Drafting 'Entering the Court of Lord Trinh' by Lê Hữu Trác

DRAFTING 'ENTERING THE COURT OF LORD TRINH', concise 1

DRAFTING 'ENTERING THE COURT OF LORD TRINH', CONCISE 2

I. Author

1. Biography
- Lê Hữu Trác (17207–1791), also known as Lê Hữu Huân, pen named Hải Thượng Lãn Ông, was a renowned physician and late 18th-century Vietnamese writer.
- He hailed from Liêu Xá village, Đường Hào district, Thượng Hồng prefecture, Hải Dương province (now part of Yên Mỹ district, Hưng Yên province).
- Beyond being a physician, Lê Hữu Trác was also a medical educator. He authored books and established schools to propagate the medical profession to future generations.

2. Career
- Lê Hữu Trác's career is compiled in the Y tông tâm lĩnh (Essence of Medicine), consisting of 66 volumes, compiled over almost forty years, and fully printed in 1866..
- This work inherits and innovates upon the medical predecessors' works of many generations, considered as the 'encyclopedia of 18th-century medicine'.
- Apart from its brilliant scientific value, the Essence of Medicine also holds significant literary merit. Not only its poetic sections but even the author's purely scientific notes resonate with readers like literary works. Among them, Records of the Imperial Capital stands out as the most exceptional.

II. Work 'Records of the Imperial Capital'

1. Circumstances of Birth

- The work was written in 1782, during a trip from Hương Sơn to Thăng Long to treat the illnesses of Lord Trịnh Sâm's family, concluding with Lê Hữu Trác's return to his hometown.
- Records of the Imperial Capital was engraved in 1885, placed at the end of the Essence of Medicine as an appendix.

2. Genre Characteristics – Written in Han script.
- A record is a genre that chronicles a real and relatively complete story or event.

3. Content and Artistic Values

a. Main Contents
- It paints a vivid picture of the social life in the capital city, especially the life in the Lord's Street during the Le-Trinh period. By constructing sketches in the form of caricatures, the work presents a realistic, colorful view, either sentimentally humorous or solemnly witty.
- By depicting various distinctive characters, the work faintly reveals the typical traits of the ruling class with its selfish and frail nature.
- It serves as a self-portrait, allowing us to encounter Lê Hữu Trác, an honest individual, always avoiding social conventions, indifferent to fame and fortune, disdainful of those who prosper at the expense of others, yet sincerely attached to friends and youthful memories.

b. Scene of the Lord's Palace
- External Scene: + Upon entering the palace, one must pass through many doors, with 'twisting corridors connecting continuously'.
+ At each door, there are doorkeepers who announce the names of those who wish to enter the palace, and there are guards. In the palace compound, there is a brothel, with someone guarding the property bustlingly, and people with official duties coming and going like ants.

c. Activities in the Lord's Palace
- The palace's lifestyle is directly and indirectly depicted through the author's keen observation and meticulous notes.
+ Lord Trịnh always has concubines around. The author did not see a lord but followed the orders conveyed by the chief courtier, not allowed to communicate with the lord after diagnosing, only permitted to write a letter to be presented to the lord through the chief courtier. The inner court is so solemn that the author had to hold his breath, wait from afar, sneak close to see the pulse.
+ The prince, though only five or six years old, when diagnosed, the author had to bow four times, after checking the pulse, had to bow four times before retreating. To examine the prince's body, one had to have an inner imperial official come and ask permission to remove the prince's clothes.

- The excerpt demonstrates the author's keen observation, recording, and subtle portrayal, with details, no matter how small, leaving a strong impression. Details like the prince, a child, sitting on a gold tray for the physician, an old man bowing reverently, then laughing with a word of praise 'This gentleman bows skillfully'..
- The description of the prince's room is so detailed that it makes the reader feel suffocated. No need for explanation, the cause of Lord Trịnh Cán's illness can be seen. The author even pays attention to details inside the curtain, where the Lord is sitting, with several workers bustling about. Wax lamps shining, making the makeup and red clothes stand out. Sparkling around, the scent of flowers is intoxicating.
- The revelry and luxury of the lord's house are displayed before the reader's eyes without needing any further commentary.
- The author's poetry further demonstrates the power and wealth of the lord's palace: 'Thousands of soldiers carry copper strictly / The whole southern sky is here. The poetry in Records of the Imperial Capital is a distinctive feature of Lê Hữu Trác. They differ from the poems in legendary tales as they directly express the author's emotions.

B. Personal Reflections.

What was the author's attitude, mood, and thoughts when 'Entering Lord Trịnh's Palace'? What thoughts does the image of the physician evoke?

a) - Before the scenes witnessed in Lord Trịnh's Palace, Lê Hữu Trác did not directly express his attitude, but through sharp observations, one can somewhat discern the writer's attitude.
+ Witnessing the lavish scene of the lord's palace, the author remarked, 'Only by stepping here do you truly see the richness of the king's realm.' In his poem, he writes, 'The most magnificent in the South.'
+ When invited to dine, the author commented, 'Golden trays, silver bowls, and exotic delicacies, I only now know the taste of the wealthy.'
+ The entrance to the prince's inner court was described as 'dark inside, no visible gates.' The inner court scene is also detailed to reinforce the author's observations.
+ Speaking of the prince's condition, the author remarked, 'because the prince is under the shelter of the palace curtains, overeating and overwrapping, leading to a weakened body.'
- Through these details, it can be seen that, despite praising the beauty, the change to the lord's palace, the author remained indifferent to these material temptations, and did not agree with the overly extravagant life in the royal court.

- The emotional development of Lê Hữu Trác while treating the Trinh C prince's illness is quite complex.
+ Lê Hữu Trác understood the prince's illness well, proposed more diagnoses: convincing and with the right treatment, but was afraid that if there were no immediate results, he would lose trust and be bound by fame. To avoid this annoyance, the physician chose a cautious treatment, providing medicine without reward or punishment.
+ However, immediately, Lê Hữu Trác had thoughts that, if done like that, it would go against medical ethics, contrary to the conscience of a true physician, disappointing the expectations of his ancestors.
+ These two thoughts conflicted. In the end, his conscience, the honest quality of a true physician, prevailed. Lê Hữu Trác put aside his personal calculations to fulfill his responsibility.
- Although the Chief Courtier hesitated, most physicians in the lord's palace showed disagreement, but Lê Hữu Trác still straightforwardly proposed his own treatment method and firmly defended his principles. This demonstrates his courage and medical talent.