Ngu Phong Poetry and Literature Collection Seen from an Artistic Perspective

Poetry translation:

I feel the worldly fate and the willow tree (root).

(Due to the simple and inspiring letter written by Chu Thiet Nhai)

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Sobbing for someone, hard to swallow sadness, With life still entangled in deep debt of fate.

(Reading the letter Chu Thiet Nhai sent to his friend left in the box, feelings)

There were times when Nguyen Quang Bich's sad mood made him "want to go home":

Poetry translation:

Half of the career is in vain, Ten fish in the door is not in vain.

Peace and tranquility are like Buddha's carvings. Returning home, I only see a few fragments of a book.

(Tu quy)

Half a lifetime of career still failed, Ten things in mind are not finished yet. Wish for peace like before, Go home to read old books leisurely.

(Looking back)

Although he wished to return, Nguyen Quang Bich still had no intention of giving up the fighting path. He understood that his dream was hopeless because the peaceful days of the past were no longer there, he could no longer return to be a leisurely Confucian scholar reading books every day. He understood that he had to stay to take on the role of a strategic general, continuing to lead the Can Vuong resistance movement. Nguyen Quang Bich had many worries and concerns, but out of ten things, nine were not finished, so if we understand his thoughts, we will see the sadness contained in them.

how is his soul. It seems to be a sad sadness when some are dead and some are alive:

Some are alive, some are dead, bored with life.

(Funeral oration for the military governor and high-ranking mandarin of the Nguyen family)

Thus, Ngu Phong's tragic thoughts are the persistent contradiction that has haunted him throughout his life, a man with a strong patriotism, a strong sense of hatred for the enemy, but feels powerless before the enemy. The depth of that tragic mood is the unfulfilled ambition.

Through studying the era and the person Nguyen Quang Bich, we can see that the cause of his tragedy was due to the harsh limitations of the class of the era.

Coming from a family of mandarins, Nguyen Quang Bich was somewhat imbued with the feudal ideology of "Loyalty to the King". However, at this time, feudal society entered the twilight period of crisis and decline, a series of peasant uprisings broke out to abolish the corrupt feudal regime that was no longer suitable for the times. At that time, the French colonialists opened fire at the Da Nang seaport, starting their invasion of our country, making the country's already crisis situation even more critical. At this time, our nation faced two fundamental contradictions: class contradiction and national contradiction.

Faced with that situation, the head of state, the Hue court, showed weakness and gave in to the enemy just to maintain the rotten throne. Therefore, the Nguyen court was no longer worthy of being a wise king that the people could trust and protect.

As a loyal subject, Nguyen Quang Bich did not serve the court blindly. He still maintained the noble qualities of a mandarin.

Confucian scholars were always loyal and patriotic. A typical example is that during his life, he traveled to China many times under the royal decree of King Ham Nghi...

As for feelings, during the resistance war, Nguyen Quang Bich always had sincere feelings for the people, but he did not realize their strength to unite them into a powerful force for the insurgent army. He did not see the strength of the masses, did not believe in the fighting spirit of the masses. He only knew how to rely on a number of comrades and the forces supported by the Qing Dynasty. Therefore, when the Qing Dynasty withdrew its troops and some comrades were sacrificed, his pessimistic mood arose.

All of the above created a tragic feeling in Nguyen Quang Bich's soul and that was also the common mood of patriotic scholars and intellectuals who fought against the French at that time.

Thus, we can understand that the tragic sentiments in the Ngu Phong poetry collection by Nguyen Quang Bich are the unfulfilled but never lost ambition in him. Although the poetry collection is mainly sad, what remains in the reader's soul is a sincere emotion before a mirror that always worries about the people and the country and is responsible for life.

2.1.4 Love of nature and country

Nguyen Quang Bich's patriotism is not only expressed in his love for the people, hatred for the enemy,... but also in his love for nature.

Nature in Nguyen Quang Bich's poetry is the Red River with red water, the Thao River with the color of rain, the towering mountains, the winding streams scattered here and there throughout the vast Northwest region. Especially under the pen of Nguyen Quang Bich, the Northwest nature appears with its unique colors, its own distinct flavors. In the Ngu Phong poetry collection, the image of a rock, a stream or a waterfall appears in a heroic way.

majestic, rugged, towering, rushing with the roaring sounds of wind and rushing water. All of these images and sounds are closely coordinated by Nguyen Quang Bich to express his sincere feelings.

When passing a waterfall, the natural scene was sketched majestically by him:

Poetry translation:

Three thousand stones in the middle are all good, Stone halberd three times one fear.

(The Great Lament of the Field Wind)

In the rolling waves, the rocks are precarious, The waves rise up and look terrifying.

(Through the great waterfall of Dien Phong)

The clear spring water and the roaring sound of the water like thunder create an endless power:

Brave as thunder, rushing in the sun, clear as ice and cold as jade.

(Sitting on the stone mountain)

Poetry translation:

Sound like thunder rumbling, clear as red ice and snow flowing.

