Revolution (1927–1949), decolonization of Africa (mid-1950s to 1975), Cuban Revolution in 1959, Iranian Revolution and Nicaraguan Revolution in 1979, worldwide Revolutions of 1989 , and Arab Spring in the early 2010s. The French noun revolucion traces back to the 13th century, and the English equivalent "revolution" to
3400-599: The violent Islamic revolution in Afghanistan . At the same time, this definition is strong enough to exclude coups, revolts, civil wars, and rebellions that make no effort to transform institutions or the justification for authority." Goldstone's definition excludes peaceful transitions to democracy through plebiscite or free elections , as occurred in Spain after the death of Francisco Franco , or in Argentina and Chile after
3500-459: The "Dot" stroke : The traditional components ⺥ and 爫 become ⺈ : The traditional component 奐 becomes 奂 : Revolution In political science , a revolution ( Latin : revolutio , 'a turn around') is a rapid, fundamental transformation of a society's class, state, ethnic or religious structures. According to sociologist Jack Goldstone , all revolutions contain "a common set of elements at their core: (a) efforts to change
3600-456: The "external appearances of individual graphs", and in graphical form ( 字体 ; 字體 ; zìtǐ ), "overall changes in the distinguishing features of graphic[al] shape and calligraphic style, [...] in most cases refer[ring] to rather obvious and rather substantial changes". The initiatives following the founding of the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) to universalize the use of their small seal script across
3700-490: The "slow revolution" type identified by Tocqueville. Political and socioeconomic revolutions have been studied in many social sciences , particularly sociology , political science and history . Scholars of revolution differentiate four generations of theoretical research on the subject of revolution. Theorists of the first generation, including Gustave Le Bon , Charles A. Ellwood , and Pitirim Sorokin , were mainly descriptive in their approach, and their explanations of
3800-476: The 1986 General List of Simplified Chinese Characters , hereafter the General List . All characters simplified this way are enumerated in Chart 1 and Chart 2 in the 1986 Complete List . Characters in both charts are structurally simplified based on similar set of principles. They are separated into two charts to clearly mark those in Chart 2 as 'usable as simplified character components', based on which Chart 3
3900-508: The 1986 mainland China revisions. Unlike in mainland China, Singapore parents have the option of registering their children's names in traditional characters. Malaysia also promulgated a set of simplified characters in 1981, though completely identical to the mainland Chinese set. They are used in Chinese-language schools. All characters simplified this way are enumerated in Charts 1 and 2 of
4000-470: The Chinese government published a major revision to the list which included a total of 8300 characters. No new simplifications were introduced. In addition, slight modifications to the orthography of 44 characters to fit traditional calligraphic rules were initially proposed, but were not implemented due to negative public response. Also, the practice of unrestricted simplification of rare and archaic characters by analogy using simplified radicals or components
4100-603: The Czar, followed by a rural revolution, followed by the Bolshevik coup in November. Katz also cross-classified revolutions as follows: A further dimension to Katz's typology is that revolutions are either against (anti-monarchy, anti-dictatorial, anti-communist, anti-democratic) or for (pro-fascism, pro-communism, pro-nationalism, etc.). In the latter cases, a transition period is generally necessary to decide which direction to take to achieve
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4200-451: The Polity data series—which evaluates the degree of democratic or autocratic authority in a state's governing institutions based on the openness of executive recruitment, constraints on executive authority, and political competition—is inadequate because it measures democratization, not revolution, and doesn't account for regimes which come to power by revolution but fail to change the structure of
4300-782: The antagonistic contradiction was usually that between the peasantry and the landowning class . Mao Zedong expressed his views on the policy in his famous February 1957 speech On the Correct Handling of Contradictions Among the People. Mao focuses on antagonistic contradiction as the "struggle of opposites." It is an absolute and universal concept. When one tries to solve the conflict of antagonistic contradictions, one must find his solution based on each situation. As in any other concept, there are two sides. There can be antagonistic contradictions and non-antagonistic contradictions. Contradiction and antagonism are not equals and one can exist without
