Analyzing the Kieu excerpt at Ngung Bich Pavilion reveals that Nguyen Du has created a painting of emotions and depth.

Topic: Analyze the Kieu excerpt at Ngung Bich Pavilion to see that Nguyen Du has created a painting of emotions.

Analyzing the excerpt of Kieu at Ngung Bich Pavilion reveals that Nguyen Du has crafted a painting of emotions.

I. Outline of Analyzing the Kieu excerpt at Ngung Bich Pavilion to see that Nguyen Du has created a painting of emotions

1. Introduction

- Introduction to Nguyen Du and the work The Tale of Kieu
- Introduction to the Kieu excerpt at Ngung Bich Pavilion: part of the beginning of the work, after Kieu sells herself to save her father and falls into the hands of Tu Ba
- The excerpt is a portrayal of Kieu's emotional turmoil and suffering -> Some argue, 'Through the excerpt, ... emotional state.'

2. Body of the Essay

* Express your opinion on the above statement:
- This is a completely accurate observation: The excerpt depicts the confused emotions of Kieu when she realizes she has fallen into the life of the pavilion.
- The significance of the statement: Nguyen Du's compassionate heart helped him create this painting of humane emotions...(Continued)

>> See details of the Outline Analyze the Kieu excerpt at Ngung Bich Pavilion to see that Nguyen Du has created a painting full of emotions here.

II. Sample Essay Analyzing the Kieu excerpt at Ngung Bich Pavilion to see that Nguyen Du has created a painting full of emotions

Truyen Kieu is one of the outstanding and representative poetic works in Nom literature of Vietnam. The work is Nguyen Du's profound expression of empathy for the unfortunate fates in life. He has successfully portrayed character traits and emotions through dialogue and actions. Especially in the excerpt 'Kieu at Ngung Bich Pavilion,' there is an assertion that 'Nguyen Du has constructed a touching emotional portrait through the image of Lady Kieu.'

After selling herself to save her father, Kieu thought she was being sold as a legitimate wife. Unexpectedly, she was deceived by Ma Giam Sinh, humiliated, and sold to the Courtesan for cosmetics and fragrances. In the clutches of the flesh merchant, overwhelmed with anger and suffering, Kieu decided to risk her life to preserve a shred of dignity. However, she was saved by the Courtesan, who only wanted to avoid losing a significant source of income. The Courtesan lured Kieu to live at Ngung Bich Pavilion with promises of finding a suitable marriage for her. Here, she lived in days full of sorrow, pain, and humiliation, longing for her lover and her parents back home. The excerpt 'Kieu at Ngung Bich Pavilion' vividly describes her emotional state during her time here. With his exceptional writing skills, Nguyen Du truly created a deeply emotional portrait, just as stated above. The scenery in the excerpt is also tainted with a gloomy, melancholic hue, evoking a sense of loneliness and sorrow within the unfortunate Lady Kieu.

Thuy Kieu, raised in an educated family, enjoyed the warm and gentle atmosphere of home, intoxicated in happiness with her lover Kim Trong. Little did she know, she would stumble into the dark twists of life. Deceived by Ma Giam Sinh and then Sở Khanh, she suffered blatant lies, physical abuse, humiliation—every conceivable pain seemed to rain down on her simultaneously. Her soul and body were tormented, trampled, and crushed by dark forces to the point where she desired death for liberation. However, life's fate spun her in a way that even in death, she found no release. Tú Bà saved her, bringing her to Ngung Bich Pavilion for confinement. In these days, a foreign land where no one was familiar, Kieu felt utterly alone, helpless, and pained. She confided in the surrounding scenery, pouring her feelings of agony into them as there was no one around to share her sorrows. Yet, Nguyen Du, closely following her footsteps, was the one behind describing and understanding the intricate feelings of Thuy Kieu—a woman of unparalleled beauty and virtue whom he deeply cherished and loved.

