Sometimes
referred to as the Chinese
Bible, Quotations Of Chairman Mao
(Mao Zhu Xi Yu Lu) was first published on a very restricted basis in
May 1964 and probably still holds the world record for most copies printed
of a single work in under four years (720 million books by the end of
1967). Its idea was conceived by General Lin Biao
(1907-1971) as a book of inspirational reading and originally printed
for the General Political Department of the People's Liberation Army. For several years Lin promoted a campaign that
everyone should study Chairman Mao's thoughts, and the P.L.A. newspaper
printed daily extracts from Mao's selected writings and speeches which
often formed topics for evening discussion groups.
This was a good way for soldiers to study Mao's philosophy, since
most were not well educated, and brief extracts of easy to understand
words could help focus their comprehension and analysis.
Prior
to the October 1949 founding of the People's Republic of China there were
five editions of Mao Tse-Tung's Selected
Writings published in various "Liberated Area" locations around
China between 1944 and 1948, their texts taken from newspaper articles and
oral transcriptions but apparently none sanctioned by its author. These were filled with misprints, errors and
omissions, often excluding important articles entirely and including texts
by other writers incorrectly attributed to Mao.
Thus, the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party decided
a new edition of Mao's Selected Works
was needed, so following the liberation of Peking in February 1949 a committee
was formed to prepare and organize an authoritative version. The text selections were made in consultation
with its author and Mao also agreed to proofread everything and organize additional
notes with explanations. It was produced
by The People’s Publishing House (Peking) and arranged in chronological sections
to coincide with periods of modern Chinese history: the first revolutionary
civil war (1924-1927) and second revolutionary civil war (1927-1937) [Volume
One], the war of resistance against Japan (1937-1945) [Volumes Two and Three],
and the third revolutionary civil war (1945-1949) against the Nationalists
[Volume Four]. The first volume was
printed in October 1951 to coincide with the second anniversary founding of
the PRC and its additional three parts were published over the next nine years.
This became the source for selecting texts used in creating the "Little
Red Book", and for that reason we include proper bibliographical citations: Selected Works of Mao Tse-Tung (Mao Ze Dong Xuan Ji). Volume One (Di Yi Juan) The People's Publishing House (Ren Min Chu Ban She, Bei Jing, Zhong Guo) Printed
by Xin Hua Printing Factory, Peking First Branch Factory Price:
15,000 yuan 200,000 copies printed,
October 1951 First edition Measurements: 208 x 151 mm. [i] half-title in red, [iii] title-page in red with a green ink double border, inserted portrait plate of the author captioned (brown ink), i-ii (Introduction), i-vi (Contents Index), 296pp. + [i] colophon Selected Works of Mao Tse-Tung (Mao Ze Dong Xuan Ji). Volume Two (Di Er Juan) The People's Publishing House (Ren Min Chu Ban She, Bei Jing, Zhong Guo) Printed
by Xin Hua Printing Factory, Peking First Branch Factory Price:
25,000 yuan 500,000 copies printed,
March 1952 First edition
Measurements: 208 x 151 mm. [i] half-title in red, [iii] title-page in red with a green ink double border, [iv] errata notice indicating that the essay "On Contradiction" which is included in this book belongs in Volume One and will be moved in future printings, [x] (Contents Index), (297-)805pp. + [i] colophon Selected Works of Mao Tse-Tung (Mao Ze Dong Xuan Ji). Volume Three (Di San Juan) The
People's Publishing House (Ren Min Chu Ban She, Bei Jing, Zhong Guo) Printed
by Xin Hua Printing Factory Price:
15,000 yuan 500,000
copies printed, February 1953 First
edition "1-3" code Measurements: 208 x 151 mm. [i]
half-title in red, [iii] title-page in red with a green ink double border, i-iv
(Contents Index), (807-)1144pp. + [i] colophon Selected Works of Mao Tse-Tung (0 Mao Ze Dong Xuan Ji). Volume Four (Di Si Juan) The
People's Publishing House (Ren Min Chu Ban She, Bei Jing, Zhong Guo) Printed
by Peking Xin Hua Printing Factory Price:
1.4 yuan 1,000,000
copies printed, September 1960 "1001.479" code Measurements: 208 x 151 mm. [i]
half-title in red, [iii] title-page in red with a green ink double border,
i-vi (Contents Index), (1121-)1520pp. + [i] colophon, with an additional errata
slip inserted (8 lines) explaining that this volume has been repaginated to
conform to the latest reprints (i.e. "second edition") of the earlier
volumes which have been re-edited and changed format.
