Impeccably true to its definition, the Chinese characters for “revolution” literally mean “elimination of life,” as demonstrated by China's Catastrophic Cultural Revolution. Communist leader Mao Zedong tried to eliminate the past and push for a resurrection, only to have China fall miserably behind. By erasing years of scientific and literary progress, China gave up its grand history and way of life. In 1966, communist leader Mao Zedong began the Cultural Revolution in China with the intent of reasserting his dominance over the Chinese government, drastically impacting the lives of nearly everyone. in China. Suspicious of the current communist leaders taking control of the party, Mao enslaved the minds of China's youth to eradicate the “impure” components of Chinese society, including every person suspected of being a capitalist in China (History.com). Revolutionary material was also eliminated as ordered by Mao Zedong, "reading too many books is harmful" (Mao Zedong), including all literature except Mao's Little Red Book. In this period, literary and scientific progress ceased, making the pleasure of reading a mere memory or at least extremely rare (Edward Quinn). Life was drastic and bleak, with no creative outlets to cope with, making the story of Balzac's character and the Little Seamstress surprisingly likely as the narrator expresses his frustration: “I feel disgust for all those who have kept these books from us. " (Dai Sijie 99). Struggling under pressures from every corner, it seemed worth risking one's life simply to enjoy forbidden Western literature, as the narrator states: "I didn't expect that a little glimmer of hope for the future could transform someone so completely." (77); Balzac was their salvation. Balzac and T...... middle of sheet ......n File, Inc. Web. 14Allen, Brooke. “An education in a suitcase”. Balzac's Rev. and The Little Dressmaker. New York Times September 13, 2001: 24. Print.Boucquey, Thierry, gen. and. "Luo Guanzhong." Encyclopedia of the world's writers, from the 14th to the 18th century. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2005. Bloom's Literature. File, Inc. Web Facts. May 14, 2014Cook, James Wyatt. “The Romance of the Three Kingdoms”. Encyclopedia of Renaissance literature. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2006. Bloom's Literature. File, Inc. Web Facts. May 14, 2014Guanzhong, Luo. Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Trans. Moss Roberts. Beijing: Foreign Language, 2006. Print.History.com. A&E Television Networks, 2009. Web. May 14, 2014. Quinn, Edward. “Cultural Revolution in China”. History in literature. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2004. Bloom's Literature. File, Inc. Web Facts. May 14 2014