Reading the excerpt, in the very first lines, one immediately grasps the dire situation and the painful emotions of Kieu revealed in each word and every surrounding detail:

'Before Ngung Bich Pavilion locks in spring
The distant mountain and the near moon stay together
All around, far and wide, the view stretches

The loved ones of Kieu are now in a distant place; only Thuy Kieu remains living amidst the pack of wolves—Tu Ba, So Khanh, and others. Thus, for her, a distant mountain and a near moon become cherished companions, sharing her sorrows. The scenery at Ngung Bich Pavilion is vividly depicted with a few strokes, showcasing Nguyen Du's artistic talent. In front of the pavilion, there are vast mountains, a moon, pink dust, sandbanks, and more. The beauty is apparent, yet the pavilion acts like a jeweled cage restraining Kieu's footsteps. This is the confinement that Tu Ba imposes on Kieu before implementing other schemes to force Kieu to entertain guests. Ngung Bich Pavilion has 'locked in spring,' meaning it tightly locks Kieu's youthful years, imprisoning her feelings of longing, love, hope, and youth. The scenery appears truly beautiful, vast, and expansive, but amidst that vastness is only Kieu. Only she is alone in this place, desolate and forlorn. Nguyen Du borrowed the landscape for Kieu to express her feelings:

'The distant mountain and the near moon stay together
All around, far and wide, the view stretches
Golden sandbanks and pink dust miles away'

Despite the scenic view, the vastness, the 'far and wide' expansiveness, there is no one for her to confide in, to share her innermost thoughts. The more tranquil the scenery, the more it accentuates the painful loneliness of being alone in a foreign land. Near is a mountain, is a moon, far away is a golden sandbank emitting pink dust. However, why does it feel so cold, so desolate, almost cruel! Everything in this scene is chaotic, shrouded in mist, much like her own feelings and future. The descriptive technique of portraying the scenery while encapsulating emotions is maximized, revealing not only the surroundings but also the loneliness and confusion in Kieu's heart. Loneliness, poignant and heartbreaking, considering her fate, makes Kieu's inner world even more sorrowful:

'Dismal clouds in the early morning, lanterns late at night
Half in love, half in scenery, as if sharing a heart'

'Dismal' - the humiliation, pain, and shame of Kieu, as she no longer suffers from Ma Giam Sinh's disgrace but must endure stepping into a strange, vile, and filthy place. She feels truly shameful, painfully humiliated when she herself has to endure the fate of being a courtesan, ridiculed by everyone. Confined here, from darkness to light, and repeating that cycle, Thuy Kieu can only stay here, desolate and lonely. The vacant and silent space surrounds and traps her.

In the loneliest and saddest moments, she quietly reminisces, silently wiping away tears when thinking about the peaceful past. She remembers the one she loves, the first moments intoxicated with the warmth of a couple's happiness she once encountered. She also recalls the moonlit night when she and her lover made promises, swearing to be together forever. The longing for her lover surges within Kieu, making her infinitely more sorrowful:

'Thought you beneath the moonlit bronze cup
Believed the dew would bring the awaited morning
On the corner of the sky, deserted
The lipstick, washed, when will its color fade'

The happiness she experienced on the night she overcame obstacles to be with Kim is a vivid memory. The joyful moments raising a toast under the moonlight for vows, now remembered, are truly heart-wrenching. 'Thought' is placed at the beginning of the verse by Nguyen Du, making us feel as if the image of the talented young couple is appearing right before our eyes. Perhaps Kieu herself is reliving that moment in her reminiscence:

'The moon shimmering in the sky
Firmly two mouths, two parallel words'

She imagines that in distant Lưu Dương, Kim Trong still eagerly awaits news from her, hoping she will 'believe the dew will bring the awaited morning' in vain. Nguyen Du placed monologues from deep within her heart here. It's the lament of a heart still in love with its unfinished first love. She intensely remembers her lover! The vows made over a glass of wine that day still linger in her heart, and she knows that even if she goes far, even if there's a 'desolate corner of the sky,' in her heart, that love remains intact, pure. 'Lipstick' - the first love in her heart will never fade.

'Desolate corner of the sky
The lipstick, washed, when will its color fade'

Thinking of the love of Kim Trong, anxiously awaiting news from her, she is suddenly flooded with memories of her parents:

'Pity those by the door tomorrow
The fan is warm, cold for those waiting now
Sân Lai is how many suns and rains away
Perhaps the roots are just enough for someone to embrace'

Having left her homeland, her family, she is now wondering who takes care of her aged parents? She left out of filial duty, but she can't help but worry endlessly when thinking of her frail parents waiting in vain by the door. If above, remembering her lover is a reminiscence, here, thinking of her parents, she feels profound 'pity.' Kieu feels deeply distressed and tormented, unable to care for her elderly parents, causing them even more worry as they await news from her. Here, Nguyen Du uses a series of Chinese references like 'Sân Lai, gốc tử' to evoke Kieu's sentiments and filial piety toward her parents. She imagines her aging parents, 'perhaps the roots are just enough for someone to embrace,' yet she cannot be there to care for and comfort them. Hidden in the verses is self-blame, Kieu's regret for not fulfilling her filial duties.

