Among the most important modern movements, the May Fourth movement has often been depicted as the intellectual foundation for Chinese Communism. In The Rise of Political Intellectuals in Modern China, Shakhar Rahav breaks down this teleology. By carefully examining Yun Daiying's (1895–1931) associations, Rahav sheds light on the dynamic, multilateral influences between hinterland and metropolis. Networks created cohesion across the movement and thereby augured a new form of mass mobilization across the political spectrum.
Rahav begins by illustrating the pivotal spatial environment of the “hinterland metropolis” of Wuhan (Wuchang, Hankou, and Hanyang) as an active center that conjoined rural and urban politics (pp. 1, 19). Rahav traces the effects of the Self-Strengthening School within Wuhan and the later growth of the “urban reformist elite” in the 1911 Revolution. These academic and human resources later helped students like Yun and his friends (p. 88), who developed a spirit of radicalism somewhat outside of the traditional lineage of CCP intellectual history.
By focusing on social networking tools that cut across typical ideological divides, Rahav demonstrates in chapter 2 the diverse variety of influences on Yun's Mutual Aid Society. For example, YMCA summer camp inspired the avowedly non-Christian Yun's formation of small groups dedicated to moral self-improvement (p. 57). Rahav traces this source for Communist criticism sessions, as distinct from the Yan'an Rectification Campaigns (p. 69). Although the Mutual Aid Society gained its title from an essay by Kropotkin, the members followed a “vague moral vision” to correct their own lives, as the basis for strengthening the moral fabric of the nation (p. 59). Rather than rejecting Confucian traditions or Western influences outright, these friends drew upon a variety of resources for moral self-cultivation.
In a context of uncertain job prospects, the desire for financial independence, as well as intellectual influence, led this group of friends to found the Benefit the Masses Book Society (p. 88). In chapter 3, Rahav analyzes the structure and function of the bookstore, which was established as a commune and lending library, the first in Wuhan to focus on May Fourth literature (p. 91). As a reflection of egalitarian ideals, the commune divided labor equally among members, but nonetheless hired a laborer because the members were not yet pushing for a larger structural revolution (p. 101). Others, like Mao Zedong, adopted the bookstore's exemplary bookkeeping practices (p. 93). In addition to circulating new ideas, the bookstore provided a physical space to exchange ideas (pp. 95–97). As an extension of these activities, Yun and his friends published a circular, Hu zhu, to broaden their circle and coordinate various youth organizations (p. 98).
In chapter 4, Rahav examines the Cultural Book Society's connections with the Young China Association (Shaonian Zhongguo) in a complex dialectical relationship between Wuhan and Beijing (p. 106). Periodicals reinforced academic and individual relationships by providing members with opportunities to become familiar with each other's ideas. These relationships help to explain how the May Fourth movement maintained cohesion despite its ideological diversity, including Yun's relatively more controversial anarcho-communism (pp. 121–22).
Chapter 5 follows Yun's entrance into the Chinese Communist Party, notwithstanding his misgivings about political violence (p. 135). This chapter challenges our assumptions about the inevitability of both political parties in general (p. 126) and the rise of the CCP in particular (p. 137). Yun established the short-lived Mutual Preservation Society, which, along with the Young China Association, rivaled the CCP (p. 137). Yun encouraged youth to overcome their mistrust of party politics by building “trust and intimacy” through his charismatic teaching and direct writing style, both reflections of his egalitarian values and moral commitments (pp. 130, 141). Here, Yun argued that intellectuals should lead the masses from within (p. 132), thus addressing a tension between party leadership and mass mobilization that would erupt in the Cultural Revolution.
Thus, Rahav argues that intimate leadership helped to bridge not only youth clubs and party politics but also the masses and leaders. After all, student demonstrations gave political parties a platform to speak for the masses (p. 144). Among the notable strengths of this book is Rahav's thoughtful interrogation of sources such as Yun's diary (e.g., pp. 48–49) and careful recounting of how Yun graduated from social clubs to political parties. By rejecting historical teleology, Rahav offers readers a model of political leadership based on intimate relationships between intellectuals and the masses, rather than a model of confrontational struggle as per the Cultural Revolution. By examining sociability rather than ideology, Rahav explains the appeal of mass politics and the formation of social cohesion across diverse ideas in the May Fourth movement.
