Studying Marxist Epistemology and Dialectics

From 1963 to 1965, Mao Zedong repeatedly advocated the study of Marxist epistemology and dialectics. This is the five paragraphs on this issue written in Mao Zedong's report and approval documents during this period. It was included in Selected Readings of Mao Zedong's Works (Part Ⅱ) published by People’s Press in 1986 .

The "Adopting the Marxist Method of Dialectical Analysis" is a major part of Mao Zedong's internal Party instruction drafted for the CPC Central Committee, "Strengthening Mutual Learning and Overcoming Stagnation and Complacency"; "Seeking Advice from the Practice of the Masses" is a major part of a letter from Mao Zedong to Liu Shaoqi; "Mankind Always Has to Summarize Experience Continuously" is a paragraph added by Mao Zedong when revising Zhou Enlai's draft report on the work of the government at the First Session of the Third National People's Congress; "Mistakes Are Often the Precursors of Correctness" is a commentary written by Mao Zedong when rereading his old work "Changgang Township"; "The Core of Dialectics Is the Law of Unity of Opposites" is a commentary written by Mao Zedong on Li Da's "Outline of Marxist Philosophy".

The main contents are as follows:

(1) To criticize some cadres for being self-confident, conceited and complacent, seeing only achievements and no shortcomings, and for being willing to listen well and not to listen to criticism. They are unwilling to criticize themselves and are even more afraid of criticism from others. They emphasize that they should adopt the Marxist method of dialectical analysis, which divides them into two parts and realize that things always develop forward as a process. Any process is developed by two contradictory sides interrelated and struggling with each other, which should be a common sense of Marxists.

(2) In view of the fact that some cadres do not understand Marxist epistemology, it is necessary to publicize Marxist epistemology tirelessly. Simply put, it is “from the masses to the masses”, determined to go down for a long time to squat, you will be able to hear the voice of the masses, you will be able to gradually recognize the objective truth from practice, into the subjective truth, and then back to practice, to see whether it is feasible or not. If it is not feasible, we must consult the masses again in practice, so that we can solve the problem of framing, that is, dogmatism, and not believe in superstition.

(3) Discussing the development of human history. It is pointed out that the history of mankind is a history of continuous development from the realm of necessity to the realm of freedom. Such history will never end. In a society where classes exist, class struggle will not end. Within a classless society, the struggle between the old and the new, between right and wrong, will never end.

Within the scope of productive struggles and scientific experiments, mankind is always developing and nature is always developing, never stopping at one level. Therefore, human beings always have to constantly sum up experience, make discoveries, inventions, creations and advancements. The arguments of cessation, pessimism, inaction and complacency, are all wrong.

(4) Expound Marxists' attitude towards errors. It is pointed out that human beings always have to make some mistakes to show their correctness. If you are not aware of the objective laws of necessity and are subject to them, you will become a slave to the objective outside world until now and in the future, and even to infinity.

The blindness and freedom of knowledge will always alternate and expand their fields, and they will always coexist with mistakes and correctness. Errors are often the forerunners of right, and blind necessity is often the ancestor of freedom. Human beings are both slaves and masters of nature and society. This is because human beings are never fully aware of the objective material world, human society, and human beings themselves (i.e., the human body). To say that one day knowledge will be complete and society will be all good and all beautiful (as theology says) would lead to absolute subjective idealism and metaphysics, which is not the worldview of a Marxist.

(5) The core of dialectics is the law of unity of opposites. Other categories, such as transformation of quantity into quality and vice versa, negation of the negation, interconnections and development, can be explained in the core law. The so-called interconnections refers to the interconnection of opposites in time and space. The so-called development is the result of the struggle of opposites. As for transformation of quantity into quality and vice versa and negation of the negation, they should be explained under the guidance of the core law in terms of phenomena and essence, form and content, etc.

Mao Zedong's thought on studying Marxist epistemology and dialectics has expounded the importance of studying Marxist epistemology and dialectics, the basic requirements for learning Marxist epistemology and dialectics, and the wrong tendencies that should be overcome. It has important practical guiding significance for strengthening the ideological construction of the Party.