“Also” & “Also All”Josh Marrone, Jia Lin Cai, Emily Chung

Cultural Revolution

❖ 1966-1976❖ Took place in People’s Republic of

China.❖ Led by Mao Zedong, leader of

Communist Party of China.❖ Goal: To reinforce Mao’s control in

government and create a classless society.

❖ Called on China’s youth to purge the impurities within society.

❖ Closed schools and places of learning.❖ Encouraged the formation of Red

Guards.❖ Millions died and industrial production

decreased.

Red Guards

❖ Militant students who set out to destroy the "Four Olds" - old customs, old culture, old habits and old ideas.

❖ Persecuted teachers and intellectuals.❖ Conducted book burnings, mass

relocations, and helped to enforce Mao’s beliefs.

❖ Movement turned violent leading to millions of deaths.

❖ Youth’s of this time became known as the “Lost Generation” since many never received proper education.

❖ Mao later sent them to the countryside to farm.

Main Theme

❖ “All”➢ Hopelessness and everything is doomed from

the start. Exemplified by stanzas 1 and 6❖ “Also All”

➢ There is reason for hope, not all must go awry. Exemplified by stanzas 1 and 2

Messages

❖ Conflicting❖ “Also all” responds by saying that

there is reason to hope and that all is not lost and that “all fires do not consume themselves.” This is directly opposite of “All”.

Tone: “All”❖ Rather hopeless and cynical—the narrator

believes that all fate is preordained and that everything eventually leads to sorrow.➢ “All is fated”➢ “All an endless beginning”➢ “All a search for what vanishes”➢ “All faith drowned in lamentation”➢ “All love buried in the heart”➢ “Every death reverberates forever”

Tone: “Also All”❖ More cheerful and uplifting—the narrator

believes that life is worth living and that tomorrow is full of promises and hope.➢ “Not all the wings of dream are broken”➢ “Nor is all affection doomed to wither in a desolate

heart”➢ “Not all is as you say”➢ “The future was planted yesterday”➢ “Today is heavy with tomorrow”➢ “Hope is a burden all of us must shoulder, though

we may stumble under the load”