Through eight verses recalling Kieu's memories, one realizes that Kieu is truly a filial child, a faithful lover with a rich sense of forgiveness. Despite living in days of suffering and agony, she cares not for her own pain but lives in the thought of her first love and filial piety towards her parents back home. She remembers Kim Trong because she feels guilty. She left without keeping her promise, without a word to him. As for her parents in the village, she partially fulfilled her filial duty by selling herself to save her father and family. Here, the reversed order, contrary to traditional rites, is remarkably fitting in Kieu's circumstances.

Kiều's emotional portrait unfolds in every word, every surrounding scene. It's as if her sorrows and yearnings are seeping into the scenery, tinting it with a mood. Just as Nguyen Du once said:

'The sorrowful find little joy ever'

Nguyen Du vividly depicted Kiều's sorrows, and in the following verses, a picture emerges of Kiều's emotional state as she contemplates the fate of her life:

'Sorrowful watching the evening gate
Whose boat glides with distant sails
Sorrowful gazing at the new river's flow
Flowers watch with a hint of knowing where it goes
Sorrowful looking at the wild grass within
Feet touch the water's surface, all in green
Sorrowful watching the wind lift the face
The roaring waves surround the sitting place'

A series of colloquial expressions and metaphors are employed by Nguyen Du here to emphasize, to delve deeper into the thoughts and feelings of Kiều. The repetition of the phrase 'sorrowful looking' is continuous in four consecutive verses, 'sorrowful looking' - a gaze filled with sadness, full of poignant emotions, each recurrence marks the beginning of a different scene. The repetition is to express Kiều's layered and repeated sorrow. That sadness is rising in space, time, enveloping the scenery around her, painting a vivid and emotionally charged picture. The layered and repeated sorrow is approaching, rolling endlessly in Thúy Kiều's heart.

Each pair of verses expresses a different sorrow of Kiều.

'Sorrowful watching the evening gate
Whose boat glides with distant sails'

The poem is Kiều's gaze extending far beyond the spatial scenery. In the evening scene, tinged with twilight, a sail is faintly visible, lonely and distant on the open sea. That sail, sometimes hidden, sometimes revealed in the vast waves, is solitary, forlorn. Perhaps, that's also the mood, the situation she's in now, equally lonely and isolated! Will there be a time when she returns to her homeland, back into the arms of loved ones?

Repeating the metaphor 'sorrowful looking,' but this time, the scene unfolds differently from the previous verse:

'Sorrowful watching the newly emerged current
Flowers look faintly, knowing not where to go'

Kiều's gaze is fixed on the gently flowing new water. On its surface is the image of a falling flower being carried away by the water. That petal floats lightly on the water, unaware of where the currents will take it. Perhaps, Kiều thinks, that's also her fate? Her destiny is akin to that flower petal, drifting along the rushing currents of life, uncertain where it will stop, falling into what kind of place? Yes, she is just a fragile, delicate flower, uncertain how many times life will crush her again. The image of the flower is a poignant portrayal of Kiều's self, echoing the ancient saying 'rosy cheeks' and expressing her anxious feelings about her life.

Looking further into the distance, she sees the far-reaching horizon, ahead is a blue expanse of the vast sea. However, in that beautifully green image, there are 'internal weeds bleakly' - a color of sadness, gloom, like the upcoming path of hers:

'Sorrowful looking at the withering internal grass
Foot of cloud, face of water, all in a green hue'

An 'internal grass bleakly' - a metaphor for fading, withering, not lush green but rather 'bleakly' withering. Perhaps, that internal grass also contains Kiều's dark and weary mood, a loneliness that her life will wither away over time, erode in this place? The slimy green hue of the sky is like a herald of the obscured, stormy future awaiting her.

Thinking about the storm, it seems within her heart there rises an ominous premonition, anticipations of the storms surrounding her life:

'Sorrowful looking as the wind sweeps the face flat
The roaring sound of waves echoing around the seat'

Next to the analysis of the excerpt from Kiều at Ngưng Bích, we can observe that Nguyễn Du has created an emotionally charged portrayal. Students may explore further: Impressions of the Kiều at Ngưng Bích excerpt, The movement of nature and human emotions in the excerpt of the Spring Scene and Kiều at Ngưng Bích, Analysis of the last eight verses in Kiều at Ngưng Bích, Analyzing the artistic depiction of Thúy Kiều's emotions in the Kiều at Ngưng Bích excerpt.