PLEASE NOTE that all of the above
texts are printed in vertical format, which did not change to a horizontal
format (left to right) until 1966.
Selected Works of Mao Tse-Tung (Mao Ze Dong Xuan Ji). Volume Five (Di Wu Juan) The
People's Publishing House (Ren Min Chu Ban She, Bei Jing, Zhong Guo) Printed
by Peking Xin Hua Printing Factory Price:
1.25 yuan First edition, April 1977
"1001.1123" code Measurements: 208 x 151 mm. [i]
half-title in red, [iii] title-page in red with a green ink double border,
inserted portrait plate of the author captioned (brown ink), i-ii
(Introduction), i-viii (Contents Index), 532pp. The
first English language translation of these Selected
Works, volumes 1-3, came out in London in appropriate red cloth by Lawrence
& Wishart Ltd, 1954-1956 (in four volumes); volumes 4 and 5 were first
translated into English and published in Peking by the Foreign Languages Press
in 1961 and 1977 respectively. By
1964 the four volumes of Mao's works had become the chief reading and
source of knowledge within China. Images
of these glistening white paper covers lettered in red and gold were
constantly reproduced on posters, in newspapers and magazines, underneath
glazed ceramics, and as part of porcelain figurines.
Thus, it was natural that these texts would be used to select
excerpts for daily military reading. The person in charge of these selections
was Tian Xiao Guang, an editor at the People's Liberation Army newspaper. In December 1963 Ms Tian began to collect together
and assemble the most popular of her selections for publication as an
anthology. Her first draft comprised
23 chapters and 200 different entries that she completed in January
1964, later revised to 25 chapters and 267 quotations.
Eventually this became 30 chapters and 250 pages of text when
it was finally published by the General Political Department in May
1964. It was titled the Quotations
Of Chairman Mao ("Mao Zhu Xi Yu Lu")
and gradually became the most identifiable icon of Red China and its
eventual Great Proletariat Cultural Revolution.
Binding Variants on First Editions
Although the text for both bindings appear to be identical, according to Ms Tian those in printed paper wrappers were released first while the vinyl plastic covers were still being designed/manufactured and its copies required a sturdier binding. These followed within days: the printed wrappers were intended for individual high ranking officers while the red vinyl covers were for use by brigade teams of up to eight men. By the time of the Cultural Revolution (August 1966), the red vinyl covers had become preferred for symbolizing Red China and the more fragile paper wrappers were no longer produced. There
exist two variant copies of this first edition in trial bindings, both
comprising copies of the printed paper wrappers loosely laid inside
the flexible plastic: (1) of light blue vinyl with the fourth Chinese
letter "Yu" meaning "Words" or "Quotations"
on the incised front jacket printed in a simplified form rather than
its normal Chinese character, and without any five-pointed star; and
(2) of dark blue vinyl with the title text character corrected and having
an oversized five pointed star. The
blue color is customary in China for use with trial bindings, and both
clearly predate the corrected red vinyl covers usually associated with
this book. First Edition Text Variants It is generally accepted that all copies comprising only thirty chapters ending at page 250 are first editions. The absence of publishing data is because this was not considered an official book when it was simultaneously produced at different locations in China from stereotyped plates, thus making local distribution easier. As head of National Defense Lin Biao was invited by the G.P.D. to write an endorsement, and Lin chose three sentences from the diary of the revolutionary hero Lei Feng: "Study Chairman Mao's writings, follow his teachings and act according to his instructions". He wrote them out in a calligraphic script but made a mistake with one word: a superfluous brush stroke occurring in the 2nd vertical line from the right, 2nd character
Lin
had been part of the Red Army since joining Mao's forces in 1928, and gradually
became a top-ranking leader: the Commander in-chief of the Chinese volunteer
forces during the Korean War and in 1959 he was appointed Defense Minister,
second only to Mao in the military hierarchy.
