What is Communism?


Communism - a government where people
shared work fairly and were paid equally.
The word “Communism” comes from the Latin
word “Communis” which means common or
belonging to all.
The Beliefs of Communism
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

The rich get richer.
The poor get poorer.
People wanted to
make everything
equal.
The Goal of Communism

Goal: to get rid of
social classes and
make everything
fair for everyone.
Do you agree? Or disagree?

Based off of what
you know, do you
think Communism
is a good idea?
If yes: explain
why
 If no: what are
potential dangers
of Communism?

Capitalism

An economic and
political system in
which a country's
trade and industry
are controlled by
private owners
for profit.
Basics of Capitalism:

Capitalism is said to
promote economic
growth and the
overall standard of
living.
 In other words,
capitalism creates
CAPITAL (money)
…and lots of it.
Basics of Capitalism:

Buyers (people) influence the market
through their demand and ability to
purchase goods and services. There is
very little government intervention.
 Producers (businesses) are motivated by
profit (money) and therefore create
whatever goods people will buy.
 In other words, the businesses run the
economy, the government stays out of it!
Do you agree? Or disagree?

Based off of what
you know, do you
think Capitalism is
a good idea?
If yes: explain
why
 If no: what are
potential dangers
of Capitalism?

Problems with Communism:
Lack of
individuality
 Lack of choice
 Equal treatment
for all, even if you
work harder than
all the rest

Problems with Capitalism:

There is a
growing gap
between the rich
and the poor. The
rich get richer and
the people who
work for them
remain poor.
So what is the best solution?

Do you believe
that Communism
or Capitalism is a
better economic
system?
“Yes” = Capitalism
 “No” = Communism
 Be sure to you
specific reasons to
support your
answer.

Chinese Economy from WWII Present
After WWII, the
Communist Party
gained a lot of
support.
 Mao Zedong was
the leader

Mao’s China

Mao Zedong used
propaganda to
spread the ideas of
Communism and
published “The
Little Red Book” to
teach people
communist
philosophies
The Great Leap Forward - 1958
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
In 1958 Zedong began a radical program called the
Great Leap Forward to increase production in farms
and factories
The Communists rushed to increase production
and made people with little to no experience try to
farm or produce steel in their backyards.
The steel was of poor quality making it useless and
the poor weather resulted in a widespread famine.
An estimated 30 million people died of starvation
The Cultural Revolution - 1966

Create a society with no ties to the past:
– Closed schools
– Urged students to rebel against their students,
these people were called “Red Guards”
– Many Ancient Chinese buildings were destroyed
– Anyone opposing Zedong was attacked by the
young Red Guards
– Finally, they began to turn against Zedong and were
eventually imprisoned
– Hundreds of thousands of
people were killed
– China was in turmoil!
The Four Modernizations - 1981
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
Deng Xiaoping became the new leader of China in
1981. Over the past 20 years, China has seen slow
changes in their economy, allowing some free
enterprise (meaning that the government does
control ALL aspects of the economy)
Xiaoping led The Four Modernizations:
–
–
–
–
Farming
Industry
Science
Defense
Modern China

Today, China is a major economic power
 China still only has one political party, the Chinese
Communist Party, meaning there is no political
freedom
 In 1989, people gathered in Tiananmen Square in
China’s capital to protest for democracy. The
government sent in troops and tanks, 1000’s were
killed or wounded.
Modern China


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There is still a need for human rights reforms…
China today is one of the world’s greatest
manufacturing countries
While the economy is slowly changing, there is not
much room for political change given the fact that
there is only one political party allowed.
Inferring what you know…

Based off of what you know about Mao Zedong, what
is the irony of this political cartoon, and what it is
trying to communicate?