Jiang Qing

Jiang Qing (Chinese: 江青; Wade–Giles: Chiang Ch'ing, also known as Madame Mao; March 19, 1914 – May 14, 1991) was a Chinese actress and a major political figure during the Cultural Revolution (1966–76). She was the fourth wife of Mao Zedong, the Chairman of the Communist Party of China. She used the stage name Lan Ping (蓝苹) during her acting career, and was known by many other names (see "names" section below). She married Mao in Yan'an in November 1938 and served as the inaugural "First Lady" of the People's Republic of China. Jiang Qing was best known for playing a major role in the Cultural Revolution and for forming the radical political alliance known as the "Gang of Four".

Jiang Qing served as Mao's personal secretary in the 1940s and was head of the Film Section of the Communist Party's Propaganda Department in the 1950s. She served as an important emissary for Mao in the early stages of the Cultural Revolution. In 1966 she was appointed deputy director of the Central Cultural Revolution Group. She collaborated with Lin Biao to advance Mao's unique brand of Communist ideology as well as Mao's cult of personality. At the height of the Cultural Revolution, Jiang Qing held significant influence in the affairs of state, particularly in the realm of culture and the arts, and was idolized in propaganda posters as the "Great Flagbearer of the Proletarian Revolution". In 1969, Jiang gained a seat on the Politburo.

Jiang Qing (Confucian)

Jiang Qing (simplified Chinese: 蒋庆; traditional Chinese: 蔣慶; pinyin: Jiǎng Qìng; born 1953) is a contemporary Chinese Confucian. He is best known for his criticism of New Confucianism, which according to him, deviated from the original Confucian principles and is overly influenced by Western liberal democracy. He proposes an alternative path for China: Constitutional Confucianism, also known as Political Confucianism, or Institutional Confucianism, through the trilateral parliament framework.

He believes that China’s ongoing political and social problems are to be solved by the revival of and commitment to authentic Confucianism in China. He also argues that Confucian materials should replace the Marxist curriculum taught in universities and government party schools.

Historical context

For more than two thousand years, Confucianism has helped to define Chinese culture, tradition, and philosophy; it has contributed to a stable and harmonious society. The Chinese people held a very distinctive notion of the state, family, and social relationships such as guanxi. Nevertheless, challenges from foreign powers and internal problems in the country inevitably led to the political Xinhai Revolution when the people overthrew the Qing Dynasty. Fundamental changes to the orientation of the culture were necessary for China to continue to strive in the modern world. In the attempt to save Confucian morality, philosophers such as Liang Shuming, Tang Junyi, and Mou Zongsan advocated New Confucianism, which arguably came out as the byproduct of philosophical synthesis between Chinese and the Western values. Jiang believes this is problematic because it neglects the institutional dimension of the traditional Confucianism, or the wangdao (kingly system). In short, New Confucianism is not authentic due to its insistence on projecting Confucianism in terms of the modern Western political institution of liberal democracy.