ABSTRACT
The development of rectification theory and practice in the early 1940s was both an extension of and reaction to the earlier history of the CCP. a Official histories and some scholarly analysis identify rectification with Mao while asserting that other leaders advocated sharply contrasting approaches. Thus CCP leaders before 1935 purportedly pushed coercive disciplinary methods—dubbed “ruthless struggles and merciless blows” (canku douzheng he wuqing daji)—while Mao attempted to foster systematic education. Mao’s undoubted contributions to rectification notwithstanding, the following analysis argues that this view both overstates actual differences and overlooks the developing nature of Mao’s position.