4400-547: The antagonistic contradictions are "between the enemy and the people." In the conclusion, Mao sums up all the points that were made in his essay. The law of contradictions is a fundamental basis for dialectical materialistic thought. Contradiction is present in all things and allows all objects to exist. Contradiction depends on other contradictions to exist and can transform itself into another contradiction. Contradictions are separated by superiority and can sometimes have antagonistic relationships with one another. Each contradiction
4500-494: The causes and implications of revolution. The initial fourth-generation books and journal articles generally relied on the Polity data series on democratization . Such analyses, like those by A. J. Enterline, Zeev Maoz , and Edward D. Mansfield and Jack Snyder, identified a revolution by a significant change in the country's score on Polity's autocracy-to-democracy scale. Since the 2010s, scholars like Jeff Colgan have argued that
4600-428: The character set are altered. Some simplifications were based on popular cursive forms that embody graphic or phonetic simplifications of the traditional forms. In addition, variant characters with identical pronunciation and meaning were reduced to a single standardized character, usually the simplest among all variants in form. Finally, many characters were left untouched by simplification and are thus identical between
4700-407: The chosen variants, those that appear in the "Complete List of Simplified Characters" are also simplified in character structure accordingly. Some examples follow: Sample reduction of equivalent variants : Ancient variants with simple structure are preferred : Simpler vulgar forms are also chosen : The chosen variant was already simplified in Chart 1 : In some instances, the chosen variant
4800-409: The concept of contradiction to explain different Chinese historical time periods and social events. Mao's form of talking about contradiction creates a modified concept that brought forth the ideal of Chinese Marxism . This text continues to influence and educate Chinese Marxists. Mao initially held views similar to a reformist or nationalist. He later said that he became a Marxist in 1919 when he took
4900-465: The country's writing system as a serious impediment to its modernization. In 1916, a multi-part English-language article entitled "The Problem of the Chinese Language" co-authored by the Chinese linguist Yuen Ren Chao (1892–1982) and poet Hu Shih (1891–1962) has been identified as a turning point in the history of the Chinese script—as it was one of the first clear calls for China to move away from
5000-473: The culmination of the changes from the initial movement causes the object to seem to be conspicuously changing. Objects are constantly going through this process of motion; however, struggle between opposites happens in both states and is only solved in the second. Transformation is motivated by the unity between contradictions. Particular condition of movement and the general condition of movement both are conditions under which contradictions can move. This movement
5100-427: The demise of their military juntas . Early scholars often debated the distinction between revolution and civil war. They also questioned whether a revolution is purely political (i.e., concerned with the restructuring of government) or whether "it is an extensive and inclusive social change affecting all the various aspects of the life of a society, including the economic, religious, industrial, and familial as well as
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#17328556948725200-478: The desired form of government. Other types of revolution, created for other typologies, include proletarian or communist revolutions (inspired by the ideas of Marxism that aim to replace capitalism with communism ); failed or abortive revolutions (that are not able to secure power after winning temporary victories or amassing large-scale mobilizations); or violent vs. nonviolent revolutions . The term revolution has also been used to denote great changes outside
5300-454: The dialectical materialism concept. In addition to elaborating on his ideological and philosophic views, Mao wrote On Contradiction to help legitimize his political thinking within a Marxist framework and thus further solidify his leadership. In dialectical materialism , contradiction, as derived by Karl Marx , usually refers to an opposition of social forces. This concept is one of the three main points of Marxism. Mao held that capitalism
5400-442: The dialectical worldview as one which views things in dynamic interaction with each other while also being characterized by their own internal contradiction. In the dialectical worldview, progress results through reconciling internal and external contradictions, resulting in new things with their own internal and external contradictions. For a long time the metaphysical view was held by both Chinese and Europeans. Eventually in Europe,
5500-566: The dominance of the third generation's theories. The old theories were also dealt a significant blow by a series of revolutionary events that they could not readily explain. The Iranian and Nicaraguan Revolutions of 1979, the 1986 People Power Revolution in the Philippines , and the 1989 Autumn of Nations in Europe, Asia and Africa saw diverse opposition movements topple seemingly powerful regimes amidst popular demonstrations and mass strikes in nonviolent revolutions . For some historians,
