Why was Mao Zedong so successful? Why did his ideas register so well with the Chinese people? To begin with, Mao Zedong was a shrewd Communist who knew how to rally the peasants behind a common cause. This led to widespread support. He believed in completely obliterating feudalism and imperialism in order to set up a country in which everyone was equal. While most of his beliefs evolved from Marxism- Leninism, he also took the idea of mass mobilization to the extreme. This led people to believe that they were really working for a cause and making a difference in society. He believed that if people have the ambition and determination to fight for what they believe in, then anything can be accomplished. The equality that he promoted between men and women attracted those who had been consistently oppressed by other forces such as Western influences. He delivered a complete revolutionary movement; at certain times, the Communist movement became too bureaucratic. However, Mao Zedong was able to successfully capture the people’s hearts through means such as extensive propaganda, particularly the Little Red Book. The people were looking for a stable leader that delivered really radical revolutionary ideas, which Mao Zedong promoted in the beginning. However, while his policies were very attractive to the people (as seen by the mass support from the Red Guards). Many of his policies later backfired, one being the Great Leap Forward that led to the Great Chinese Famine. This is an example of how a charismatic leader can finagle his way into the hearts of the people while simultaneously destroying the country he is ruling. Therefore, his ideas registered really well with the Chinese people, but ultimately did not help China. This was evident by the people's indifference after his death in 1976. Overall, Mao Zedong was a leader who masked a lack of beneficial ideas with rhetoric and propaganda. He was the main cause for China's downfall and unrest.
