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>> Essays analyzing 'The Letter of the Death Row Inmate' scoring a perfect 10
Prompt: Analysis of the significance of contrasts in the scene where Huấn Cao carves letters in the prison in 'The Letter of the Death Row Inmate'
Analyzing the significance of contrasts in the scene where Huấn Cao carves letters in the prison in 'The Letter of the Death Row Inmate'
Essay
Nguyễn Tuân is a wordsmith, a literary virtuoso. Before the revolution, the work 'Echoes of a Bygone Era' affirmed the artistic prowess, eloquence, and uniqueness of Nguyễn Tuân's literary style. Among the 12 short stories of 'Echoes of a Bygone Era' (1940), the story 'The Letter of the Death Row Inmate' truly deserves a distinguished page, a genuine masterpiece that brings fragrance to life.
The story only has 3 characters: the death row inmate, the warden, and the poet, revolving around the request for and granting of writing. Through this, Nguyễn Tuân praises and affirms the true knight as highly talented, noble, resolute, and unwavering, even in death still upholding righteousness.
The story 'The Letter of the Death Row Inmate' showcases Nguyễn Tuân's exquisite writing style. The plot, events, and emotions are tightly woven, building artistic intrigue until the climax when the scene of writing unfolds as 'an unprecedented spectacle.' Nguyễn Tuân creatively crafts meaningful artistic contrasts in the description of Huấn Cao's writing scene within the prison.
Huấn Cao's writing is described as 'beautiful and square,' like 'a precious treasure in the world.' He doesn't write under coercion for wealth or power. In his lifetime, he only wrote two sets of couplets and a mid-autumn poem for three close friends. The warden, who 'reads noble books and holy scriptures,' yearns for a day when Huấn Cao will write a couplet for him to 'hang in his own home.' During their first encounter in the prison, the warden was almost driven away by Huấn Cao's harsh words: 'What do you want from me? I only want one thing. That your home stays away from disturbing me.' Yet, in the end, the scene of writing unfolds. Huấn Cao was touched by the warden's 'hidden kindness' and surprised by the 'noble interests' of the 'storyteller in confinement.' And he emotionally expressed, 'Had it not been for a little more, I would have lost a heart in the world.'
The contrasts in the writing scene are portrayed vividly. The requester of writing is the prison warden, the one who holds 'the power of water.' The one granting the writing is a death row inmate about to ascend the gallows. The 'mud-smudged' worker ironically enjoys playing with words, a 'noble interest.' The 'traitor' who has the skill to 'pick locks and escape prisons' also possesses the ability to write very quickly and beautifully, renowned throughout the world. In societal terms, Huấn Cao and the warden are adversaries, standing on 'opposing fronts,' yet in the artistic realm, they are kindred spirits, bonded by mutual understanding and loyalty. A rare encounter seldom seen in life.
'Calligraphy' is a high art form. Only those with literary talent and sophistication have a place in 'calligraphy.' Does 'calligraphy' ever take place in places of death, darkness, and filth? In terms of time, the scene of writing doesn't occur amidst the bright daylight but rather in the secrecy of the night, when the Sơn Prison is 'quietly echoing with the sound of temple bells.' In terms of space, where Huấn Cao writes the congratulatory couplets for the warden is the prison cell, 'a cramped, damp room, walls covered in cobwebs, spider nests, rat dung, and bed bugs.' The contrast to that darkness and filth is the 'glowing red light' of an oil-dipped torch, the 'pure white' color of the intact silk cloth stretched tightly on the plank, the 'fragrant scent' rising from the inkwell. Through this, we see that true knights of every era, no matter the dire circumstances, always strive towards light and purity to uphold the integrity and nobility of the soul.
Thus, we have delved into the sample essay analyzing the significance of contrasts in the scene of Huấn Cao's imprisonment in The Scribe of Death. Moving forward, to gain a deeper understanding of the characters in the story as well as the messages and meanings the author intends to convey, you can refer to the article The Art of Light and Shadow Usage in The Two Children and The Scribe of Death, Analyzing Huấn Cao's Attitude in the short story The Scribe of Death, Analysis of an Unprecedented Scene in The Scribe of Death, Analyzing Story Situations in the short story The Scribe of Death, analyzing the character Huấn Cao, ...
