An Exploration And Analysis On The Origin Of The Thought Of Mao Zedong's Supporting The Sent-down Youth Campaign

The campaign of the educated youth going to the mountains and countryside, which lasted a quarter of a century and involved 18 million youth, was one of the most influential political campaigns in the 20th century. Mao Zedong gave a great deal of concern and support on this campaign.It was the theory basis that Mao Zedong supported the campaign which the educated youth went to the mountains and countryside. Mao Zedong valued that knowing and doing was unified, believed that education and labor could promote and fulfill one's development. Mao Zedong advocated to transform the educated youth into the person who was unified with knowing and doing, let the youth leave the classroom and go to the social basic unit to practice and let them accept being trained in the countryside. The youth must unify study and work together.It was the intrinsic power that Mao Zedong supported the campaign which the educated youth go to the mountains and countryside. Mao Zedong hoped that during the campaign, the educated youth could be taught in the productive labor practice. Simultaneously they could send advanced scientific and cultural knowledge to the countryside. Only the educated youth and the farmer learned from each other, could they realize the benign interaction, then reduced"Three Big Differences".It was the spiritual prop that Mao Zedong supported the campaign which the educated youth go to the mountains and countryside. The educated youth was the main force to realize Mao Zedong's ideal society. Only through the campaign, could the educated youth take part in the struggling practice in the realistic society positively, transform the standpoints, the view points, purify their soul unceasingly and become true new communists finally.It is proved that the gain of the campaign does not equal the loss , the state and society have sufferred alot.The real results deviated from the original intention of Mao Zedong, neither did it realize the benign interaction between the youth and the farmers ,nor realized the intention of training the new communists .The campaign proves to be undesirable, but the thoughts of Mao Zedong that the youth should go with the workers and peasants to accept being trained in the harsh conditions,which is still of great significance today.