People's History of Ideas Podcast
114 episodes - English - Latest episode: 27 days ago - ★★★★★ - 110 ratingsIn this podcast, Matthew Rothwell, author of Transpacific Revolutionaries: The Chinese Revolution in Latin America, explores the global history of ideas related to rebellion and revolution. The main focus of this podcast for the near future will be on the history of the Chinese Revolution, going all the way back to its roots in the initial Chinese reactions to British imperialism during the Opium War of 1839-1842, and then following the development of the revolution and many of the ideas that were products of the revolution through to their transnational diffusion in the late 20th century.
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Episodes
Mao's Anarchist Years (The Young Mao Zedong Part Two)
February 20, 2020 13:00 - 25 minutes - 17.6 MBIn this episode we continue our examination of Mao Zedong’s ideological development by discussing his anarchist period. Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 1: The Pre-Marxist Period, 1912-1920 is the indispensable source here. Some names from this episode: Li Dazhao, leading proponent of learning from the Russian Revolution Hu Shi, student of John Dewey and advocate for pragmatism Chen Duxiu, editor of New Youth and leading New Culture intellectual Su...
Liberals Becoming Marxists: The New Culture and May 4th Movements (1915-1919)
January 29, 2020 15:00 - 26 minutes - 18.4 MBIn this episode we explore the move from liberalism toward Marxism among progressive intellectuals in the 1915-1919 period, and how those ideas began to be brought to the working class in China’s cities. This includes the New Culture Movement, the May 4th Movement, and the June 5th Movement. Further reading: Maurice Meisner, Li Ta-Chao and the Origins of Chinese Marxism Arif Dirlik, The Origins of Chinese Communism Some names from this episode: Yuan Shikai, leader of the Beiyang Army ...
The Young Mao Zedong
December 21, 2019 18:00 - 22 minutes - 15.8 MBIn this episode we look at Mao Zedong’s childhood, family background, and see what he was thinking in 1912. Further reading: Edgar Snow, Red Star Over China Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 1: The Pre-Marxist Period, 1912-1920 Lee Feigon, Mao: A Reinterpretation Jonathan Spence, Mao Zedong: A Life Some names from this episode: Ba Jin, anarchist novelist who wrote The Family Shang Yang, founder of the Legalist school Sima Qian, author of Records of the Grand Histor...
The 1911 Revolution
December 14, 2019 19:00 - 23 minutes - 16.1 MBThe overthrow of the Qing Dynasty, followed by the first years of the Republic of China. Further reading on the 1911 Revolution: Joseph Esherick and C.X. George Wei, editors, China: How the Empire Fell Some names from this episode: Mao Zedong, leader of the Chinese Revolution and revolutionary communist par excellence Sun Zhongshan/Sun Yat-sen, leader of the Revolutionary Alliance Huang Xing, Vice-President of the Revolutionary Alliance and military leader of the April 1911 uprising...
Revolutionary Voices from the End of the Qing Dynasty
November 21, 2019 00:00 - 24 minutes - 17.1 MBIn this episode, we explore some of the major voices of revolution from the decade preceding the end of the Qing Dynasty in 1912: Zou Rong, Qiu Jin and Sun Yat-sen [Sun Zhongshan]. Some names from this episode: Kang Youwei, Confucian advocate of liberal modernization and focus of episode 8 Guangxu Emperor, Emperor of China who was put under house arrest by Cixi after attempting to assert his power during the Hundred Days Reform (episode 8) Empress Dowager Cixi, ruler of China during this pe...
The Boxer Uprising of 1900
November 05, 2019 20:00 - 26 minutes - 18.5 MBIn the face of foreign aggression and natural disaster, masses of Chinese people turn to traditional folk religion and martial arts to attempt to throw out the imperialists. A couple sources for reading more, and which I used in preparing this episode: Joseph Esherick, The Origins of the Boxer Uprising Paul Cohen, History in Three Keys: The Boxers as Event, Experience, and Myth Some names from this episode: Wang Lun, leader of White Lotus rebellion in the 18th century Empress Dowager Cixi,...
