Legends and anecdotes about historical figures in the South from the late 19th century and earlier

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admitted: " Alas, it was destroyed in time, Then it went to Phu Quoc to hide its name. In times of difficulty, it had to surrender, The law of justice was in Kien Giang for a long time" [153,94] .

The motif is also expressed in the event of voluntarily dying in place of the king. The mark of the event is related to the image of Le Lai saving the king in the old legend, because with his chivalrous character, the Southern people consider this a model that fosters heroic spirit. As the story of Lam Quang Ky tells: "Lam Quang Ky was determined to stand up and die in place of Mr. Nguyen so that he could continue to live and have a great will to fight the enemy. He devised a plan, disguised as Mr. Nguyen and surrendered..." (details according to legend: the Lam family in Vinh Hoa Dong still keeps a piece of cloth "the hem of Lam Quang Ky's shirt cut off when his young wife grabbed his shirt and begged him not to accept death in place of his commander").

The reasons for surrendering may have been fictionalized differently, but what can be seen is that surrendering is a sacrifice, a heroic act, and at the same time shows the hero's defeat in a tragic color.

Motif of Refusal of Persuasion

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The motif can appear independently or in succession with the Acceptance of Surrender. The enemy's efforts to persuade fallen heroes show their sinister nature, because this means to bring down or defame the opponent's reputation. In the harsh testing situation, the hero shows his spirit through his attitude and decisive actions.

The characters all resolutely refused the enemy's persuasion, steadfastly remaining loyal to the flag of justice. Like Do Tuong Phong, Do Tuong Tu : when captured, "The French tried their best to persuade him" "but he resolutely refused..."; Au Duong Lan was in trouble, "but he still resolutely refused to bow his head and submit..."; or Phan Cong Hon : "After many times of torture, failing to subdue him, the enemy became extremely angry", "They then took him out to be shot at Gia Dinh market..."...

The continuous development of the motifs shows that surrender and submission are completely different. The enemy with its cunning schemes can push the hero to the brink of defeat but cannot destroy the wall of will. As for Nguyen Trung Truc, the Annamese hero, in front of the enemy, clearly showed his will to "die rather than gain the enemy's admiration": "When the time came, Nguyen Trung Truc put on his martial arts uniform and carried his sword and went before the enemy. He drew his sword and slashed at the ground, preferring to lose his head than surrender..." (Nguyen Trung Truc accepted punishment) ...

Motif The Last Word

In the cultural consciousness, “speech is the purest symbol, representing the expression of the self, a self-thinking and self-expressing self, wanting to be understood.”

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understood and reconciled...” [23,528]. The words spoken in the final moments deeply contain the qualities and values of human being.

The motif is expressed with a strong impression. In terms of genre form, with the event of the final speech, there is an increase in the dialogue material in the legend.

These are bold words that clearly show the character's uprightness when facing death on a fierce battlefield or at the execution ground full of grief. Like the story about Duong Van Hanh, when the French captured and bribed him to show him Truong Dinh's location, "Mr. Hanh resolutely said: "I would rather die than let the enemy capture Mr. Dinh. Live as a king, die as a minister!..." (The Legend of the Headless God) ; about Nguyen Trung Truc, when he fell into the hands of the enemy, and was persuaded by the French using tricks, he said: "When the Westerners have uprooted all the grass in the South, then the South will no longer have people to fight the Westerners!..." (Nguyen Trung Truc accepts his punishment) ... Or at the execution ground, clearly showing the indomitable spirit, along with bold words, the characters had a resolute attitude. Like the First Prize Winner Huan: "Before being executed, the enemy brought him a tray of wine and meat to eat. He coldly kicked the tray of food over..." ( First Prize Winner Huan becomes a god) ...

