Who were the "Gang of Four" associated with?

The "Gang of Four" refers specifically to a group of four Chinese Communist Party officials who rose to prominence during the Cultural Revolution in the late 1960s and early 1970s. This group is primarily associated with radical leftist politics, and they played a crucial role in the Cultural Revolution led by Mao Zedong.

The members of the Gang of Four included Jiang Qing, Mao's wife, and three other prominent figures within the Communist Party: Zhang Chunqiao, Yao Wenyuan, and Wang Hongwen. They were instrumental in promoting Mao's ideology, which leaned heavily towards extreme revolutionary practices. However, following Mao's death in 1976, they were blamed for many of the failures and excesses of the Cultural Revolution, which resulted in widespread chaos and suffering in China. Their subsequent arrest marked a significant shift in Chinese politics, leading to the rise of a more moderate leadership under Deng Xiaoping.

In contrast, the other choices do not accurately describe the Gang of Four. The Chinese Nationalist Party refers to opponents of the Communist Party, which does not connect to the Gang of Four's identity. Post-reform economists would be associated with the economic liberalization efforts that began in the late 1970s