Kang Youwei and the Hundred Days Reform
October 12, 2019 16:00 - 26 minutes - 18.3 MBIn the wake of the Sino-Japanese War, Kang Youwei works with the Guangxu Emperor to try to replicate Japan's Meiji reforms, before being crushed by Cixi and other Manchu conservatives. At the beginning of the episode, I talk some about how westerners have written about Chinese history. A good book that goes really deep into this is Paul Cohen's Discovering History in China. If you're into that topic, you may also want to read Fabio Lanza's End of Concern: Maoist China, Activism, and Asian S...
Losing the Tributaries: The Sino-French and Sino-Japanese Wars in Vietnam and Korea
September 29, 2019 21:00 - 27 minutes - 19.3 MBIn this episode we do some Q&A and then cover the Sino-French War of 1884-1885 and the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895. A couple names from this episode: Emperor Qianlong: ruled China from 1735 to 1799 Li Hongzhang: high level Chinese statesman and advocate of self-strengthening Support the show
Book Review of The Shining Path: Love, Madness, and Revolution in the Andes
August 18, 2019 19:00 - 21 minutes - 15.2 MBA review of the new book about the civil war in Peru, The Shining Path: Love, Madness, and Revolution in the Andes, by Orin Starn and Miguel La Serna. This book is the first history of the Shining Path aimed at the general reading public to come out in a long time. Next episode, we'll return to our series on the historical background to the Chinese Revolution. Support the show
The Self-Strengthening Movement: Too Little Too Late?
August 12, 2019 03:00 - 25 minutes - 17.5 MBThis episode focuses on the 1862-1895 period, when the Empress Dowager Cixi ruled and reformers tried to make China strong enough to stand up to foreign powers by modernizing the military and promoting 'new learning.' Also, a few words on the surge in overseas Chinese migration during this time, and its relationship to revolutionary nationalist movements to overthrow the Qing Empire. The books that I quote from in the episode are: Zheng Yangwen, Ten Lessons in Modern Chinese History (https:...
The Second Opium War and the End of the Taiping Civil War
July 03, 2019 00:00 - 31 minutes - 22 MBThe episode wraps up the events of the Taiping Revolution (1850-1864) and also deals with the events and outcome of the Second Opium War (1856-1860). The Qing Dynasty is weakened and the British, French, American and Russian powers extract new unequal treaties. Then the British help the Qing to put down a peasant-based revolution. Support the show
The Taiping Revolution
June 15, 2019 00:00 - 27 minutes - 19 MBThe strange story of Christian peasant revolutionaries in 19th century China. This episode is about the origins and early years of the Taiping Revolution (1850-1864). Both the early Nationalist revolutionaries, like Sun Yat-sen, and later Communists, like Mao Zedong, were inspired by the peasant war led by Hong Xiuquan. But the Taipings were more than just a very large peasant rebellion, as their leader, Hong, thought he was the younger brother of Jesus Christ. Good resources for more infor...
The Opium War and the Beginning of China's Century of Humiliation
May 31, 2019 04:00 - 34 minutes - 15.8 MBThis is the first of several episodes which will give broad historical background for our upcoming discussion of the Chinese Revolution and the international spread of ideas related to the Chinese Revolution. This episode focuses on the background to and events of the First Opium War (1839-1842). China's defeat in the First Opium War began the Century of Humiliation at the hands of imperialist powers (Britain, France, Russia, Germany, USA, Japan) that ended with the revolution's victory in 1...
Introducing the People's History of Ideas Podcast
May 29, 2019 21:00 - 12 minutes - 5.98 MBThis is a short episode just introducing you to the podcast. Matthew Rothwell is your host. The theme is the history of revolutionary ideas, starting with background to the Chinese Revolution. For Dr. Rothwell's book on Maoism in Latin America, see here: https://www.routledge.com/Transpacific-Revolutionaries-The-Chinese-Revolution-in-Latin-America/Rothwell/p/book/9781138108066 For a shorter introduction to his work, see this article: http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/1531961/1/Rothwell_RA.pdf Fu...