5600-472: The early 20th century. In 1909, the educator and linguist Lufei Kui formally proposed the use of simplified characters in education for the first time. Over the following years—marked by the 1911 Xinhai Revolution that toppled the Qing dynasty , followed by growing social and political discontent that further erupted into the 1919 May Fourth Movement —many anti-imperialist intellectuals throughout China began to see
5700-404: The first category. They utilized theories of cognitive psychology and frustration-aggression theory to link the cause of revolution to the state of mind of the masses. While these theorists varied in their approach as to what exactly incited the people to revolt (e.g., modernization, recession, or discrimination), they agreed that the primary cause for revolution was a widespread frustration with
5800-616: The first official list of simplified forms was published, consisting of 324 characters collated by Peking University professor Qian Xuantong . However, fierce opposition within the KMT resulted in the list being rescinded in 1936. Work throughout the 1950s resulted in the 1956 promulgation of the Chinese Character Simplification Scheme , a draft of 515 simplified characters and 54 simplified components, whose simplifications would be present in most compound characters. Over
5900-463: The first round—but was massively unpopular and never saw consistent use. The second round of simplifications was ultimately retracted officially in 1986, well after they had largely ceased to be used due to their unpopularity and the confusion they caused. In August 2009, China began collecting public comments for a revised list of simplified characters; the resulting List of Commonly Used Standard Chinese Characters lists 8,105 characters, including
6000-465: The following decade, the Script Reform Committee deliberated on characters in the 1956 scheme, collecting public input regarding the recognizability of variants, and often approving forms in small batches. Parallel to simplification, there were also initiatives aimed at eliminating the use of characters entirely and replacing them with pinyin as an official Chinese alphabet, but this possibility
6100-406: The founding of the Qin. The Han dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD) that inherited the Qin administration coincided with the perfection of clerical script through the process of libian . Eastward spread of Western learning Though most closely associated with the People's Republic, the idea of a mass simplification of character forms first gained traction in China during
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#17328556948726200-408: The idea of contradiction, one day, the oppression will end and the colonies will gain power and freedom. Mao defines identity as two different thoughts: the two aspects of contradiction coexist and aspects can transform into one another. Any one aspect is dependent on the existence of at least one other aspect. Without death, there could be no life; without unhappiness, there could be no joy. Mao finds
6300-466: The increased usage of 朙 was followed by proliferation of a third variant: 眀 , with 目 'eye' on the left—likely derived as a contraction of 朙 . Ultimately, 明 became the character's standard form. The Book of Han (111 AD) describes an earlier attempt made by King Xuan of Zhou ( d. 782 BC ) to unify character forms across the states of ancient China , with his chief chronicler having "[written] fifteen chapters describing" what
6400-417: The late 14th century. The word was limited then to mean the revolving motion of celestial bodies. "Revolution" in the sense of abrupt change in a social order was first recorded in the mid-15th century. By 1688, the political meaning of the word was familiar enough that the replacement of James II with William III was termed the " Glorious Revolution ". "Revolution" is now employed most often to denote
6500-459: The left, with the 月 'Moon' component on the right. Li Si ( d. 208 BC ), the Chancellor of Qin, attempted to universalize the Qin small seal script across China following the wars that had politically unified the country for the first time. Li prescribed the 朙 form of the word for 'bright', but some scribes ignored this and continued to write the character as 明 . However,
6600-406: The likelihood of international disputes. Revolutions have been further examined from an anthropological perspective. Drawing on Victor Turner's writings on ritual and performance, Bjorn Thomassen suggested that revolutions can be understood as "liminal" moments: modern political revolutions very much resemble rituals and can therefore be studied within a process approach. This would imply not only
