Jason+Cho+Analysis

Article Explanation In my article, “Mao Gives Great Harvest,” the types of propaganda that were used during Mao’s rule over China are demonstrated. The two main types of propaganda that are used are the exaggerations of happiness due to the Cultural Revolution compared to before, and the repeated statements of how great Mao is. By doing this, people who are susceptible to suggestion would be put under the thumb of Mao and the revolution that he supported. The article starts off with the description of the horrible and gruesome life that people lived before the Cultural Revolution. Starvation, rape, and fear were all described in a manner that is not completely unrealistic, but nonetheless exaggerated. This provokes a feeling of empathy and makes the reader see the life before the Cultural Revolution. The next paragraph in the article goes onto the process that the “farmer” used in order to achieve happiness. This puts an idealistic plan into the readers mind and because of the success that is so cleverly described, the idea of revolting would be implanted into the minds of readers. Steps to revolt are also listed in very broad terms. These broad terms allow people to relate and not feel that they are unfit to revolt, thus coercing readers in the same position as the character. The final two paragraph list and describe in detail all of the benefits of the revolution. Mao is praised over and over and this is essential because these types of articles were meant to play Mao out as a god. Building up venerability is something that is essential for an article like this, and was therefore included. Image and Article Comparison The image I am comparing to my own piece is image 4 from the image bank on the wikispace. This particular image is of Mao alone, looking into the distance while he is outside near factories. Mao is holding a pen and in his other hand, a large sheet of paper with what looks to be plans for China. The factories in the background are the most important parts of the image. Image 4 was not something that was used in order to promote the Cultural Revolution directly, or even unity. Its sole purpose was to build up Mao and his reputation as being great and working towards a better China. This thought can be extracted from the image for a few reasons: Mao is working on plans for China, he is in a factory area, which was a cause that Mao supported, and Mao is alone. The factories in the background give the idea to those who see the image that Mao is working to build more factories, which was a very important cause that he supported and also gained support from. Being depicted as a lone leader who works selflessly increases his status as a god in the eyes of society, and also supports the Cultural Revolution indirectly due to this. In the Cultural Revolution, Mao was to be followed and listened to thoughtlessly. By increasing the peoples’ faith in Mao, the people follow Mao even more thoughtlessly, which was beneficial to the Cultural Revolution. My article is similar in a few ways to this image. For one, it contains multiple depictions of Mao in which he is described as being a great leader who brought great things to people. This would have increased support for Mao, and inadvertently caused increased support for the Cultural Revolution as well. However, unlike the image, my article supports the Cultural Revolution much more directly. It describes what occurred after the revolution and the benefits from it, which would have inspired many others to do the same. In its basic, fundamental structure, the image and my article are incredibly similar, and the fact that they both supported the same cause add to the similarity, although the methods in doing so vary.