The characters' short last words on the execution ground were used as advice, to show their will or to vent their anger. For example, Do Tuong Tu told his wife and children: "I will fight the French until I die. I forbid all my children and grandchildren from eating Western food..."; Trinh Viet Bang said: "When I die, bring my body back to bury at the Crossroads, so that my children and grandchildren will remember and not follow the enemy!"; he also told his comrades: "Try your best to accomplish the great task"; Phan Van Dat : "Please tell your comrades to try your best to make it a success..."; or Trinh Viet Bang : "After giving all the instructions, he stood up, prepared his clothes neatly, and calmly walked to the execution site..."... These words of advice show that until the last moment, the characters still had faith in the great cause that had not yet been accomplished, without regret or worry. On the other hand, to the enemy, these were brave words. As Do Tuong Tu boldly told the enemy: "Let me see the Western guns before I die..."...

Referring to the story of Hoang Hoa Tham, despite the cruel enemy, the insurgents remained steadfast and indomitable: “Someone, when sentenced to be beheaded, pushed the executioner away, not letting him tie him to the stake; or took a blindfold, then took off the scarf and gave it to him, saying: “I give this to you so you can remember this day…”... Or in the legend of Central Vietnam, Hoang Trong Mau said to the French spy: “If you are civilized bandits and respect me, then give me a bullet. Don’t ask any more nonsense questions...”. The resolute declarations before the moment of execution of the heroes who fought against the French are a concrete demonstration of the heroism of the nation.

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Plot: Writing a Death Poem

Like the contrast between “blood and flowers”, the dark execution ground echoed with the last verses of the poem. The motif is expressed in association with the concept that heroes are excellent people, both literary and martial. This is also associated with the reality that many of the leaders of the anti-French insurgents who raised the flag of righteousness to fight the enemy were patriotic intellectuals with a literary background. By showing their righteousness through the last verses of the poem, the hero stood above the situation with a proud spirit. Like Nguyen Huu Huan : “It is said that before the execution, he wrote a couplet...”; “Before dying, Thong Linh calmly recited two verses of poetry...” (Mr. Thong Linh) ; or about Nguyen Trung Truc, in a story, “It is said that before his execution, he also wrote a quatrain...”...

On the literary level, these are folk tales that are linked with scholarly poetry, creating a point of intersection between two parts of national literature.

Curse the Enemy Motif

In fairy tales, this motif appears when the innocent characters at the last moment realize the evil plot of the enemy. It becomes the only way to vent their anger, associated with the belief in the real power of “instant retribution”, according to traditional folk and religious thought. Like the curse of Mr. Dau and Mrs. Dau against the crimes of the Ly Dynasty king (Why did the To Lich and Thien Phu rivers narrow) , this is the eternal anger of the mountains, rivers, and earth against the existing evil and its destruction.

In legends, curses are also the sounds of hatred uttered from resentment. For example: Ho Huan Nghiep , falling into the hands of the enemy, "He endlessly insulted the French colonialists' ambition..."; Truong Dinh's Eighteen Heroes : "I regret not being able to eat your liver and drink your blood", "Each of them cursed Tan, before being shot dead by Huynh Cong Tan's henchmen..."; or Phan Van Dat loudly cursed the enemy : "You are dogs and pigs... I am so angry that I cannot chew your flesh, and when I die, I will become a ghost and help the insurgents kill you all to satisfy my will..."...

Motif of the Punished Character

Regarding the realistic basis of the event of the character being executed, the outbreak of the anti-French uprising movement across the country was finally suppressed, the leaders and soldiers sacrificed heroically on the battlefield and bravely faced death at the execution ground.

The motif imprint is expressed in the forms of event information and event description. The first form records and summarizes the event. As the story of Vam Ho Cu tells: "The insurgents lost the battle. Quan Bach was captured by the enemy and was taken to be executed at

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My Tho trial..."; or about Dang Khanh Tinh : "Finally, the French executed and beheaded him at Go Cong market..."... The second form more clearly exposes the inhumane actions of the enemy. As the story The Legend of the Headless God tells: "... they used a split bamboo stick to clamp around his neck, then cut off his head and threw his body into the river..."; the story of Phan Van Dat loudly scolding the enemy tells: "The enemy used a large iron hook to hook his throat and then hung his body on the mast of their ship anchored at Vung Gu market (Tan An) for three days..."...; or about the righteous soldiers and the masses who remained loyal: "... were captured by the French and showed them the location of the Binh Tay Dai Nguyen Soai's military camp", " The two brothers tricked and led them through the mud all day without finding anything", "the enemy was so mad that they executed two people..." (Rather die than betray) ...