6700-532: The more important point to also be a factor of identity; contradictions can transform into one another. In certain situations and under certain conditions, the contradictions coexist and change into one another. Identity both separates the contradictions and allows for the struggle between the contradictions; the identity is the contradiction. The two contradictions in an object inspire two forms of movement, relative rest and conspicuous change. Initially, an object changes quantitatively and seems to be at rest. Eventually,
6800-402: The most prominent Chinese authors of the 20th century, stated that "if Chinese characters are not destroyed, then China will die" ( 漢字不滅，中國必亡 ). During the 1930s and 1940s, discussions regarding simplification took place within the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) party. Many members of the Chinese intelligentsia maintained that simplification would increase literacy rates throughout the country. In 1935,
6900-637: The need for Marxist ideas and struggles in order to more effectively take on the developing world. Like On Contradiction , On Practice was written by Mao during the Yan'an Period. Some of the points made in "On Contradiction" were drawn and expanded from lectures Mao presented in 1937 at the Counter-Japanese University in Yan'an . These lectures drew from the work of Karl Marx , Friedrich Engels , and Vladimir Lenin . Mao elaborated on their principles based on
7000-468: The other. Also, contradictions do not have to develop into antagonistic ones. An example of antagonism and non-antagonism can be found in two opposing states. They may continually struggle and disagree due to their opposite ideologies, but they will not always be at war against one another. Avoiding antagonism requires an open space to allow the contradictions to emerge and be solved objectively. The non-antagonistic contradictions "exist among 'the people'," and
7100-425: The particularity of any kind of contradiction – the contradiction in each form of motion of matter, the contradiction in each of its processes of development, the two aspects of that contradiction in each process, the contradiction at each stage of a process, and the two aspects of the contradiction at each stage." Universality and particularity of a contradiction can be viewed as general and individual character of
7200-445: The periphery of a country; others started with urban insurrection aimed at seizing the country's capital city. Revolutions can be inspired by the rising popularity of certain political ideologies , moral principles, or models of governance such as nationalism , republicanism , egalitarianism , self-determination , human rights , democracy , liberalism , fascism , or socialism . A regime may become vulnerable to revolution due to
7300-509: The phenomena of revolutions were usually related to social psychology , such as Le Bon's crowd psychology theory. The second generation sought to develop detailed frameworks, grounded in social behavior theory, to explain why and when revolutions arise. Their work can be divided into three categories: psychological, sociological and political. The writings of Ted Robert Gurr , Ivo K. Feierbrand, Rosalind L. Feierbrand, James A. Geschwender, David C. Schwartz , and Denton E. Morrison fall into
7400-431: The philosophy of dialectical materialism , while Mao was at his guerrilla base in Yan'an . Mao suggests that all movement and life is a result of contradiction . Mao separates his paper into different sections: the two world outlooks, the universality of contradiction, the particularity of contradiction, the principal contradiction and principal aspect of contradiction, the identity and struggle of aspects of contradiction,
7500-462: The place of antagonism in contradiction, and finally the conclusion. Mao further develops the theme laid out in On Contradiction in his 1957 speech On the Correct Handling of Contradictions Among the People . Mao describes existence as being made up of constant transformation and contradiction. Nothing is constant as in metaphysics and can only exist based on opposing contradictions. He uses
7600-465: The political regime that draw on a competing vision (or visions) of a just order, (b) a notable degree of informal or formal mass mobilization , and (c) efforts to force change through noninstitutionalized actions such as mass demonstrations , protests, strikes, or violence." Revolutions have occurred throughout human history and varied in their methods, durations and outcomes. Some revolutions started with peasant uprisings or guerrilla warfare on
7700-541: The political sphere. Such revolutions, often labeled social revolutions , are recognized as major transformations in a society's culture, philosophy, or technology, rather than in its political system . Some social revolutions are global in scope, while others are limited to single countries. Commonly cited examples of social revolution are the Industrial Revolution , Scientific Revolution , Commercial Revolution , and Digital Revolution . These revolutions also fit
7800-503: The political". There are numerous typologies of revolution in the social science literature. Alexis de Tocqueville differentiated between: One of the Marxist typologies divides revolutions into: Charles Tilly , a modern scholar of revolutions, differentiated between: Mark Katz identified six forms of revolution: These categories are not mutually exclusive; the Russian Revolution of 1917 began with an urban revolution to depose
