Abstract

Probably nothing is more complicated, misunderstood, and thus damaged, in a way of speaking, than the viewpoint of "one divides into two" when criticism is being made of the various fallacies spread by Lin Biao and the "gang of four." Some people hold that Lin and the gang's activities to split the Party and their philosophy of making others suffer were related to this viewpoint and thus conclude that this viewpoint is one-sided. Others are of the opinion that this viewpoint constitutes the philosophical base for the ultra-Left line. Such ideas circulate even among a part of the philosophy researchers. It is necessary to repudiate the gang's distorted and subjective explanation and application of the viewpoint "one divides into two"; so is the exposure of a certain simplistic tendency in our previous propaganda work. However, it is inappropriate to view the distortion and simplification as something inherent in the proposition that "one divides into two." After all, is such a proposition scientific or not? Should it be seen as a "mistake" or a "heresy" that ought to be taken out from Marxism-Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought? This, of course, is an issue of theoretical principle and must be clarified through discussion