Expressing viewpoints on ancient beliefs: Women should not recount the tales of Thuy Van and Thuy Kieu.

Prompt: Express viewpoints on ancient beliefs: Women should not recount the tales of Thuy Van and Thuy Kieu.

Presenting insights into ancient beliefs: Women should refrain from recounting the stories of Thuy Van and Thuy Kieu.

I. Outline Presenting insights into ancient beliefs: Women should refrain from recounting the stories of Thuy Van and Thuy Kieu

1. Introduction

- Brief overview of feudal education.
- Introducing the ancestral saying 'Women should refrain from recounting the tales of Thuy Van and Thuy Kieu.'

2. Body

a. Origin and significance of the saying:

- Originating from the complete saying:

'Men should not recount tales of Phan and Tran
Women should not recount tales of Thuy Van and Thuy Kieu'

- Clearly demonstrates the ancient feudal beliefs regarding moral standards of individuals. The ancients and Confucianism often overlooked humanistic values, focusing solely on moral aspects through people's behaviors, judging good and bad based on outward appearances.
- Criticizes the love of Phan Sinh and Tran Kieu Lien, considering it as weakening and submissive for men.
- Criticizes the character Thuy Kieu for various reasons:
+ Bold in love, determined to marry Kim Trong.
+ Becoming a courtesan, living a debauched life.
+ Betraying Kim Trong, having multiple husbands, ruining the happiness of the family of Hoan Thu, Thuy Van.
=> Correct but one-sided, lacking empathy and understanding for the character's circumstances, overlooking Thuy Kieu's personality beauty.

b. Counterargument:

- The beauty, both in appearance and talent, of Thuy Kieu deserves recognition.
- As a filial daughter, in dire circumstances with no other choice but to sell herself as a wife to save her father and sibling.

c. Commentary on The Tale of Kieu:

- Demonstrates compassion, and respect for the fate of women under the harsh feudal regime.
- Accuses the injustices of the old regime for oppressing and causing much unhappiness to people.
=> The humanitarian, humanistic spirit ahead of the time by Nguyen Du.

3. Conclusion

- Express personal thoughts.

II. Sample Essay Presenting insights into ancient beliefs: Women should refrain from recounting the tales of Thuy Van and Thuy Kieu

Feudal rituals along with Confucianism, prevalent in the past, once confined individuals within certain frameworks. However, despite many noble thoughts and values influencing comprehensive human development, especially in the formation of moral character, this ideology still revealed many shortcomings. It imposed excessively strict standards on individuals, particularly on women under the feudal system, marginalizing them in society, elevating male superiority, and dismissing matters of love and romance as inconsequential. This rigidity in societal beliefs is epitomized in an old saying: 'Men should not recount tales of Phan and Tran, Women should not recount tales of Thuy Van and Thuy Kieu.'

In reality, living in modern society, upon thorough understanding of The Tale of Kieu or at least hearing about it, one cannot help but be surprised by a somewhat derogatory saying about the two main characters of this national pride. However, delving back into feudal rituals reveals the true content and significance of this saying. In fact, the complete saying is:

'Men should not recount tales of Phan and Tran
Women should not recount tales of Thuy Van and Thuy Kieu'