These are tragic images in the “final battle”, enhancing the hero's qualities.

The Horror Executioner Motif

The motif represents the plot's unique features. The event is shown in a dramatic situation: at the invader's execution ground, the executioner begged and apologized, while the person being executed remained calm and dignified in the face of death.

As the story of Nguyen Trung Truc being executed tells: Bon Tua “put down his knife, knelt down on the ground, bowed and begged Mr. Nguyen for forgiveness. Mr. Nguyen said: “What wrong have you done to apologize? You followed Lang Sa’s orders... But remember to cut me once, or I will wring your throat!”; in the story Thu Khoa Huan Thanh Than , the executioner was a local who followed the enemy, “he looked scared, hesitated, and did not dare to swing his knife. Mr. Truc looked at him and said: “You have a duty, just do it, don’t let it get to you!”. Hearing that, the executioner dared to act. As soon as he finished cutting, he immediately knelt down and bowed to Mr. Nguyen four times...”; or about Phan Cong Hon : “Before being executed, he asked the executioner to give him a really good knife...”... The hero’s majesty and dignity made the executioner terrified. Evil and meanness were subdued by the hero’s courage and righteousness.

Motif The Strange Falling Head

The concept of “strange” means abnormality, strangeness, to highlight the sacredness of the hero’s death. The motif has a special mark, with the development of events having the climax of the event of the character being punished.

As for Nguyen Trung Truc, when he was beheaded, "His two hands held his head...". In particular, the heroic spirit was concentrated, until the moment of death, his "benevolent" eyes still appeared to punish the tyrants: "His eyes rolled back, his eyeballs rolled back and forth, looking straight at the executioner, he was panicked...", "the French soldiers were terrified..." (Nguyen Trung Truc accepted the punishment) ; or Le Quang Quan : "According to legend, his head

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kept in a bamboo basket, his eyes were still wide open. A henchman who made fun of him was immediately strangled by his spirit..."... The "strange" event continued later. Like about the Four Heroes : "the bandits buried the heads of the Four Gentlemen in the canal. The souls of the Four Gentlemen continued to appear and cause fire"; or about Mr. Nguyen , the abnormality that followed made "the French extremely terrified"...

These are normal deaths according to the logic of life, the magical aspect highlighted is the abnormality of death. In essence, it is a return to the motif of miraculous death, in which the extraordinary and magnificent things in people's perception of the hero are mainly spiritual, not deeply idealized like in ancient legends.

The enemy's excuse

The aggressor’s excuse only appears once, but it has a very special meaning. As the story “ Rather Die Than Betray” tells: “The French major turned to the participants, his face red, and said: “Those are heroes. In Greece, people can cast statues to worship them. But here, we must execute them!” In fact, two anonymous characters, two ordinary people, whose names are unknown, gave the colonial enemy a great lesson, something that they could not perceive.

Motif The inspiration of nature

The motif appears in the epilogue of the story, associated with a sense of reality: when the hero sacrifices, the space is gloomy. As the story of Mr. Nguyen tells: "At that time, Rach Gia rained heavily for three days and nights..."; or Mr. Thong Linh : "After Thong Linh died", "the sky poured heavy rain for three days and three nights..."... Here, the space becomes sacred in the harmony between people, the earth and the sky, and the souls of the heroes who "died for the country".

The motif is related to ancient legends, the story of the Four Great Kings of the Dinh Dynasty during the Hung Kings' reign says: "When they died, the sky and earth shook, heavy rain, thunder and lightning flashed for three days without stopping..."; General Dang respected the god in Nghe An: "When he died, the sky and earth darkened, heavy rain and strong wind..."; or when Le Lai sacrificed, "the earth was sad, the sky was sad, people shed tears"...

