Litynski William P. (ed.) Red China: People’s Republic or national socialism

New Haven: Yale University. — 225 p.: ill.Sidney Rittenberg is the subject of a new documentary film called “The Revolutionary.” He is an American who lived in China from 1945 to 1980. His arrival was partly a coincidence: he was drafted during World War II and sent to China after studying the Chinese language at Stanford University. He arrived just as the Japanese were surrendering, and witnessed injustices committed by the Kuomintang government against its people. After the war ended, Rittenberg decided to stay in China and seek out the leaders of the Communist revolution that was raging across the countryside. He traveled to the mountains in Yan’an where the leaders were based, and met with Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai. They told him they needed a native English speaker to explain their policies to the United States. In helping them, Rittenberg had the sense of fulfilling a historical need. China was the most populous and most ancient country in the world, and it was in the process of reinventing itself. He felt he had his “finger on the pulse of history.” Throughout his time in China, Rittenberg was connected with the upper echelons of the Communist Party leadership. He has known every major leader in Communist China, including Mao, Zhou Enlai, Jiang Zemin, and Hu Jintao. Rittenberg is recognized throughout China by his Chinese name, Li Dunbai. He witnessed and took part in modern China's formation, and lived all its complexities. He spent a total of 16 years in solitary confinement and was a powerful proponent of the Cultural Revolution before falling victim to its chaos. The first time he was jailed was at the request of Joseph Stalin, who sent a written communiqué to Mao accusing Rittenberg of being a spy sent by the Americans to undermine the revolution. He was thrown into solitary confinement and not released until after Stalin’s death, six years later. The second time, he offended Mao’s wife, Jiang Qing, who had become powerful during the Cultural Revolution as one of the ruthless “Gang of Four.” Rittenberg ended up once again in prison, in solitary confinement for 10 years. His wife remained loyal to him all that time, and after he was released at the end of the Cultural Revolution, they moved back to the United States together.