7900-580: The practice of the Chinese Communist Party at the time. Mao's research was concentrated on pieces from Chinese Marxist philosophers. The most influential philosopher that Mao studied was Ai Siqi . Mao not only read Ai's works but also knew him personally. Mao studied Marxism diligently in the year before he wrote his "Lecture Notes on Dialectical Materialism ." He reviewed and annotated the Soviet Union's New Philosophy in order to actively understand
8000-509: The proletariat developed the dialectical materialistic outlook, and the bourgeoisie opposed the view. Mao refers to the metaphysicians as "vulgar evolutionists." They believe in a static and unchanging world where things repeat themselves rather than changing with history. It cannot explain change and development over time. In dialectics, things are understood by their internal change and relationship with other objects. Contradiction within an object fuels its development and evolution. Hegel developed
8100-464: The psychological school, they differed in their definitions of what causes disequilibrium, but agreed that it is a state of severe disequilibrium that is responsible for revolutions. The third group, including writers such as Charles Tilly , Samuel P. Huntington , Peter Ammann , and Arthur L. Stinchcombe , followed a political science path and looked at pluralist theory and interest group conflict theory . Those theories view events as outcomes of
8200-430: The public and quickly fell out of official use. It was ultimately formally rescinded in 1986. The second-round simplifications were unpopular in large part because most of the forms were completely new, in contrast to the familiar variants comprising the majority of the first round. With the rescission of the second round, work toward further character simplification largely came to an end. In 1986, authorities retracted
8300-465: The recently conquered parts of the empire is generally seen as being the first real attempt at script reform in Chinese history. Before the 20th century, variation in character shape on the part of scribes, which would continue with the later invention of woodblock printing , was ubiquitous. For example, prior to the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) the character meaning 'bright' was written as either 明 or 朙 —with either 日 'Sun' or 囧 'window' on
8400-414: The resolution must be found accordingly to the particular contradiction. Particular contradictions also have particular aspects that have specific ways of being handled. Mao believes that one must look at things objectively when reviewing a conflict. When one is biased and subjective, he or she cannot fully understand the contradictions and aspects of an object. This is the way people should go about "studying
8500-458: The rise of a third generation of theories, put forth by writers such as Theda Skocpol , Barrington Moore , Jeffrey Paige, and others expanding on the old Marxist class-conflict approach. They turned their attention to "rural agrarian-state conflicts, state conflicts with autonomous elites, and the impact of interstate economic and military competition on domestic political change." In particular, Skocpol's States and Social Revolutions (1979)
8600-476: The same set of simplified characters as mainland China. The first round was promulgated by the Ministry of Education in 1969, consisting of 498 simplified characters derived from 502 traditional characters. A second round of 2287 simplified characters was promulgated in 1974. The second set contained 49 differences from the mainland China system; these were removed in the final round in 1976. In 1993, Singapore adopted
8700-411: The second generation came under criticism for being too limited in geographical scope, and for lacking a means of empirical verification. Also, while second-generation theories may have been capable of explaining a specific revolution, they could not adequately explain why revolutions failed to occur in other societies experiencing very similar circumstances. The criticism of the second generation led to
8800-461: The second round completely, though they had been largely fallen out of use within a year of their initial introduction. That year, the authorities also promulgated a final version of the General List of Simplified Chinese Characters . It was identical to the 1964 list save for 6 changes—including the restoration of 3 characters that had been simplified in the first round: 叠 , 覆 , 像 ; the form 疊
8900-408: The socio-political situation. The second group, composed of academics such as Chalmers Johnson , Neil Smelser , Bob Jessop , Mark Hart , Edward A. Tiryakian, and Mark Hagopian, drew on the work of Talcott Parsons and the structural-functionalist theory in sociology. They saw society as a system in equilibrium between various resources, demands, and subsystems (political, cultural, etc.). As in
