Peasants and the Great Leap Forward

Countries following Marxist ideology have typically showed a disinterest of the peasantry and sometimes even outright hostility. When it came to revolutions within these Marxist countries, the peasantry was typically forced following their government’s demands. These countries used their peasantry, always on the government’s own terms. That is, they never asked the peasantry what could be done for them, but rather simply demanded the peasantry follow them. China, prior to the “Great Leap Forward,” suffered through a civil war, putting a new Party in charge of the government. This government chose to include peasants in their revolution and promised them what they desired in return. Due to this new function and ideology in leadership, collectivization within China was a relatively resistance free movement. This paper will focus on five political factors implemented within China just prior to their collectivization movement that will be used to explain the lack of resistance within China compared to Russia