Afterlives of Chinese Communism: Political Concepts from Mao to XI

Seventy years after the Chinese Revolution of 1949, what remains of Mao's communist legacy?

Afterlives of Chinese Communism comprises essays from over fifty world-renowned scholars in the China field, from various disciplines and continents. It provides an indispensable guide for understanding how the Mao era continues to shape Chinese politics today. Each chapter discusses a concept or practice from the Mao period, what it attempted to do, and what has become of it since. The authors respond to the legacy of Maoism from numerous perspectives to consider what lessons Chinese communism can offer today, and whether there is a future for the egalitarian politics that it once promised.

A joint publication between Verso Books and ANU Press.

Christian Sorace, Assistant Professor of Political Science at Colorado College. His research focuses on ideology, discourse, urbanisation, and aesthetics. He is the author of Shaken Authority: China’s Communist Party and the 2008 Sichuan Earthquake.

Ivan Franceschini, Postdoctoral Fellow at the Australian National University. His research focuses on labour and civil society in China and Cambodia. He is the author of several books, a translator, and co-director of the documentary Dreamwork China.

Nicholas Loubere, Associate Senior Lecturer in the Study of Modern China at the Centre for East and South-East Asian Studies, Lund University. His research examines socioeconomic development in rural China, with a particular focus on microcredit and migration.