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Revisionism is an ideology that involves reinterpretation of Marxist theories and allegiance with the middle class. “Revisionist” is usually used as an insult to describe people who do not uphold true socialist principles.
Revisionism Quotes in Red Scarf Girl
The Red Scarf Girl quotes below are all either spoken by Revisionism or refer to Revisionism. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 3: Writing Da-zi-bao
Quotes
Yin Lan-lan had written, “As one of its victims, I denounce the revisionist education system. Being from a working-class family, I have to do a lot more housework than students from rich families. So I have difficulty passing exams. And I was not allowed to be a Young Pioneer or to participate in school choir. The teachers think only of grades when evaluating a student. They forget that we, the working class, are the masters of our socialist society.”
“Yin Lan-lan? A victim?” I was flabbergasted. Yin Lan-lan had flunked three times. She rarely spoke up in class. When she was asked to answer a question, she would just stand there without saying a word. She was not very bright.
“She failed three courses out of five. How could she blame the teachers for that?” An Yi sneered.
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Chapter 5: Graduation
Quotes
The junior high school entrance examination dreaded by all of us was gone. What a relief! […]
Du Hai sat on his desk roaring with laughter. To him, and to Yin Lan-lan and to the others who were not even sure of graduating, this was wonderful news.
But as I watched Du Hai, my elation suddenly evaporated. Yes, I would have a whole summer to play. But without an entrance exam, how would they pick the students for the elite schools? Ever since third grade, I had been counting on getting into Shi-yi, one of the best junior high schools in Shanghai. Then I had planned on attending an elite high school, and then one of the famous universities. Without an entrance exam, how could I be sure of getting into Shi-yi? What could I do to make up for my family background?
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Revisionism Term Timeline in Red Scarf Girl
The timeline below shows where the term Revisionism appears in Red Scarf Girl. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 3: Writing Da-zi-bao
The Communist Party suspends all classes in May, charging that the schools turn children into revisionists, not good red socialists. Ji-li goes to the school buzzing with revolutionary fervor just like...
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...copy da-zi-bao. They find one written by another classmate, Yin Lan-lan, who complains that the revisionist education system oppresses working-class people like herself. She claims its bias prevented her from becoming...
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...Hong’s bookstall. Da-zi-bao seal its door, accusing the old man of “Propagating Feudal, Capitalistic, and Revisionist Ideals” and “Poisoning our Youth.” Ji-li knows she will not read her favorite stories again.
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Chapter 10: Junior High School at Last
...the English phrases Teacher Zhang has written on the board: “Down with Imperialism! Down with Revisionism! Down with the New Tsars!” Ji-li sighs. She’s frustrated with the English lessons, in which...
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Chapter 16: The Incriminating Letter
...evidence of Dad’s “luxurious lifestyle.” They confiscate a book Ji-yong borrowed, claiming that it propagates revisionist and bourgeois ideas because it’s a translation of a foreign work. Ji-yong springs at them,...
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