Theory of Continuing the Revolution under Dictatorship of the Proletariat

On November 6, 1967, People's Daily, Red Flag and PLA Daily published an editorial article entitled “Advance Along the Road Opened up by the October Socialist Revolution", drafted by Chen Boda and Yao Wenyuan, in which Mao's arguments for launching the “Cultural Revolution” were first summarized as "The Theory of Continuing the Revolution under Dictatorship of the Proletariat".

(1) "It is necessary to apply the Marxist-Leninist law of the unity of opposites to the study of socialist society.”

(2) "In the historical stage of socialism, classes, class contradictions and class struggle still exist, the struggle between the socialist road and the capitalist road continues and the danger of capitalist restoration still exists.” "In order to prevent capitalist restoration and ‘peaceful evolution’, it is imperative to carry the socialist revolution on the political and ideological fronts through to the end.”

(3) "The class struggle under the dictatorship of the proletariat is in essence still a matter of political power”, and “the proletariat must exercise all-round dictatorship over the bourgeoisie in the field of the superstructure, including the various spheres of culture.”

(4) "The struggle between the two classes and two roads in society is inevitably reflected within the Party. The handful of Party persons in authority taking the capitalist road are the representatives of the bourgeoisie within the Party.”

(5) "It is of the greatest importance for the continuation of the revolution under the dictatorship of the proletariat that the great proletarian “Cultural Revolution” should be carried out.”

(6) "‘Fight self, repudiate revisionism’ is the fundamental programme of the great proletarian “Cultural Revolution” in the ideological field.”

This article was once reviewed by Mao Zedong.

In his speech at the Party's theoretical work retreat on March 30, 1979, Deng Xiaoping pointed out that "if the formulation of continuing revolution under the dictatorship of the proletariat is based on the proposed interpretation at that time, that is, the so-called 'seizing power from the capitalist roaders', that is, leaving aside the Party committee to make a revolution and overthrow everything, then practice has proved to be wrong."

The “Resolution on Several Historical Issues of the Party Since the Founding of the People's Republic”, adopted at the Sixth Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Party in June 1981, further pointed out, "We resolutely correct the 'cultural revolution' of the so-called overthrow of one class by another and the 'continuation of the revolution under the dictatorship of the proletariat' slogan. This is absolutely not to say that the task of the revolution has been completed and that there is no need to resolutely continue the revolutionary struggle on all fronts.

The revolutionary struggle for the construction of a modern socialist state "differs from the revolution before the overthrow of the exploitative system, not through fierce class confrontation and conflict, but through the socialist system itself, in a led, systematic and orderly manner. This revolution, which has turned into a period of peaceful development, is more profound and arduous than that of the past.”