China this week celebrates the 100th anniversary of the birth of Deng Xiaoping, the man most responsible for setting China on the path toward growth, development and its re-emergence as a real power in Asia and the world. Deng died seven years ago, but his stature has only grown in the intervening years. His legacy is complex, however -- like China itself. Deng is emblematic of modern China, embodying both the good and the bad. And, indeed, the two are inextricably linked.

Deng was a survivor. He was one of the first generation of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) members, a top general during the war against the Nationalists and one of the country's leaders -- behind Mao Zedong -- when the Communists seized power in 1949. Like all of that generation, he also became the target of Mao's suspicions and was sent to the countryside during the Cultural Revolution. He weathered that spell -- although his son was badly injured during that time and has since been confined to a wheelchair -- and returned to power in 1973, when he was reinstated as vice premier of the State Council.

Upon Mao's death in 1976, the country experienced another political upheaval as the Gang of Four, headed by Mao's widow, battled reformers to succeed Mao. The reformers, in the person of Deng, prevailed, and he became the country's paramount leader in 1978.