An Objective Evaluation of Mao Zedong's Poetry

Due to Mao Zedong's special status, past evaluations of his poetic works have generally lacked objectivity. Those who praise him exalt him to the heavens, while those who bash him drive him into the ground -- all letting their backsides dictate their brains. Here, this young lady shall endeavor to provide an objective evaluation.

Mao Zedong's complete poetic works number fewer than 100 pieces, which by a poet's standards is somewhat sparse in quantity. Traditionally, poets whose works endure through the ages have complete collections of at least 300 poems or more; someone like Lu You had nearly ten thousand. In terms of quality, since some are overly doggerel-like, those that truly meet the basic requirements of classical poetry number fewer than around 50, and those worthy of being passed down through the ages are around 30. In terms of genre, his works are primarily ci lyrics and seven-character regulated verse, which by the standards of a true poet is somewhat narrow. Of course, the significance of Mao Zedong's poetry cannot be measured entirely by ordinary poetic standards, but if we evaluate the poetry purely as poetry, the above analysis is essential.

Analyzing at the level of individual words and phrases, his diction and word choice should be classified as average, with occasional strokes of genius, but compared to true masters, there remains a certain distance. Of course, the greatest merit of Mao Zedong's poetry lies in its absence of that musty, antiquated flavor. He made great experimental strides in using classical poetic forms to address modern subjects, though occasionally verging too much on doggerel. Nevertheless, this alone is already quite remarkable. From what we can see today, among those who have achieved this while maintaining a grand manner, Mao Zedong is the best. As for his grandeur, it is related to his life experiences and personality, and this quality is not absent among certain great poets of antiquity, some of whom achieved an even more robust and profound effect.

Overall, Mao Zedong's poetry belongs to the category of distinctively styled works, but if viewed purely from the standpoint of poetry alone, it cannot be considered first-rate. However, from the perspective of historical significance, it certainly has lasting value. Moreover, after the May Fourth Movement and the Cultural Revolution, the fact that classical poetry survived at all owes no small debt to Mao Zedong's influence in this regard.