Motif People receive bad news

Regarding the motif, the event first manifested itself in the strong, unexpected reaction of the people when they heard the news that the leader of the insurgent army had fallen into the hands of the enemy. As Nguyen Huu Huan tells: “... the people of Tan An and My Tho suddenly marched across the fields to My Tho market. Each person carried on their heads a blank piece of paper, called “trang bach”, demanding that the French release Thu Khoa Huan”. An unimaginable act of struggle.

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but the image of the hero's righteous spirit and the people's heart and attitude lingers. Along with that is the shock and bewilderment when hearing the news of the leader of the insurgent army going to the execution ground, like another level of indifference and grief. Like when Nguyen Trung Truc was executed, the people cried and mourned: "The Ta Nien people" "cried and spread cotton mats covering the road Mr. Nguyen walked", "Everyone knelt down and bowed three times to thank him, respectfully offering and sacrificing him..."; or Au Duong Lan was executed at the execution ground in Con Rong, "the people of Dinh Tuong mourned..."...

The expressions show the deep feelings, as well as the will and belief of the people in the hero whose history of victory has made the nation's existence eternal. Failure is inevitable.

Motif: Finding and burying the body, setting up a tomb

The motif expresses the spiritual meaning and traditional morality. The event of relatives and people searching for the body took place in the space of the execution ground, creating an atmosphere of grief and indignation. Like the daughter of Thu Khoa Huan "wearing a long dress to the execution site to visit her father's head. Unexpectedly, a Frenchman took his head and threw it back to her. She quickly used both hands to lift the hem of her long dress to catch the head..." ( Thu Khoa Huan becomes a god) ; Au Duong Lan at the execution ground in Con Rong, when the executioner struck, "the daughter held out the hem of her white silk dress to catch the head"...; or with Tran Van Thien , relatives were heartbroken and resentful: the younger brother who buried the head, "hated the bandits so much that he never let his children learn French"... Events also took place outside the execution ground, like about Nguyen Trung Truc: "The people secretly divided themselves day and night to go everywhere to find his body..." (Mr. Nguyen) ...

Regarding burial and tomb building, the story of Thu Khoa Huan tells: "His grave was built high, in the family land..."... Confirming the existence as well as silently and persistently preserving the graves shows the spiritual mark and heart of the people towards the heroes who sacrificed for the country.

Worship motif at pagodas, temples, shrines ...

The motif's imprint is expressed in connection with a series of events: burial, tomb building, building pagodas, temples, shrines... to worship. As Phan Van Dat's story tells: when he was executed by the enemy, "People all over the area were extremely sad and mournful, competing to burn gold and incense to worship him"; about Truong Cong Luan : " People of Tang Hoa brought his body back to Go hamlet for burial and built a temple to worship him"; about Nguyen Van Qua : "People brought Mr. Qua's body back to My Hanh for burial and later built a temple to worship him"; or about Do Tuong Phong, Do Tuong Tu , "people around the market built a temple to worship him..."...

With their reverence, the people have elevated historical heroes to the position of close and sacred objects of worship.

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Motif People Cover the Enemy's Eyes

The motif is related to worship at pagodas, temples, shrines.... This is also a difficult confrontation of the people against the colonial authorities, deeply expressing the respect and gratitude for national heroes.

As for Thong Linh, “the shrine was disguised as a Quan Cong shrine, commonly known as the Ba Ong Pagoda...” (Mr. Thong Linh) ; about Dang Khanh Tinh , “That very night, the people of Go Cong sympathized and used gold and silver paper money to cover his body. When the French questioned this matter, the people said, “Because he was a traitor”...”; about Duong Van Hanh, “The villagers of Ly Nhon commune searched for his body to bury, made a stone tomb, and later built a temple to worship him right at the place where he was beheaded, “but had to hide his name and call him “The Headless God” ; or about Mr. Nguyen : “10 years later, someone found his head” and “brought it back to worship at Vinh Hue Temple. Later, the people brought him back to worship at Ca Ong Temple”; when questioned by the French, the village chief answered: “Mr. Nguyen died because of loyalty, so we worship him” (Kiem Bat Kien Giang) ...

