Towards Exceptionalism: The Communist Party of China and its Uses of History

Jabin T. Jacob and Bhim B. Subba
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Jabin T. Jacob: Department of International Relations and Governance Studies, Shiv Nadar University, Delhi National Capital Region, India. jabin.jacob@snu.edu.in
Bhim B. Subba: Department of Political Science, University of Hyderabad, Telangana, India. bhimsubba@uohyd.ac.in

China Report, 2022, vol. 58, issue 1, 7-27

Abstract: The Communist Party of China (CPC) completed 100 years of its existence in July 2021, with the last 70 plus years spent as the ruling party in China. The centenary occasioned a fresh consideration by the CPC of the challenges to its identity, legitimacy and power. Using select speeches and commentaries produced by the CPC in the context of the centenary, this article analyses how the Party deploys discourses on its history to articulate its concerns and promote its interests today. It also looks at how these interpretations of the Party’s history and role in China translate into a growing sense of exceptionalism in the Party-state. The article argues that despite frequent calls to ‘seek truth from facts’, an overriding desire to retain power is once again pushing the CPC down the path towards dogmatism.

Keywords: Communist Party of China (CPC); Party History; Socialism with Chinese Characteristics; Sinicisation of Marxism; Chinese Dream; Party Centenary (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:chnrpt:v:58:y:2022:i:1:p:7-27

DOI: 10.1177/00094455221074169

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