His promotion of the LRB added
significant influence to his profile so by 1967 he was designated Vice-Chairman
and at the Ninth Congress (1969) it was confirmed that he would be Mao's heir
and successor. Jealous factions
whispered rumors that Lin and his family were plotting to assassinate Mao and
gain early control of the CCP. While
never totally proven, it caused Lin, his wife Ye Qun and their son to suddenly
leave on a military transport for an undisclosed destination when their plane
was shot down over Mongolia the evening of September 12th 1971. When news was finally released, it came with
a proclamation that Mao's close comrade-in-arms for nearly a half-century had disgraced
himself and his name was to be eradicated from modern history. Consequently, his endorsement leaf in all
copies of the LRB was to be torn out or
otherwise defaced as a sign of loyalty to Mao and the Chinese Communist
Party. Indeed, not removing it could
easily be a liability. Therefore, many
surviving copies in the Chinese language have that page legitimately torn away
or censored following this decree. Of
the earliest printed text issued by the General Political Department of the
Chinese People's Liberation Army there are three variants with NO KNOWN PRIORITY firmly established or implied:
(1)
some copies in red vinyl bindings (including those from the Central Advanced
Party School Library of the CCP) contain a text error at the bottom of page
82 going into 83 with a printed
erratum slip: "In this book between
pages 82 and 83, because of a printing error, please read "li yong wo
men" instead of "li men
wo yong"." In these
copies the Lin endorsement is printed in brown ink, but no copies in printed
paper wrappers have been identified with this error; (2)
most copies in red vinyl binding have the text pages 82/3 correctly printed and
are known with the Lin endorsement printed in either brown or black ink; (3)
all copies examined in printed paper wrappers have the corrected text
at pages 82/3 and the Lin endorsement printed in black ink.
The first four leaves for all three versions are separately printed from the rest of the book and comprises a half-title printed in red ink "Workers of the World, Unite!"; a title-page with the title and central star printed in red while the publisher's imprint below and a double-ruled border around the entire page are printed in green; a finely delineated portrait of Chairman Mao (usually found with a tissue guard) is printed in brown; and the facsimile calligraphic endorsement by Lin Biao (always with its printing error) is printed in either brown or black ink. This is followed by all black ink letterpress text: (1/2) an introduction signed by the General Political Department dated 1st May 1964; (1/2) Table of Contents listing thirty chapters; and then paginated 1 - 250pp for Chairman Mao's text. There
are two additional versions that exist which also are considered "first
editions" in China, both still conforming to thirty chapters of text and
most likely issued either at the same time or soon after: (4) identical in format and content to #3 but having a double-line imprint on both the printed front wrapper and the title-page: "The General Political Department of the Chinese People's Liberation Army [adding] The Ministry of Metallurgical Industry";
(5a) smaller format with page height 125cm (4-7/8
inches) which afterwards became the standard size for all subsequent printings
of the LRB.
Copies are only known in printed wrappers (following the same design
as on the larger sized version) but issued WITHOUT the four inserted colored ink preliminaries, thus
beginning directly with a Preface [1/2], Table of Contents [1/2], and then
paginated 1-252pp. of Chairman Mao's text, here slightly expanded due to the
reduced page size. It has been suggested
that this version must also be considered a first printing (like #s 1-3) but
without the color-printed stereotype plates which had been accidentally omitted
when shipped to the regional printers [where this was printed we do not know].
However, these text pages required new
printing plates because the text area itself got slightly reduced when the
format became smaller so this argument is not wholly convincing; (5b)
identical to #5a is a similar version having a double-line imprint on the front
cover (most likely produced at the same time) adding that it was made for the
"Political Department of the Railway Corps of the People's Liberation
Army" [still with no printing location identified]. Because the contents of both these issues
comprise the original thirty text chapters, it is certainly very early in this
book's history and is itself quite a rare variant. Second And Third Edition Additions We do not know how many copies of the LRB were originally printed, especially as we now understand that it was produced from stereotyped plates in several different locations simultaneously, and it was not until March 1965 that a second edition appeared, specifically imprinted in Northeast China
The first complete edition of Mao's QUOTATIONS is the third edition, upon which all subsequent
versions and translations are based.
This was published in August 1965 and adds a 33rd chapter, reverting
back to a slightly smaller-size image of Mao original portrait as first
printed in 1964 and expanding the text now to 270 pages.
As with the earliest printings it is published for the General
Political Departm ent and intended only "for internal circulation". Copies appear in both printed paper wrappers
and red vinyl plastic. For unknown
reasons a few copies of this version have been recorded with the Lin
endorsement in its uncorrected earlier state albeit shorter in height;
but for most copies that still retain the endorsement leaf, it will
be found in its later corrected form.
