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Collection of four Cultural Revolution newspapers edited by various revolutionary and Red Guard committees in Gansu and Shanxi. Two newspapers consist of 4 pages, another two which are really newsletters, consist of 2 pages each - such newletters were published across China during the Cultural Revolution with many work units and education institutions publishing their own. All show some signs of wear and two are a little browned, some repairs have been made with washi paper, one has a modern staple holding the two sheets together. Text in simplified Chinese characters apart from some mastheads. 38.6 x 27 cm. Issue 2 and Issue 4 of ???? look like newspapers because of the masthead, but they could more properly be described as propaganda newsletters from Shanxi Xinhua Bookshop. Mimeographed from handwritten characters, they consist of 2 pages, each printed on one side only, making them suitable for displaying on a wall. Issue 2 promotes the message that the revolution must be carried on and revisionism must continue to be fought. It contains a few short articles, amongst which there are some reprints of Chairman Mao?s latest directives, a brief listing by Vice Chairman Lin Biao of the 10 great achievements of the Cultural Revolution, and an obligatory attack on Liu Shaoqi that includes an unsophisticated cartoon, and a disparaging phrase neatly written in black ink written under the article. Another article describes how the division of revolutionaries into two main factions that have been attacking each other for some time has resulted in damage to state property, losses to and wastage of manpower and material resources, all of which has affected production, people?s work and security. Issue 4 of ???? consists of the latest directives from Chairman Mao from Hunan where he is meeting with revolutionary leaders. In this directive, he urges unity. He states that there is no real conflict between workers, and so there should be no need for them to break into conservative and rebel groups, and it would be better for them to do more self criticism and be less critical of the other faction?s deficiencies. The rebels must be educated to fight with words and not fists, not to bang the table, hit and swear at people - to treat everyone well, whether it?s the masses who have been deceived, or industrial workers and cadres. Print is unclear in places. Issue 22 of ????published November 26, 1967, contains a diatribe against the ex-mayor of Beijing, Peng Zhen - who thought that dissenting cultural ideas were not a government matter, laying him open to fierce criticism at the time. The report, ?Chop Off Peng Zhen?s Evil Hands Stretching into the Theatrical World?, condemns his efforts to compile a collection of old Beijing operas (?poisonous weeds?), look after performance artists by excusing them from hard labour in the countryside, and put on various old and new plays, all of which led to him being accused of bourgeois dictatorship, hypocrisy, conspiracy, revisionism, treachery to Mao and wasting the country?s money ?in the name of caring for artists? The list of plays he was charged with allowing to be shown and the reasons that they were considered dangerous is of particular interest. It was hardly surprising that he was purged during the cultural revolution, (but later rehabilitated under Deng Xiaoping). This issue also includes the text from Jiang Qing?s very influential speech of a year earlier, November 1966, that promoted the proletarian cultural revolution movement in literary and art circles, guided by Mao. In it she attacked the capitalist roaders and the ?black line? (counter revolutionary) literary and art circle revisionists who must be exposed, denounced and thoroughly criticised to eliminate poisonous influences. Large red stamp lower corner and minor grease stains do not affect text legibility. Issue 21 of ??? published in Lanzhou on 25 June 1967 contains an editorial emphasising the importance to the Cultural Revolution of.
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