Essay genre in Vietnamese Literature from 1930 to 1975 - 19

At the turn of the twentieth century, when ideological and social moral values ​​were irreparably corrupted, Vietnamese people always longed for a peaceful and stable life. They did not expect anything in the future (because all efforts were in vain).

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(The efforts to find a way to save the country all failed), they looked back to the past - where the ancient beauty of a glorious time was still preserved. The essay Hanoi thirty-six streets by Thach Lam gives readers a beautiful impression of the cultural identity of the natural creations and people of the capital. The writer passionately describes and comments on rustic, rustic dishes and drinks, from the processing stages to the art of enjoying them. Those things can be found in many other places, but it seems that only in Hanoi do they have rich flavors and become unique:

“Hanoi gifts have always been famous for being delicious and polite. In the countryside, a little gift from Hanoi is expected, and shows the preciousness of the giver. On the anniversary of a death, children bring it back to present to their parents, or mothers go to the province to buy it for their children, and husbands who work for the State on their day off buy it for their newlywed wives… How many good intentions are put into this little gift from the city, a gift that brings to all the connoisseurs and elegance of the thirty-six streets” ( Hanoi Gifts ).

Clearly, through the pen of Thach Lam, the thirty-six streets of Hanoi have become a typical cultural space, the source of birth and sublimation of traditional values.

But sadly, everything changes so quickly. The old beauty gradually fades away, replaced by a hasty, rushed lifestyle, only knowing how to chase after temporary material values. The more painful it is to face the harsh reality, the more the author feels sad and regretful for the golden past. Therefore, the sense of space in the work is often tinged with nostalgia, even when referring to events and phenomena that are happening. Adverbs and adverbial phrases can be found at high frequency to describe beautiful memories of the past years: “ When I was a child , my art teacher quit his job to open a painting studio on Ho Bo Street”, “ It’s been more than ten years , but every time I remember that French phrase, I can’t help but laugh”, “ In the past , in front of the Governor’s Palace, there was a group of statues that people destroyed, about ten years ago ”, “ A short time later , right next to the gate of Ngoc Son Temple, we saw standing tall and straight a tangled electric wire pole… A short time later , the Ngoc Son Temple had to endure another ugly addition”, “ Recently , people have built many landscape sculptures”.

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“The murderers are scattered all over Hanoi…”, “ Hanoi has changed a lot … There is nothing left of Hanoi other than fifty or sixty years ago ” ( Hanoi Thirty-Six Streets ).

In the work " Thuong nho muoi thap ", Vu Bang's deep longing for his homeland and family is not only revealed over time (throughout 12 months) but also spreads and pervades a vast space. That space carries the unique beauty of an ancient cultural region, like a fairyland filled with memories, filled with affection, a whistle of coming and going in the nostalgia of a person living in a foreign land. It is the nostalgic mist that makes Vu Bang's mental picture of his homeland more sparkling and beautiful. No longer an abstract concept, space is perceived as a living entity, a constant obsession. It both evokes pride in the richness and beauty of the homeland and causes a painful feeling of loss and disappointment:

“Now, people who have been away from North Vietnam for a long time are the same: eating a bowl of noodles, they miss the “genuine” Northern pho on a cold morning; seeing crabs, they miss a bowl of crab soup cooked with water spinach and taro; on a stormy day, they feel sad, remembering early autumn with its cool breeze and yellow flowers. In March, they miss the festivals and the girls singing vi, which sounds so beautiful, the men wrestling, which is so pleasing to the eyes; in July, they miss the drizzling Ngau rain, as sad as a woman missing her husband; in August, they also enjoy moon cakes, the lanterns, but they miss the Co Ngu moon and crave the bustling and jubilant scene in Hang Gai, Hang Dao, Hang Ma…; in January, they miss the wind in Doi Diep during the evacuation, wearing a garrison coat over a varo and walking as if they wanted to fly to the sky, while their mouths still reciting the song “ Tay Tien ”; in December, they miss the wet streets, the cold drizzle…”.

