Analyzing the surreal elements in The Tale of Tản Viên Temple

Prompt: Please analyze the surreal elements in The Tale of Tản Viên Temple.

Analyzing the surreal elements in The Tale of Tản Viên Temple

I. Outline for Analyzing the Surreal Elements in The Tale of Tản Viên Temple

1. Introduction

- Brief overview of the author, the work, and the surreal elements in the story.

2. Body

a. Fantastical Characters:

* The Ghost of General Thôi's Enemy:
- Dies in battle on Vietnamese soil, then becomes a malevolent spirit occupying the shrine of the Earth Deity, tormenting the people, representing the epitome of villainy in the story.
- Reflects a reality of that era, the rampant corruption, which causes distress among the people, demonstrated by his bribery of officials, even deceiving the supreme deity to act out his atrocities.
- Ngô Tử Văn symbolizes righteousness, personally destroying the shrine, leaving him with no refuge, yet he shamelessly disguises himself to enter Tử Văn's dream, warning him to rebuild the shrine with imposing and solemn words.
- Before the King of Hell, he uses deceitful and cunning words to falsely accuse Tử Văn, leading to his punishment.
- His fate ends with being gagged and sent to the Nine-Fold Dungeon.

* Earth Deity:
- Has a prominent background, serving as an official in life, dying for the king's cause, posthumously honored as the Earth Deity, bestowed with the temple.
- Gentle and accommodating, yielding to the enemy general Thôi.
- Assists Tử Văn in winning a legal case in the mortal realm.

* King of Hell:
- Overseer of the underworld, serving as the judge.
- Initially deceived by the crafty words of the Thôi family's enemy, then upon realizing Ngô Tử Văn's honesty, immediately becomes lucid, delivering fair judgment.
- Sentences the Thôi family member, while allowing Tử Văn to return to the mortal realm.

* Demon Envoys, Dạ Xoa: Create a vibrant atmosphere, full of colors, showcasing solemnity and caution in the underworld, thereby evoking interest in readers.

* Ngô Tử Văn:
- Dreamt of the enemy general Thôi, then was taken to the underworld to bear punishment, the most fantastical and striking aspect of this character is the experience of death and resurrection after meeting the King of Hell.
=> Reveals a righteous truth, where good deeds are rewarded, not unfairly condemned to death, proving the presence of justice not only in the mortal realm but anywhere.
- Accepts the Earth Deity's offer without illness but in return for a heavenly existence.

b. Fantastical Setting:
- Ngô Tử Văn's dream connects the realms of the living and the dead, where he meets and converses with the enemy general Thôi and the Earth Deity before being taken to meet the King of Hell.
- The underworld space is vividly described by Nguyễn Dữ as extremely vivid and enticing: 'There is a large river, on which there is a bridge more than a thousand yards long, the wind is foul, the waves are gray, the cold penetrates the bone. On both sides of the bridge, there are tens of thousands of demon envoys with red eyes and green hair, with fierce appearances...' opening up a terrifying, chilling underworld space, consistent with what humans often imagine about hell.
=> Highlights the character traits of Ngô Tử Văn, including courage, composure, and strong will, the upright tree that stands unafraid of death.

3. Conclusion:

Present remarks.
 

II. Sample Essay Analyzing the Surreal Elements in The Tale of Tản Viên Temple

In the 15th century, Nguyễn Trãi was regarded as the most outstanding medieval literary figure, but by the 16th century, we cannot overlook two exemplary names: Nguyễn Bỉnh Khiêm and Nguyễn Dữ. Nguyễn Dữ, living in the 16th century, hailed from Đỗ Tùng, Trường Tân, now part of Thanh Miện, Hải Dương, born into a scholarly family. He was once an excellent student of the magistrate Nguyễn Bỉnh Khiêm, thus he took the imperial examination and passed the Hương Tiến (equivalent to a bachelor's degree today) and served as an official for a short period before retiring to Thanh Hóa, never to return to the capital. His literary career left behind only the collection of stories titled 'Legendary Anecdotes.' Nguyễn Dữ is credited with introducing the term 'legendary anecdotes' into Vietnamese medieval literature, and he excelled in this genre. The collection 'Legendary Anecdotes' consists of 20 stories, evaluated as ancient masterpieces, representing the pinnacle of the legendary genre. 'The Tale of Tản Viên Temple Dispute' is one of the notable stories from this collection, narrating the character Ngô Tử Văn with surreal and fantastical details, not only enhancing the story's allure but also reflecting our people's belief in the righteousness of good deeds, where good begets good, and evil faces retribution.