(Sitting on the stream watching rocks)

From the space of white streams, Nguyen Quang Bich continues to direct his pen to describe the majestic mountain scenery, which is the image of mountains suddenly breaking through the nine layers of clouds:

The stone wind blows thousands of feet, and beyond the sky, the eagles cannot reach it.

(The Way of Huai Lai)

Poetry translation:

The green mountain is a thousand feet high, towering over the sky, carved out of nothing.

(On Hoai Lai Street)

The description of wild but majestic nature seems to have fueled the fire of belief, strengthening the love and determination in the heart of patriotic writer Nguyen Quang Bich.

Sometimes, alone on horseback, he climbed a short mountain to look at the terrain to make a base to ambush and fight the enemy. Before the vast natural scenery, Nguyen Quang Bich saw himself as great with the will to destroy the enemy and save the country:

The mountain of the same heart can be moved, still asking about the road to travel.

(Dang Thai Binh Son)

Poetry translation:

A mind of one mind will surely move in the mountains, no need to worry about the bumpy road.

(Up to Thai Binh mountain)

The difficult steps, rapids, and dangerous situations brought by nature not only did not make Nguyen Quang Bich discouraged or disheartened, but also made his determination reach its peak. That was clearly shown when he passed Chien Than waterfall, a large waterfall on the Da River:

The water element is afraid of the blame, and the battle is very difficult. The water element is green and the ox roars, and the stone scales follow the ten thousand armors.

The snake array is like a dragon on the other shore,

Poetry translation:

The lion appears and disappears like a butterfly.

(Too Much War)

Boats going up the Da River's rapids are difficult, and Chien Than's rapids are even more difficult. The water is as rough as a buffalo's calf, and rocks grow like arrows.

The battle is like a snake crawling through a winding river, the army of fierce bears is like a wedge in the mountains.

(Through Chien Than waterfall)

Before the majestic image of mountains, before the lush green of deep forests and the shadow of clouds hovering over the mountain tops is the image of a traveler with a boat drifting in the middle of the river:

The throne is closed to the mysterious sky, the stone bones are buried in the grass and pine trees.

A lonely cloud hovers over the mountain range, A lonely guest sits in the middle of the continent for half his life.

(The Way of Huai Lai)

Translation:

Thousands of mountains towering high into the sky, with dense trees and overlapping rocks.

The shadow of a lonely cloud on the mountain top,

The boat of travelers in the middle of the river.

(On Hoai Lai Street)

With Nguyen Quang Bich's description, readers can feel that nature seems to be hugging each other, trees hugging mountains, rocks clinging to the forest. Moreover, Nguyen Quang Bich is also very talented in taking nature.

However, to express himself, while he was pointing his pen up high on the mountain, he pulled his pen down to describe the shadow of the traveler on the river. The person appearing in the natural picture, though small, is extremely resilient and it is that natural scene that makes all thoughts and fatigue disappear:

Then in a moment it all disappeared,

Perhaps the sacred dragon has gone away.

(On Hoai Lai Street)

The sincere confessions and deep emotions before the majestic and immense natural scenery expressed Nguyen Quang Bich's passionate love for nature. He once confessed that he had no talent for writing poetry, but because he saw the scenery, he felt inspired. Therefore, in his poems, his words were very simple and easy to understand, but contained a very deep patriotism, a courageous confession before the country was trampled by foreign invaders.

2.2. Ngu Phong poetry and literary collection viewed from an artistic perspective

2.2.1. Realistic style

The life of fighting against the French and wandering throughout the Northwest for six years or the arduous and long journeys to China to ask for help created opportunities for Nguyen Quang Bich to live amidst the beautiful and majestic nature of the Fatherland. At the same time, that life helped him to live with ethnic minorities with simple customs and beautiful habits. Especially there, it created conditions for him to deeply experience the melancholy and sorrow of writers who loved their country but felt helpless and had a premonition of ultimate failure.

Nguyen Quang Bich composed many poems and prose during his revolutionary activities. The poems and prose he composed anywhere and anytime contained a sincere heart before the scenes before his eyes or around him:

After getting drunk, the sweet and sour rice turns into a star. I ask the moon in the third watch of the night. The blue robe flutters in the sky, I can't tell if the sound of the stream has a sound.

(Son Luong's residence)

Poetry translation:

Sober up after a good night's sleep, the clock asks the child about the moon's shadow.

In the forest, the sky rumbled, the sound of the stream or the sound of rain again.

(Staying in Son Luong)

The realistic content in his poetry, although still limited by feudal ideology, is expressed in a quite vivid artistic form, so it has had a profound impact on readers.

Although written in Chinese characters, Nguyen Quang Bich's poems and prose originate from the great and genuine thoughts and feelings of the times and the people, and their forms are not formulaic, so they are not dry but on the contrary, full of poetry and vitality. Majestic nature appears with large, sharp shapes mixed with the sounds of waterfalls and birds, no longer the forced poetic scenes of "fishermen, woodcutters, watchmen, and shepherds":

The mountains and rivers are like a fortress. The mountains and rivers are like moats. The heart is filled with rocks and streams.

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