| Both Sneevliet and Chen Duxiu were outstanding leaders of the proletarian revolution.As the representative of the Communist International in China,Sneevliet accepted the direct leadership of the Communist International.Chen Duxiu was the main founder of the Communist Party of China(CPC)in the early days.Both of them had an important influence on the Chinese revolution.Different perceptions determined the differences between the two parties when they worked together.This article takes the relationship between Sneevliet and Chen Duxiu from1921 to 1923 as the research object,with a view to systematically researching the differences and cooperation between Sneevliet and Chen Duxiu when he came to China three times,and outlines the reasons for the differences between the two sides and the actual results from differences to cooperation during that period.Sneevliet was engaged in revolutionary activities in Indonesia for a long time before he came to China,and founded the East India Socialist Union in Indonesia,which was an example of the cooperation between bourgeois and proletarian parties.As an early Chinese Marxist,Chen Duxiu founded the “New Youth” magazine and spread Marxism through the magazine.The positions of the two parties were different and they were affiliated to different organizations,which led to their different perceptions on the development of the CPC and on the Chinese revolutionary path.Sneevliet came to China three times,resulting from unfamiliar to familiar with Chen Duxiu,from differences to cooperation,which affected the process of the Chinese revolution.This article separately discusses the historical process of Sneevliet’s three visits to China and the relation with Chen Duxiu.When Sneevliet came to China for the first time,he and Chen Duxiu had different ideas on the relations between the CPC and the Communist International,and on the attitude to the Kuomintang(KMT).Chen Duxiu was ever arrested and was rescued with the help of Sneevliet,which changed his attitude towards Sneevliet.The Second National Congress of the CPC was held.The meeting released the Resolution on the ‘United Front of Democracy’ drafted by Chen Duxiu and the Resolution of the CPC Joining the Third International.The CPC formally became a branch of the Communist International,and Chen Duxiu’s thoughts began to change,accepting the cooperation on an equal footing with the KMT.With the support of the Communist International,Sneevliet went to China for the second time.Sneevliet and Chen Duxiu disputed the way of cooperation between the KMT and the Communist Party.Sneevliet proposed that the Communist Party of China joined the KMT in an intra-party cooperation method,which was immediately unanimously opposed by the leaders of the CPC headed by Chen Duxiu.In order to solve the problem of cooperation,the West Lake Conference was privately and urgently held with no written records.Sneevliet emphasized that it was due to the instruction of the Communist International,Chen Duxiu had to agree to adopt an intra-party cooperation model.Chen Duxiu took the lead to join the KMT,and developed the KMT according to Sneevliet’s views.The Executive Committee of the Communist International also had different opinions on the way of cooperation between the KMT and the CPC.As Chen Duxiu went to Moscow to participate in the Fourth Congress of the Communist International,at the same time Sneevliet went to Moscow to report on his work.Finally,under the order of the Communist International,the KMT and the CPC decided to adopt an intra-party cooperation model.Sneevliet came to China for the third time,and together with Chen Duxiu,he persuaded to move the headquarter of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China to Guangzhou.The two sides worked together to carry out the reorganization of the KMT.With the convening of the third party of the CPC,Sneevliet and Chen Duxiu made concerted efforts to reject the opposite opinions and formally decided to join the KMT as a member of the CPC and realize the cooperation between the KMT and the CPC.These differences and cooperation between Sneevliet and Chen Duxiu had a profound impact on the Chinese revolution.The relationship between them represents to some extent the relationship between the Communist International and the CPC.Through a series of revolutionary activities led by them,Marxism ideology was further Propagated in China with more and more Chinese Communists extensively and profoundly learning Marxism and Leninism.Meanwhile,the CPC accepted the leadership of the Communist International,and finally carried out cooperation between the KMT and the CPC in the mode of intra-party cooperation,which promoted the localized development of Marxism in China.Hence,the political influence of the CPC had enhanced,and quickly moved to the center of the Chinese political arena.Obviously,the decision made by Sneevliet was not entirely in line with the actual situation in China.In the later period,Chen Duxiu’s obedience to Sneevliet’s instructions not only undermined Chen Duxiu’s personal prestige,but also seriously undermined the independence of the CPC.He made dogmatic mistakes.On the influence of comprehensive factors,the Great Revolution eventually failed. |
