This diary is a compelling artifact of the Cultural Revolution, vividly capturing the unique characteristics of that tumultuous era through both its design and content. Dated 1967–1968, it represents the early years of the movement—a period marked by peak revolutionary fervor and widespread mass campaigns targeting perceived class enemies. These included former rural landlords, urban intellectuals, capitalist-class business owners, and even high-ranking Communist officials accused of harboring counterrevolutionary tendencies.
The diary’s design underscores its political function. The cover bears the slogan “Overcome the Storms” (战胜风浪, Zhàn shèng fēng làng), a typical revolutionary catchphrase that evokes resilience and militant optimism. The opening pages are adorned with quotations from Chairman Mao and propaganda materials such as the song “Raise the Banner of Revolution High.” These design elements reveal that the diary was not intended for personal introspection, but rather served as a political tool—an instrument for performing revolutionary commitment.
Content and Structure
The diary’s entries further emphasize its public and performative nature, deviating sharply from the personal reflections typically found in Western diary traditions. Instead of chronicling private thoughts or daily experiences, this diary is filled with formulaic affirmations of loyalty to Mao’s teachings. The entries recount lessons drawn from studying Quotations from Chairman Mao (毛主席语录) and describe how his words guided the diarist’s actions and ideological understanding. Emotions, personal relationships, or any reference to individual inner life are conspicuously absent.
The handwriting is neat and consistent, without visible corrections or spontaneity. This suggests that the entries were either carefully revised before being written or copied from approved templates. It is likely that the author—possibly a university student or factory worker—was expected to submit the diary to the Party Organization in their institution for inspection. As such, the diary functioned less as a private journal and more as a record of ideological compliance and self-reform.
“Diary Crimes” and the Politicization of Writing
The context of “diary crimes” (日记罪) during the Cultural Revolution adds further historical depth to this artifact. Although personal writing was not officially criminalized, diaries and private letters were frequently confiscated during home raids and scrutinized for “counterrevolutionary” content. A single sentence or metaphor that deviated from the revolutionary line could be reinterpreted as political dissent. Such writings, once uncovered, could result in severe punishment—including imprisonment, public denunciation, or forced confession.
This atmosphere of surveillance and fear discouraged personal expression. Scholar Youqin Wang has described the Cultural Revolution as “a revolution that destroyed diaries,” a period in which written records became instruments of persecution rather than reflection. The very medium of the diary—once a symbol of personal voice and introspection—was transformed into a political liability.
Analysis
The Wéngé Rìjì (文革日记, Cultural Revolution Diary) serves as both a historical artifact and a psychological mirror, revealing how individuals navigated a tightly controlled political environment. Its formulaic content, lack of personal expression, and polished appearance reflect the pressure to conform ideologically, even in seemingly private spaces. Rather than offering insight into the diarist’s inner life, the diary reveals how deeply political orthodoxy had permeated daily writing practices.
As a testament to the suppression of intellectual and emotional freedom, the diary underscores the loss of individuality under authoritarianism. It stands as a poignant reminder of how political movements can invade the most intimate aspects of life—replacing self-expression with self-surveillance, and reflection with repetition. The diary captures the tension between public conformity and private identity, illuminating the psychological toll of ideological enforcement.
A direct quotation from one entry illustrates this well:
会议主决议，坚决维护山东省革命委员会，坚决维护支持省三大革命左派组织。
Huìyì zhǔ juéyì, jiānjué wéihù Shāndōng shěng gémìng wěiyuánhuì, jiānjué wéihù zhīchí shěng sān dà gémìng zuǒpài zǔzhī.
Conference main resolution: Resolutely safeguard the Shandong Provincial Revolutionary Committee; resolutely support the province’s three major revolutionary leftist organizations.
This entry exemplifies how diary writing was used to echo and affirm official resolutions, functioning more as a logbook of revolutionary consensus than as a site for individual thought. The Wéngé Rìjì does not merely preserve the atmosphere of the Cultural Revolution—it embodies it. As a record of a time when the personal became dangerously political, the diary invites reflection on the enduring value of privacy, dissent, and inner freedom.