Insight of the Author through the Poem 'Self-Reflection 2'

Prompt: Insight of the Author through the Poem 'Self-Reflection 2' by Hồ Xuân Hương

Sample analysis of the author's insight through the poem Self-Reflection 2 by Hồ Xuân Hương

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Hồ Xuân Hương is dubbed as the Mother Goddess of Nom Poetry. In Vietnamese literature, she is considered a unique phenomenon because although she is a female poet, her writings about women are remarkably outstanding. In her Nom poetry, the image of women emerges with beauty and aspirations for happiness. The poem Self-Reflection II - one of the three poems by Hồ Xuân Hương - reflects the author's melancholy and resentment towards the unfortunate fate, expressing a desire for happiness.

The beginning of the poem 'Self-Reflection II' portrays the author's sorrow during the late night:

'In the late night, the drum sound echoes
Leaving behind the fair complexion with water and land'

During the late hours, typically, one would feel lonely, small. Xuân Hương feels lonely amidst the flowing time. The author reuses the motif 'echoing', if in Self-Reflection I it was the line 'The sound of the rooster echoing crowing on the pump', here it is 'echoing the drum in the courtyard'. It evokes the continuous urgency of the drum sounds, it evokes the rush of time making the person's mood even more confused. At that moment, the author feels 'leaving behind the fair complexion', which is a feeling of despair, desolation. It's like the scene of Kiều being abandoned alone in the Ngưng Bích pavilion. And 'fair complexion' refers to the beauty of the young woman going with 'the', implying more disdain, mockery. The line expresses the author's desolate mood before the space and time of the late night.

In that mood, the woman turns to the wine cup:

'The fragrant wine cup brings intoxication back to sobriety
The moonlight shadow is not yet full'

A tragedy occurs when the moon is about to wane 'the shadow is not yet full' to show us that the youth of the woman is about to pass, about to end, but why is the fate not complete. That woman turns to the wine cup to dispel the sadness to forget this bitter reality but why is it so bitter 'the fragrant wine cup brings' the fragrance of wine has a bitter taste but the scent of love still remains. 'Intoxication back to sobriety' is an image evoking a cycle of torment for them to feel even more pain. Reading the line, we are reminded of Kiều's feelings in 'The sorrow of oneself'

'As sobriety returns when the night's end draws near
I startle, feeling sorry for myself again'

Xuân Hương's pain, even more poignant when the wine's affection is at the moon's waning.

Then, the author expresses her frustration spreading across the earth 'Sideways across the ground, moss in clusters, Thrusting through the clouds' feet, several rocks' The imagery of nature in these two lines is extremely special. They are tiny creatures like those green moss clusters yet extremely tough. They grow sideways across the ground. The rocks are sturdy to 'thrust through the clouds' feet'. The inversion of verbs in the phrases 'Sideways' and 'thrusting through' to see the frustration of the fate of earth, rocks, and grass, small but very stubborn, resilient. This line alone demonstrates Xuân Hương's resilience. But she still cannot escape the laws of heaven and earth:

'Weary of spring coming and going
Small fragments of love shared, a little bit'