Copies
of this third edition sometimes have extra material pasted inside, such as
"Latest Instructions" printed
in red ink with more Mao quotations, and also small pamphlets like "When
You Meet Problems or Questions, You Can Find The Answers in Chairman Mao's
Quotations"
which may list up to 100 difficulties based on daily life (cross-referenced
to Mao's selected extracts) followed by a list of topics for discussion groups
dealing with Mao's thoughts, issued by the Beijing Dong Feng Printing Factory. Hereafter,
many more editions of Mao were printed locally, sometimes several printings
even within the same month but from different cities, occasionally making
changes like using a variant Mao portrait as printed by the Ji Lin Province
People's Publishing House (November 1965). Another version from Hubei Province People's
Publishing House (December 1965) added three more chapters selecting more
texts from the Collected Works but
this aberration had absolutely no influence and was apparently never repeated. Multi-Lingual Translations of the Second Edition A
new introduction for the LRB appeared in newspapers
on December 16th, 1966 and was subsequently added to all future printings
of the book (now designated "Second Edition"), and likewise also
circulated as a small leaflet for everyone to put inside their older copies. This "Foreword" is signed by Lin
Biao and explains how Marxism-Leninism-Maoist thought is "a powerful
ideological weapon" for opposing imperialism, revisionism and dogmatism,
an inexhaustible source of strength and spiritual guidance for the masses. This also signaled the start of a major translation
and publication project where the LRB got issued
in over thirty different languages where Socialism might triumph.
Professor
William B. Todd in an exhibition catalogue for the Humanities Research Center,
University of Texas at Austin (1976), described copies of Mao Zhu Xi Yu Lu published through September 1966 as being printed "For
Internal Circulation Only", i.e.
restricted government distribution, but this changed in October when the East
Is Red Publishing House (Beijing) produced the first copies for general sale
as well as the first bi-lingual edition (Chinese-English) ten months
later (August 1967). As for translations
into other languages, they were created, printed and distributed by the government's
Foreign Languages Press between 1966 and 1972 with the following versions
noted (as published): English, French, Japanese,
Spanish, Russian, Vietnamese, German, Italian, Portuguese, Mongolian, Arabic,
Hindi, Albanian, Indonesian, Urdu, Nepali, Hausa, Norwegian, Pashto, Thai,
Burmese, Swahili, Persian, Esperanto, Korean, Lao, Tamil, Bengali, Rumanian,
Hungarian, Polish, Greek, and Serbian. Several Chinese printings were also
produced in raised Braille letters during the 1960s, including one version
actually bound in an extra large red vinyl plastic after the original. The first American version printed in the United
States appeared in March 1967 in bright red wrappers as a Bantam paperback,
edited by Stuart R. Schram with an introduction by A. Doak Barnett. And in 1968 CMS Records (New York) issued their
album #105 of "Direct QUOTATIONS from the 'LITTLE RED BOOK'
selected by Trevor Reese" and read by Shakespearean actor Martin Donegan. The LRB continued to be printed in huge
quantities for mass distribution up until the time of Mao's death on September
9th, 1976. This brought about an
official end to the Cultural Revolution (which had used the LRB as a frequent symbol). By
the late 1970s a change in government discouraged its further circulation and millions
upon millions of copies were collected and destroyed as obsolete paper even
while the cult of Maoism continued. It
was during the centenary of Mao Tse-tung's birth (1993) that copies were once
again printed, this time as facsimiles in English, French and German being
exact replicas dated 1966 and with "First Edition" printed behind
each title-page. They can be easily
distinguished by their bright shiny red laminated covers and the presence of
colored photograph portraits near the front.
As they can still be found all over China, most likely they have been
printed again even more recently. No
one denies Mao is the Father of his country, truly the last Emperor, a symbol
of power and reverence who has been exonerated for the mistakes of his reign and
consequently recognized for his achievements as hope for the future. His ideology forms a brilliant concept that
is still readable and admired today for its political theories and strategies,
and no doubt he would be very proud to know the effect he has had on his own
country and the world will never forget him.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS These
details are based upon personal inspection over several years researching
the printing history of the "Little
Red Book" interviewing senior specialists at the National
Library (Beijing), and information from various private collectors and
dealers throughout the People's Republic of China: Dong Zhong Chao,
Gao Shang Heng, Hao Yu, Li Fan, Liu Yue Jin, Liu Zhan Quan, Shi Jin
Yan, Tian Xiao Guang, Yan Hui Zeng, Zhang Wei Shu and Zhao Hong; also
my thanks go to Dennis M. V. David and Justin G. Schiller of Battledore
Ltd (Kingston NY) on whose behalf I have been serving as consultant
and translator in China since December 2001 and also for their help in editing this article for publication.
I am especially appreciative that an earlier version of this
text (somewhat abridged) had been published in the Antiquarian
Book Review (London, November 2003) and thank its editors for permission
to include this expanded version on BibSite.
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