Hai Rui Dismissed from Office

Hai Rui Dismissed from Office (Chinese: ; pinyin: Hǎi Ruì bà guān; Wade–Giles: Hai3 Jui4 Pa4-kuan1) is a theatre play, written by Wu Han (1909-1969), notable for its involvement in Chinese politics during the Cultural Revolution. The play itself focused on a loyal Ming Dynasty minister named Hai Rui, who was portrayed as a savior to passive peasants for whom he reversed unjust land confiscations. The play became a center of scholarly and political controversy because of its implications for debates within the communist party, including at the Lushan Conference, regarding the political role of peasants going forward in light of the failures during the Great Leap Forward.


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