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Article
Wounding Ideals: Israel Epstein’s Life Saga in Communist China
Author(s)
Mengxi Sun
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DOI:10.17265/2328-2177/2017.03.004
Affiliation(s)
Cornell University, New York, USA
ABSTRACT
Despite of all its enigma and revealingness, Israel Epstein’s (1915-2005) life in communist China remains a vacuum in English-language scholarship on the history of the People’s Republic of China. This paper intends to fill this vacuum. It seeks to rediscover Epstein’s communist experience, with particular focus on his fervent activism in and unapologetic defense of the Cultural Revolution. Through analyzing his experience, this paper exposes the essential allurement of Chinese communism encapsulated in the ideals of revolutionary regeneration and revolutionary virtues. Beyond Epstein’s communist experience, this paper calls for a deeper and broader pondering on the analogy between communism and religion. Such an illuminating analogy should inspire more intellectual efforts than critical expositions of formalistic vainglory or personality cult.
KEYWORDS
Israel Epstein, Chinese Communist Party, Pro-communism foreigners, cultural revolution
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