"The Mao Era" explores China's transformation under Mao Zedong's leadership from 1949 to 1976. Alexandra Reeves examines how the Communist victory reshaped Chinese society through early reforms like land redistribution and women's rights, while also covering the catastrophic Great Leap Forward that led to history's deadliest famine, claiming 15-45 million lives. The episode chronicles the tumultuous Cultural Revolution, when Mao mobilized youth as Red Guards to attack traditional culture and purge opponents, creating a decade of chaos. Despite significant achievements in life expectancy, literacy, and industrial development, Mao's era brought massive human suffering, setting the stage for China's dramatic pivot toward economic reform after his death.

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