1 - The Dengist Structure of Power

Summary

This chapter examines Deng Xiaoping’s rise to power and his efforts to build a structure that would prevent the return of Maoism. That structure included rejuvenation, the building of leadership groups at different levels, and the introduction of balances. This chapter also discusses the forces that undermined party unity, leading first to the purge of Hu Yaobang and then the Tiananmen events, followed by the ouster of Zhao Ziyang. The military proved to be an important part of Deng Xiaoping’s structure of power. In many ways, Deng tried to introduce institutionalization to correct the concentration of power under Mao Zedong, but Deng’s own dominance of political power contradicted and undermined these efforts to introduce institutionalization.