The work Wandering on the Streets by Binh Nguyen Loc vividly recreates a vast cultural space: the land of Saigon in the early 20th century. It is not only a living space but also a space of affection, where generations, communities, and religions have lived together in harmony and bonded with each other for generations. From natural objects and phenomena (rivers, canals, trees, land) to things created by human hands.

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(bridges, roads, pagodas, temples, shrines), all are firmly attached to

each other in love of homeland and compatriots:

“The capital of the South is a new city. Trees, rocks, houses, streets, and customs have not yet acquired an ancient look. But in that state of lacking its own identity, fortunately, Saigon still has the Ông Lãnh River (…). The river is evocative, sometimes the clear blue water turns dark yellow because from the shallow bed the alluvium floats up, reminding us of the wild, barren land of Thủy Chân Lập, evoking the beautiful image of the people fighting with nature to exploit new land (…). So, after being away for ten years, I still remember Saigon. I don’t remember the big streets, the tasteless tall buildings because they are similar to those of other places, but I remember the small river, the suffering of carrying heavy fishing boats loaded with goods, the duty of a virtuous wife raising her young children, and the bewilderment of a country girl lost in the city”. ( Ông Lãnh River ).

Although taking the real life of the residents of Saigon in the 60s of the 20th century as the main theme, the artistic space in Binh Nguyen Loc's works expands further into the past, with rich and subtle comparisons and associations. In the midst of the colorful Saigon metropolis, the young man who left that peaceful and poetic Southeast region always felt lonely and endlessly miserable like someone who had just lost paradise. The cultural space imbued with affection and steadfast loyalty has forever become the past, only to be remembered and hoped for:

“ Peanut candy, Hue tea ? The invitation is not very nice, but it sounds very cheerful, because it comes from the mouth of a cheerful person, that person is nearly seventy years old and probably has no children, but no one has ever heard him complain once. Every night, he fans the stove to live leisurely days like the time when Saigon had no cars, the days when a piece of candy, a bowl of strong Hue tea and a piece of betel, all three were sold together for a terrible price… one cent” ( Night Gift on Ong Lanh River ).

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tradition. Because the past is never separate but is the premise of the present, contemplations about it will help to perceive the laws of historical movement and the origin of national culture. If in novels and short stories, when recreating history, the writer must both ensure authenticity and be able to fictionalize to add appeal to the plot, characters, and details, then in essays , the expression of artistic fiction is not to add but to subtract. History is often not recreated as panoramic pictures, but only as flashbacks, echoes that have the meaning of enlightenment, urging, to strengthen faith, and give more strength to people in the present:

“We know that over the past several thousand years, all the invaders from the North and the West - Song, Yuan, Ming, Qing, French, and Americans - have buried their reputations and bones in this land! The mountains at Hung Temple should have been as high as the clouds! The temples and mausoleums here should have been majestic and imposing. The fiery words could have been engraved on bronze statues. But here, the mountains are still calm, the trees and grass are gentle! The temples and mausoleums are still humble and kind. I read the words of comrade Le Duan, discreetly hung on the wall, and was deeply moved: “During the Hung King period, our society lived in a very healthy and peaceful way. The villages were close-knit, the upper and lower classes were in harmony, the king and his subjects bathed in the same river, drank the same water (…). On the foundation of the Hung Kings' period of nation building, we will build a completely new life, a prosperous, civilized and modern society, in which the most precious heritages from thousands of years ago will be preserved and promoted" ( From Khue Van attic to Trung Tan restaurant - Che Lan Vien).

Historical inspiration in essays is not only expressed in the tendency to seek to exploit the meaning of past values ​​but also helps to discover the historical stature of events and phenomena that are happening. The sense of time in the essay From Khue Van ac to Trung Tan restaurant by Che Lan Vien is imbued with national and historical inspiration. With a keen intellect and sharp cultural sense, the author has looked throughout the historical process to discover the miraculous circulation of the underground stream of national traditions. Infinite gratitude to ancestors, sense of responsibility