Chinese Medicine In Early Communist China 1945-1963

Using original sources, this significant text looks at the transformation of Chinese medicine from a marginal, side-lined medical practice of the early twentieth century, to an essential and high-profile part of the national health-care system under the Chinese Communist Party. The political, economic and social motives which drove this promotion are analyzed and the extraordinary role that Chinese medicine was meant to play in Mao Zedong's revolution is fully explored for the first time, making a major contribution to the history of Chinese medicine.

Review: 'Kim Taylor's book, Chinese Medicine in Early Communist China, is a gratifying addition to the list of genuinely new historical studies.' - China Quarterly 'Taylor has written a significant work thath makes real contributions to our understanding of changing pedagogic and therapeutic practices in Chinese medicine.' - China Journal 'The first coherent analysis of non- Western medicine in the People's Republic ... a welcome contribution to a timely topic, of high academic standard and succinctly written in accessible language.' - Asian Affairs What Taylor offers is a dense descriptive investigation illuminating the dimensions of political rhetoric within the processes of the development and canonization of medical knowledge in the early years of the People's Republic of China. - Angelika C.

Messner