of motion of socialism have been the underlying cornerstones of policy in the PRC.
One of the problems in the application of traditional Marxist economic theory to the PRC involves the Asiatic mode of production, and Marxist misconceptions concerning this mode of production. The common ownership of land by a village commune is a principal characteristic of the Asiatic mode of production. Marxist theory postulated that feudal economies were required to follow an evolutionary path, which included capitalism, in order to become a truly socialist, and then, communist society. The discovery that many Asian societies never followed such an evolutionary path confounded Marxist theory. It also required Marxist theoreticians to recognize that an absence of private property in land was a crucial component of stagnant, despotic societies. Other justifications, and other devils were required to explain the character of non capitalist Asian economic
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