Yang Rongguo (, 1907–1978) was a Chinese academic and

philosopher A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...

who was involved in the

Criticize Lin, Criticize Confucius The Criticize Lin (Biao), Criticize Confucius Campaign (; also called the Anti-Lin Biao, Anti-Confucius campaign) was a political and intellectual campaign started by Mao Zedong and his wife, Jiang Qing, the leader of the Gang of Four. It lasted f ...

campaign of the

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goal ...

. Yang initially began his study of Confucius with a publication in 1947 which was revised and published again in 1973. During the Cultural Revolution he was a professor at

Zhongshan University Sun Yat-sen University (, abbreviated SYSU and colloquially known in Chinese as Zhongda), also known as Zhongshan University, is a national key public research university located in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. It was founded in 1924 by and nam ...

. He published an article on July 7, 1973 in ''

People's Daily The ''People's Daily'' () is the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The newspaper provides direct information on the policies and viewpoints of the CCP. In addition to its main Chinese-language ...

'' entitled "Confucius-A Thinker Who Stubbornly Upheld the Slave System." This article, coupled with his republication of work, brought him into significance. He began publicly connecting

Lin Biao ) , serviceyears = 1925–1971 , branch = People's Liberation Army , rank = Marshal of the People's Republic of China Lieutenant general of the National Revolutionary Army, Republic of China , commands ...

, the fallen Chinese leader now condemned as a rightist, with Confucius, who had long been campaigned against. Yang connected not only Lin, but also generalized

Liu Shaoqi Liu Shaoqi ( ; 24 November 189812 November 1969) was a Chinese revolutionary, politician, and theorist. He was Chairman of the NPC Standing Committee from 1954 to 1959, First Vice Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party from 1956 to 1966 and C ...

and other ousted leaders as Confucian followers. Confucius was a more significant target than before, however, and was a stand-in for Premier

Zhou Enlai Zhou Enlai (; 5 March 1898 – 8 January 1976) was a Chinese statesman and military officer who served as the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, premier of the People's Republic of China from 1 October 1949 until his death on 8 J ...

, who was not criticized by name. Among Yang Rongguo's points was that Confucius had suppressed societal changes in his era, and that Zhou Enlai had been doing similar things by working towards the rehabilitation of ousted CCP leaders in 1972, including

Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping (22 August 1904 – 19 February 1997) was a Chinese revolutionary leader, military commander and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from December 1978 to November 1989. After CC ...

.MacFarquhar and Schoenhals, 370

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yang, Rongguo People of the Cultural Revolution People's Republic of China philosophers 1907 births 1978 deaths Sun Yat-sen University faculty Northeastern University (China) faculty Guangxi Normal University faculty Hunan University faculty Writers from Changsha