Evolution of art and moral concerns in new China: From mao Zedong's Yenan talks to Xi Jinping's speech on artistic practice

Mao Zedong's speeches on literature and art at the Yenan Forum in 1942 lays out the socialist direction of artistic expression in the new China. The content and the form of art in China have then developed from political propaganda to social critiques. Mao promoted literature and art as basic revolutionary causes, and regarded them as the tools of ideological changes and political revolution. In 2014, Xi Jinping gave a speech at the Forum on Literature and Art in which he regarded art and literature as important means of enhancing cultural confidence and realizing the China Dream of national rejuvenation with prosperity. They are important manifestations of the country's soft cultural power and comprehensive national strength. This chapter reviews the evolution of art and literature as national tools in the speeches of the two influential leaders, and how they discussed art and moral concerns in artistic practice and their different emphasis.