Epiphany motif

The motif is expressed with the mark of a sacred land. For example: "where Mr. Nguyen died, every night still resounded the sound of trumpets urging the army, the sound of soldiers cheering, the sound of weapons clashing. The French living nearby never had a peaceful sleep" (or: some soldiers planted a banyan tree on top of the grave, often secretly coming to bow and beg for forgiveness from the French); about the Four Heroes , several decades later, "Unexpectedly, many consecutive nights, many large, red flames from the graves of the Four Heroes escaped and then flashed down to the neighborhoods around the District, causing many terrifying fires"...

In particular, the magic is created from the perception of the event, as Nguyen Huu Huan said, "The people here explained that "Truong Dinh's soldiers and Thu Khoa Huan's army followed the storm to destroy the Western fort...".... This is the "storm" of the sacred spirit, the spirit of the brave warriors who are forever determined to destroy the enemy.

The epiphany shows the concept that national heroes are those who "Live to fight, die to fight, their souls follow to help the army", also showing the immortal vitality of heroes.

Motif Save place names, songs, idioms

The place name that is preserved can be the vestige of a stronghold or a place where a leader or general of the militia fought for resistance. For example: "The people call the creek where Quan Bach established a base to continue fighting the French Vam Ho Cu ".

The motif's imprint is also associated with a series of worship events in pagodas, temples, shrines..., meaning the recognition and commemoration of the hero, such as: "People worship him in

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Quan De Pagoda in My Ngai village. People also named the market at the beginning of the village after him, Thong Linh market" (Mr. Thong Linh) ...

Motif Reminder, Legendary Stele

With their merits for the people, the heroes are forever remembered on the "oral stele". The motif appears in some stories in the form of a narrative. For example: "Quan Hon's uprising failed. Quan Hon was captured and killed, but his name is forever remembered in history, on the stele" (Phan Cong Hon) ; "Although the French forbade mentioning his reputation, every time people passed through the canal, they still remembered Quan Bach and his army and still called this place Vam Ho Cu ... Or in the form of poetry: "To this day, posterity still circulates a poem praising Thong Linh..." (Mr. Thong Linh) ....

In general, in the third stage of the plot, there is an increase in the motif group about the people. This is the smoldering power of the people's hearts that is expressed accurately and is no less tragic, because in the unequal confrontation with the invaders, the people only have a heart of pain and perseverance. The sacred worship space, the steadfast heart of the people..., over the years have deepened the merit of the heroes and preserved the sacred spirit that lasts forever with the mountains and rivers.

In short, in the stories, the deaths on the fierce battlefield or the tragic execution ground and the ending of “wandering somewhere” are all tragic. The death is expressed as having a connection with historical reality and at the same time “contains a human meaning”. According to religious concepts, people live and die according to their fate, but the fate of those who sacrifice themselves for a great cause is ready to sacrifice for the country. This is not fate but a challenging situation with a fierce nature, for the elite to demonstrate their qualities and values, thereby creating the qualities and quintessence of the nation. The image of the hero with failure and a resilient death has become a beautiful symbol of the national hero.

In general, the system of legends about the uprising against the French has built a common image of the characters of the leaders and generals of the insurgent army with characteristics of origin, health, talent, fighting achievements and even defeat... In which, besides the victorious ending, the final part mostly tells about loss and sacrifice as an inevitability, because it is the reality, the "tragedy" of the historical circumstances being recreated, but it is also the "heroic", the courage to fight the invaders of the national hero. In other words, in the artistic expression of the system of legends, in the ideal of praising the heroic cause, there is both the noble heroism and the tragic sorrow.

Legends and anecdotes about historical figures in the South from the late 19th century and earlier - 14

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