The Birth Of The New Democratic "Model Worker

This article conducts an in-depth study of the origin and development of the"Labor Heroes and Model Workers Movement" in the Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia Border Region.The following three chapters are narrated,namely,the eve of the birth:examination of the origin of the model worker movement,the birth of model workers:the emergence of a new discourse subject,after the birth of model workers:the construction of the discourse of "labor heroes".And on this basis,the research excavates and refines the social traits and historical context behind the "model worker" movement.First of all,this paper discusses the causes of the Model Workers Movement from the perspectives of external and internal factors.The external factors refer to the comprehensive blockade of the border areas by the Kuomintang and the constant intrusion of the Japanese army into the border areas.And the internal factor is that the rapid expansion of the non-productive population has caused excessive pressure on the people.Meanwhile,the large difference in living standards between the upper cadres and the masses has aroused the suspicion of the grassroots towards the border region government.The border region government is facing economic difficulties and political crisis at the same time.In order to get rid of the crisis,the border region government issued a call for "self-reliance",organized and mobilized various groups in the border region to participate in the mass production campaign,and held labor competitions to select labor models to help the mass production campaign.In the 1930s and 1940s,the party began to adjust its cultural line,and the new democratic culture provided the ideological foundation for the development of the model labor movement.The proposal of the Anti-Japanese National United Front and the establishment of "tripartite regime"laid the class foundation for the development of the Model Workers Movement.Secondly,the paper traces how the discourse group of model workers came into being and expressed,and extracts the "value paradigm" of the border area by comparing the discourse of the media and the discourse of the model workers themselves.After the production competition started,a group of model workers emerged in the border area.After the Liberation Daily discovered them,they carried out a large-scale publicity on them.In the propaganda,they mainly present two characteristics:outstanding production achievements and extremely high political consciousness.This part takes Wu Manyou as an example to explore how the model worker himself comprehends the connotation of the policy to shape himself.The model worker Wu Manyou actively supports the border area policy,gives full play to his political subjective initiative,conducts two-way interaction with Chairman Mao,and proposes that individual labor competition extended to the entire border region,taking the initiative and showing a high degree of political sensitivity.After examining the discourse of the media and the discourse of the model workers themselves,this paper believes that there is a "value paradigm" in the construction of the border area,that is,survival comes first,everything starts from reality,and is highly adapted to the needs of the environment;the resistance of Japanese army is the primary task,and everything serves the needs of the war;Through the two-way shaping of production and rectification,the identification of the party will be enhanced by various groups in the border area,and the public opinion foundation of the party’s governance will be consolidated.Finally,drawing on the theoretical perspective of "productive power technology",the article examines how the border region government constructed the discourse about model workers after the group of model workers was born.This kind of construction is first reflected in the regulation and cultivation of the "Erliuzi" and women.The transformation of the "Erliuzi" movement has endowed this group with new political life.The organization of women to participate in production has actually promoted the development trend of equality between men and women.The concept of "Labor Heroes and Model Workers" is thus also infused with a connotation of equality.Secondly,the construction is reflected in the reshaping of the body and even the soul of the model workers.Wu Manyou in the poems presents the ideal characteristics of the model workers.Labor Heroes like Wu Manyou are the abstract carriers and projections of these ideal qualities.They also actively transform themself to infinitely tend to the ideal model worker form.The images of Wu Manyou and other model workers in the woodcut prints are tall and majestic,which highlights the importance the border region government attaches to labor heroes,and highlights the lofty status of the model workers.This shows the significance of the mass production movement.Furthermore,this construction is also reflected in the readjustment of the historical orientation of the working class.Zhao Zhankui is the representative of the new type of workers,and his"new" characteristics are mainly manifested as "public and selfless".The Zhao Zhankui movement was first of all to resolve the conflicts and differences between labor unions and factories,and between workers and factories in public factories.By checking out egoistic workers,rewarding workers who are dedicated to the public,the government established a new labor attitude.The essence of the Zhao Zhankui movement is Rectification Movement in public factories,in which the working class is given a new historical mission,that is,to be selfless and loyal to the party’s leadership.