| dc.description.abstract | After People’s Daily issued a report of Mao Zedong’s inscription “Learn from Lei Feng” on March 5th, 1963, a national campaign led by the leaders of the country was started. Lei Feng became the most propagandized role model, being the most influential, successful and remarkable for the longest period since the establishment of People’s Republic of China. Differing from most role models who grew and perished with time, his spirit survived timelessly. The “Learn from Lei Feng” campaign continued for another fifty-four years after he passed away, and his moral influences is continued even to this day in the form of various campaigns.
Lei Feng’s spirit originated from the historical background specific to his times. From the late 1950s to the early 1960s, China suffered the tremendous ordeal due to serious diplomatic situation and the wrong decisions of the construction policy. The country was in urgent need for a campaign of social education to encourage its people and increase the political awareness of both the party and the country. Lei Feng’s altruistic spirit of sacrificing for the people and community, and his strength and determination to overcome obstacles all met the expectations for a leader of the country anticipated by its people. Lei Feng’s almost perfect characteristic and his firm political belief have become the “ideal type” and a political tool for educating people with the ideology and politics that the communist party emphasizes. Under Mao Zedong’s inscription and exhortations, the social influence of “Learn from Lei Feng” was widely spread through the media （mainly the newspapers of the party）, as well as various forms of propaganda such as art and literature. The social influence of the “Learn from Lei Feng” campaign achieved its peak and effectively instilled the mainstream ideology of the country into the daily life of its people. At last, the campaign harvested the effects of political socialization. The role model, Lei Feng, is undoubtedly a development of its generation. | en_US |