Buzz
In Nguyen Du's Tale of Kieu, we witness a plethora of linguistic styles. We encounter numerous phrases that resonate with colloquial expressions:
- Only at seven does the breath become clear
Jealousy is no stranger to the jealous!
- Do not trade this moon for that flower
Furthermore, who hosts what event with whom.
The verses are equally profound:
A hundred years tally the round and square of life
One must carefully explore the origins of streams and rivers.
Constructed as an insight from the everyday simple lives of the people with language, proverbial wisdom, and the exploration of space and origins of streams and rivers, awareness, and investigation. Nothing is unfamiliar to us, yet through Nguyen Du's creative and skillful use, it conveys an immensely profound meaning about a righteous human concept.
We encounter in folk songs images, ways of expression:
Oh lad, why burden yourself with a concubine
A concubine is like cold rice, only to relieve hunger in the village.
In Nguyen Du's Tale of Kieu, the art of metaphorical comparison is exemplified:
A concubine like a flower detached from its branch
And the lad, a butterfly dancing around the rim.
The creative use of proverbs:
- Why worry about that matter
A fly in the bowl doesn't bother the ox.
- Saying: she's a snake a thousand miles away
Yet brings back words, whether good or bad, from afar.
- Just like the bitter melon of a neighborhood
- Once in a blue moon, thieves and old ladies meet.
We can cite numerous examples in the Tale of Kieu, where Nguyen Du employed the language and speech of the people in daily life. This familiarity with the language makes the Tale of Kieu close to the people and imbued with a strong national character.
On the other hand, the language in the Tale of Kieu is deliberately scholarly, using a classical style. With meticulously refined language usage. In the Tale of Kieu, Nguyen Du employed many allusions, using Sino-Vietnamese words to give it a deliberately scholarly tone. It can be said that those classical allusions are numerous:
- Every step on thorns amidst strawberries
Then what need has that person to do
- Sticky chaos entwines surplus threads, leaving her aside.
- Snow and mist shield the sandy body.
....
The skillful use of Sino-Vietnamese words adds gravitas to the verses: destiny, soldier's love, willow tree, wandering spring, golden ounce, peach blossom, silk tassel, sunset, beauty queen, silver coin, official's retirement, official's banquet,...
The meticulously refined and skillful language in the Tale of Kieu has painted exquisite pictures:
- Sparkling depths imprint the sky on water.
The city built, smoke tints the mountains, casting golden shadows.
- Green grass shivers beneath the sky
White pear branches dotted with a few flowers
- Under the moon, the lychee has called summer
At the wall's end, grenade flowers bloom profusely
Beneath the bridge, water flows gently
By the willow bridge, the afternoon shadow elegantly sways.
We see the language of the Tale of Kieu filled with vivid, lively imagery, full of elegant colors.
In the Tale of Kieu, we encounter numerous allegorical images for comparison, enriching the verses with vivid imagery and nuanced expressions.
A distinctive feature in this manner of expression is always using nature as the standard for the beauty of human life. Therefore, this aspect is always articulated through descriptions of natural phenomena.
To speak of women, Nguyen Du speaks of flowers, willows.
Heavy heart pities the willow for its flowers
It is a heart of compassion, love for the delicate woman like a willow tree, beautiful like a flower. Or the speech of women is also expressed through the beauty of nature:
Flower laughs with jade lips elegant and graceful
... Flower loses to willow in envy, slightly lacking in green.
The allegorical language is creatively employed, rendering the poetic language profound and meaningful.
In the Tale of Kieu, Nguyen Du employed various forms of comparison: superiority, equality...
Kieu grows more clever and charming
Comparing talent, her part is superior.
Comparing two individuals with each other.
Using two objects to describe humans with the notion of equality:
- Just like a neighborhood where meat is sold and people are traded.
- Just like the bitter melon of a district.
- Once in a blue moon, thieves and old ladies meet.
- The more the new fire is extinguished, the stronger it burns.
Humanization techniques are depicted in the Tale of Kieu.
Last year's peach blossoms still laugh in the winter wind
Flower loses to willow in envy, slightly lacking in green
The language in the Tale of Kieu is a language rich in symbolic imagery.
Speaking of sadness is speaking of sunset, twilight:
Sadness gazes at the broken door at dusk
Whose boat's sail faintly stretches in the distance.
Using nature to depict the flowing stream of time:
Lotus cruelly withers, then blooms. Grief flowers enduring from short winter days to long springs.
Or:
Taro, corn, pumpkin intertwine with golden leaves
Another success we see in the language of the Tale of Kieu is the precise language that cannot be replaced by any other language:
Depend on you, you must heed my words
Sit down, then I'll respectfully address you.
Depend, heed, and address here may seem unfitting with the scene, but in fact, they are precise and irreplaceable.
There are types of precise language to the extent that just one word can fully express the character's personality. It speaks to the essence of the character.
For example, the word 'boorish' to describe the uncouth, uneducated nature of Ma Giam Sinh:
On the chair he sits, boorish and crude.
The word 'slick' to describe Tu Ba:
Weary, with a greasy complexion
What big meal, plentiful and abundant.
The word 'iron-faced' only for Ho Ton Hien:
Gazing upon the black iron face
It's the language that assassinates characters, showcasing Nguyen Du's mastery of language.
The language in the Tale of Kieu is an incredibly fascinating subject that we can explore on many levels. It's persuasive and compelling to the extent that it's irreplaceable. Nguyen Du has used and developed a language with enduring vitality, unparalleled perfection.
The scene of a spring day is a prominent lesson in Lesson 6 of the Grade 9 Literature textbook, where students need to Prepare for the scene of a spring day, preview the content, and answer questions in the textbook.
So we have suggested The Beauty of Language in the Tale of Kieu for the next lesson. Students need to prepare thoroughly for the content Summary of the Tale of Kieu and along with the section Prepare for Kieu meeting Tu Hai to study Vietnamese Language better.
Sisters Thuy Kieu is a crucial lesson in the Grade 9 Literature curriculum that students need to pay special attention to.