The first surreal element in the work must be the appearance of characters from the underworld, unlike in conventional stories where characters are divine and lofty, bringing readers new experiences, stimulating curiosity, and leaving a profound impression on the plot. The first character from the underworld, serving as the origin for all subsequent developments, is the enemy general Thôi, defeated in battle, dying on Vietnamese soil, then becoming a malevolent spirit occupying the shrine of the Earth Deity, tormenting the people. It is evident that this is the most typical villainous character in the story. While alive, this character was an enemy, so upon death, he could only become a malevolent spirit wreaking havoc among the populace, forever despised and feared. Not only that, but this enemy also reflects a reality of that era, the rampant corruption, causing distress among the people. This is demonstrated by his bribery of officials, even deceiving the supreme deity to act out his atrocities. When the character Ngô Tử Văn, representing righteousness, personally destroys the shrine, leaving him with no refuge, this enemy shamelessly disguises himself to enter Tử Văn's dream, warning him to rebuild the shrine with imposing and solemn words. But seeing Tử Văn calmly facing death, he turns angrily, threatening, 'The imperial city is not far away, though I may be weak, I will not fail to bring your family there. If you don't listen to me, you'll see.' And as if to prove his point, that very night, this enemy does not spare Tử Văn, causing him to descend to the underworld. Before the King of Hell, this enemy once again plays the role of the Earth Deity, accused of burning the shrine, using deceitful and cunning words, to falsely accuse Tử Văn, leading to his punishment. However, upon seeing Tử Văn present evidence of his innocence, this enemy immediately changes his tune, pleading for the King of Hell to forgive Tử Văn in order to avoid punishment, with words that express extreme hypocrisy: '...pleading for leniency for him to have broad virtue. Without seeking vengeance, if unfortunately guilty, he is afraid it will harm the virtuous offspring,' every word placing human virtue above all else, but in reality, he is afraid of his own misdeeds being exposed, hence the hasty appeasement. Indeed, old habits die hard, even in death, he does not forget to be deceitful, and his fate ends no better than being gagged and sent to the Nine-Fold Dungeon.

The second character is the Earth Deity, in the story described as an official under the reign of Emperor Lý Nam Đế, due to meritorious service to the king, he was granted the title of Earth Deity and a shrine, enjoying the people's incense. When meeting Tử Văn, he appears with a leisurely demeanor, benevolent and honest, thus having to yield to the enemy Thôi's chaos. It can be seen that the Earth Deity is the representative character of the righteous faction, the one who is harmed, having to suffer before the scourge of corruption and the flattery of evil spirits. In the story, this character is the one who points out to Ngô Tử Văn when he must serve the King of Hell in the underworld, and helps him win the case while the enemy Thôi must be punished. The combination of the Earth Deity and Ngô Tử Văn in the story often reminds us of the assistance of gods and Buddhas to the main character in folk tales and fairy tales. Just a little different here, Ngô Tử Văn does not entirely rely on the teachings of the Earth Deity, but most importantly on his own demeanor, his courageous spirit, and his honest heart, unafraid of the evil-doer. The collaboration between the Earth Deity and Ngô Tử Văn can be likened to the unity of our people in the process of resisting foreign invaders, here representing the unity of the righteous faction when facing evil and corruption rampant.

The character King of Hell is the head of the underworld, playing the role of judge in the story. Initially, when faced with the false and cunning accusations of the enemy general Thôi, King of Hell was deceived and inclined to punish Tử Văn for supposedly destroying the shrine, a place where gods and Buddhas took refuge. However, after a heated argument and proper adjudication, upon seeing Ngô Tử Văn provide genuine evidence, the King of Hell immediately recognizes the truth, restores justice to Tử Văn, and simultaneously punishes the enemy Thôi to curb his wicked nature, specializing in evil acts that disturb the people and like to spout nonsense. Other characters like the demon Dạ Xoa, the demon envoy contribute to making the underworld more vivid, colorful, expressing solemnity, and caution in the underworld, thereby arousing interest for the reader.