9000-462: The state and society sufficiently to yield a notable difference in the Polity score. Instead, Colgan offered a new data set to single out governments that "transform the existing social, political, and economic relationships of the state by overthrowing or rejecting the principal existing institutions of society." This data set has been employed to make empirically based contributions to the literature on revolution by finding links between revolution and
9100-455: The struggle for state power". Jack Goldstone defines a revolution thusly: "[Revolution is] an effort to transform the political institutions and the justifications for political authority in society, accompanied by formal or informal mass mobilization and noninstitutionalized actions that undermine authorities. This definition is broad enough to encompass events ranging from the relatively peaceful revolutions that toppled communist regimes to
9200-523: The texts by plane so that every Daqing oil worker would have copies and for work units to each set up their own study groups. The successful completion of Daqing despite harsh weather conditions and supply limitations became a model held up by the Communist Party as an example during subsequent industrialization campaigns. Simplified Chinese characters Simplified Chinese characters are one of two standardized character sets widely used to write
9300-488: The traditional and simplified Chinese orthographies. The Chinese government has never officially announced the completion of the simplification process after the bulk of characters were introduced by the 1960s. In the wake of the Cultural Revolution , a second round of simplified characters was promulgated in 1977—largely composed of entirely new variants intended to artificially lower the stroke count, in contrast to
9400-817: The traditional character 強 , with 11 strokes is standardised as 强 , with 12 strokes, which is a variant character. Such characters do not constitute simplified characters. The new standardized character forms shown in the Characters for Publishing and revised through the Common Modern Characters list tend to adopt vulgar variant character forms. Since the new forms take vulgar variants, many characters now appear slightly simpler compared to old forms, and as such are often mistaken as structurally simplified characters. Some examples follow: The traditional component 釆 becomes 米 : The traditional component 囚 becomes 日 : The traditional "Break" stroke becomes
9500-617: The traditional paradigm of revolutions as class struggle -driven conflicts centered in Europe, and involving a violent state versus its discontented people, was no longer sufficient to account for the multi-class coalitions toppling dictators around the world. Consequently, the study of revolutions began to evolve in three directions. As Goldstone describes it, scholars of revolution: The fourth generation increasingly turned to quantitative techniques when formulating its theories. Political science research moved beyond individual or comparative case studies towards large-N statistical analysis assessing
9600-403: The two concepts into an important Marxist ideal. Mao saw dialectics as the study of contradiction based on a statement made by Lenin. The published text of On Contradiction begins by addressing Lenin's distinction between a metaphysical worldview and a dialectical worldview. Mao frames the metaphysical worldview as one which treats things as unitary, static, and isolated. In contrast, Mao frames
9700-486: The two primary classes, the working class / proletariat and the bourgeoisie are so great that there is no way to bring about a reconciliation of their views. Because the groups involved have diametrically opposed concerns, their objectives are so dissimilar and contradictory that no mutually acceptable resolution can be found. Non-antagonistic contradictions may be resolved through mere debate, but antagonistic contradictions can only be resolved through struggle. In Maoism ,
9800-516: The use of characters entirely. Instead, Chao proposed that the language be written with an alphabet, which he saw as more logical and efficient. The alphabetization and simplification campaigns would exist alongside one another among the Republican intelligentsia for the next several decades. Recent commentators have echoed some contemporary claims that Chinese characters were blamed for the economic problems in China during that time. Lu Xun , one of
9900-413: Was a landmark book of the third generation. Skocpol defined revolution as "rapid, basic transformations of society's state and class structures ... accompanied and in part carried through by class-based revolts from below", and she attributed revolutions to "a conjunction of multiple conflicts involving state, elites and the lower classes". In the late 1980s, a new body of academic work started questioning
10000-461: Was abandoned, confirmed by a speech given by Zhou Enlai in 1958. In 1965, the PRC published the List of Commonly Used Characters for Printing [ zh ] (hereafter Characters for Printing ), which included standard printed forms for 6196 characters, including all of the forms from the 1956 scheme. A second round of simplified characters was promulgated in 1977, but was poorly received by
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