This widely known saying vividly reflects the conservative feudal beliefs about the moral standards of individuals. The ancients and Confucianism often failed to recognize humanistic values, focusing solely on moral aspects through people's behavior, judging good and bad based on outward appearances. As a result, all the goodness of humanity, or the suffering and hardships of individuals, were overlooked and disregarded. Criticisms were directed towards a beautiful love story that faced many obstacles in the poem of Phan Tran, involving the characters Phan Sinh and Tran Kieu Lien, simply because it took place in a peaceful monastery, considered worldly. Phan Sinh was criticized, teaching that men should not be like Phan Sinh because there is a part in the story where he, heartbroken by Kieu Lien's rejection, contemplates suicide. According to feudal beliefs, men, with their broad shoulders and steadfastness, should not be weakened by the typically fickle emotions of women, and thus become weak and submissive. Similarly, towards Thuy Kieu and Thuy Van, the eyes of the ancients became even more stringent, harsh, as feudal rituals oppressed and confined women completely. In the moral beliefs of the ancient Confucians, a woman's duty is to fulfill all 'virtues and conduct,' to uphold the 'three obediences and five constants,' to be obedient to the husband's family, to follow the husband's command, and the husband's son follows the son, not allowing any dual-mindedness, seeing men as heaven, and even matters of lifelong loyalty cannot be decided independently. Evaluating Thuy Kieu by Nguyen Du, it truly exceeded many standards of old moral ethics. The ancient scholars believed she did not uphold the duties of a woman, did not behave appropriately according to feudal rituals. Firstly, one must mention the fact that she crossed over the wall at midnight to meet her lover, Kim Trong, decided to be faithful to him, to freely engage in love without the consent of the elders. Secondly, the most criticized aspect of Thuy Kieu is that she became a courtesan for 15 years, accepting to be an object of pleasure for men of all walks of life with her innate beauty, whereas in the ancient society, courtesans were even lower than servants, being scorned and despised. It can be said that in the old-fashioned view, Thuy Kieu was a reckless woman, ignorant of integrity, living in the shame and filth of a life as a courtesan. Another fault of Thuy Kieu in that old view is that she betrayed her oath to Kim Trong, the man she had pledged to be faithful to, to fall into the arms of other men during 15 years of wandering. Some of the people she crossed paths with and intended to stay with forever were Ma Giam Sinh, So Khanh, Thuc Sinh, and finally Tu Hai. Thus, Thuy Kieu was considered a woman who did not maintain her honor and integrity, who did not know loyalty while living like husband and wife with many different men. Thuy Kieu was even hated, rejected in feudal society because she ruined the happiness of the families of Thuc Sinh, Hoan Thu, then returned after 15 years of wandering to destroy the happiness of Thuy Van and Kim Trong. To put it bluntly, Thuy Van's life seemed peaceful, happy, but the pain she endured when forced into a marriage with her sister's lover, and then when she shared her husband with her sister, perhaps deserves sympathy and sorrow.

Viewed through the lens of feudal rituals, Thuy Kieu finds it difficult to escape the accusations, as everything is too clear, but it must be said that the ancients' beliefs are still too harsh on women. The issue of Thuy Kieu cannot be considered in such a one-sided and conservative manner, as it overlooks all the tragic circumstances of Kieu's life, as well as disregards all the beauty in her character, failing to demonstrate humanity and compassion in her life, as well as failing to understand and empathize with the plight of women under the harsh feudal regime. Therefore, to evaluate comprehensively, we should adopt the progressive viewpoint of the modern world to judge this character. First, let's talk about the beauty and talent of Thuy Van, Thuy Kieu. Nguyen Du dedicated a whole verse to these two characters. Kieu not only possesses the beauty 'as lovely as the jealous flower or the faintly green willow' but she is also a perfect girl, versed in poetry, music, and painting, especially excelling in playing the guqin, a talent few can match. Secondly, she is a filial daughter, loving her family. When her family faced difficulties, a girl of 15 or 16 years old, weak in body, what else could she do besides selling herself? Furthermore, it must be carefully considered that Thuy Kieu did not intend to become a courtesan. Clearly, a girl raised in a sheltered environment could not act so recklessly; it was just her fate that she had to experience such hardships. It is clear that Kieu was forced to sever ties with Kim Trong, to sell herself to Ma Giam Sinh, a wealthy man over 40 years old, to redeem her father. Thuy Kieu was left with no other choice. But she did not expect that the Ma family would be involved in prostitution. From then on, she had to enter a world without escape, but how could Kieu accept the fate of becoming a courtesan? She attempted suicide twice but failed. If one uses reason to think, if a person fails to die twice, would they still want to seek it out a third time? The answer is difficult, but Thuy Kieu still longs for Kim Trong, a love that had just blossomed not long ago. For example, in the excerpt where Kieu is in Ngung Bich tower, there is a verse:

'Thinking of someone under the moon with a copper plate
Believing in the morning dew, waiting for the sun'

Kieu still fondly remembers Kim Trong, even before thinking of her family, her homeland; how could one say she betrayed, was unfaithful? That's unfair. Furthermore, it is said that Kieu in the green pavilion never had a happy day. She was deeply aware of her status and dignity, perhaps her soul was not with her body, the person smiling and speaking was not her, Kieu's heart was slowly dying over the years.

That's about Kieu's personality and worth. Then why did Thuy Kieu have to endure such a fate, perhaps the Confucian scholars of the feudal regime would never dare to admit it, because the society is too unjust, too corrupt, pushing Kieu into a fifteen-year tragedy. Who caused Thuy Kieu and her father to suffer, who gave birth to such a filthy brothel, where human trafficking openly takes place, and where the law of men having multiple wives and concubines causes Kieu, Hoan Thu, and Thuy Van to suffer? In the end, there is only one answer: the harsh and outdated feudal regime, the overly strict eyes of those who follow Confucianism pushed Kieu to the depths of tragedy. Kieu tried to resist, died, tried to find someone to help her out of the green pavilion, but in the end, Kieu was pushed back into the notorious den of vice.