Reflection on the Character Trang in the Short Story The Fruit-picker's Wife

Prompt: Reflecting on the character Trang in the short story The Fruit-picker's Wife

Appreciation of the Character Trang in the Captivating Short Story The Fruit-picker's Wife
 

I. Outline Appreciation of the Character Trang in the Short Story The Fruit-picker's Wife (Standard)

1. Introduction:

- Introduction to the author, the work
- Introduction to the character Trang

2. Body of the Essay:

a. Trang's Background and Appearance
- Background: Living in poverty, residing in a makeshift settlement with his elderly mother.
- Appearance: rough, ugly 'his rough face', 'small eyes', 'limping walk', ...

b. The Situation Where Trang 'Picks Up' His Wife

- Context:
+ Amidst the famine of 1945, when Trang was pulling a hired cart for the association, he encountered Thi sitting by the roadside waiting to pick up fallen grains.
+ After two meetings and sharing four bowls of rice pudding along with a teasing remark, Thi agreed to go home with Trang and became his wife.

c. Trang's Emotions on the Way Back:
- On the way home, Trang was extremely happy, his eyes sparkling with joy.
- This happiness made him completely forget his current situation.
=> It was the first time Trang had experienced such happiness, he didn't know what to call it, he just felt overwhelming joy in his heart.

d. Trang's Emotions upon Arriving Home:
- He felt embarrassed and awkward right in his own house.
- For the first time, he obediently replied to his mother, then 'smiled happily'.
=> Happiness flooded his soul, he couldn't believe his longings had randomly come true like this.

- The next morning:
+ For the first time, Trang realized that his home was truly a warm nest, different and warmer than usual.
+ Trang suddenly became deeper, more responsible, thinking about distant matters, about the time when Trang had children, a warm and happy family.

- The sound of the drum calling for gathering echoed, in Trang's mind appeared the red flag with a group of hungry people walking on the dyke.

=> These are the first subtle hints of revolutionary consciousness that Kim Lân wishes to convey in his work.

e. Artistic Excellence:
- The story's situations are remarkable, surprising, and logical.
- Vivid and profound character descriptions.
- Authentic portrayal of the famine of 1945 => profound artistic and humanitarian values.

3. Conclusion:

- Reaffirmation of the issue.

II. Sample Essay Reflection on the Character Trang in the Short Story The Fruit-picker's Wife (Standard)

Kim Lân is a writer known for his focus on peasants and rural life, most notably in the work The Fruit-picker's Wife. The Fruit-picker's Wife is a vivid portrayal of the famine of 1945. Amidst the hunger and hardship, one can glimpse the shining light of love, compassion, sharing, and the longing for happiness directed towards human life. Through the character of Trang, we can see the beauty of compassion and the fierce vitality within people during the famine.

The Fruit-picker's Wife was published in the collection Ugly Dog in 1962, shortly after the famine of 1945. The story is a harmonious blend of reality and humanitarian values, all expressed through the character of Trang.

Speaking of Trang, one recalls a person whose appearance, character, and circumstances all belong to the 'lowly' category. In terms of appearance, Trang is a rough and ugly individual with 'a rough face,' 'small eyes,' 'a large and clumsy body,' 'a back as broad as a bear's.' Not only that, but Trang is also a resident of a makeshift settlement earning a living by pulling hired carts of rice. His mother and Trang live in a dilapidated house surrounded by overgrown weeds. Even in speech, Trang lacks refinement, speaking rudely and incoherently, with the habit of 'talking while walking,' and 'rambling about whatever crosses his mind.' With all these traits, it is difficult for Trang to find a wife even under normal circumstances, let alone during a famine.

However, life is full of surprises. Trang, impoverished and unattractive as he is, amidst those hungry years, managed to have a 'wife,' even 'picked up' a wife. What a surprising turn of events!

The situation occurred as Trang was pulling a cart of rice and encountered Thi sitting on the roadside waiting to 'pick up the fallen grains.' At that moment, he jokingly shouted, 'Want to eat rice for a few ribs this big! Come here and push the cart with me, hey!'. Upon hearing this, Thi promptly ran out to push the cart with Trang, even 'glancing, smiling affectionately' at him. This particular incident left a lasting impression on Trang because 'from birth until now, no girl has smiled at him so affectionately.'

Later, he encountered Thi again, but by then Thi had become even more emaciated and worn-out' her clothes were as tattered as a spider's web, Thi's face had become gaunt, with only her eyes visible.' Thi boldly approached Trang, demanding him to treat her to a meal. Upon Trang's agreement, Thi 'ate a pair of four bowls of rice pudding.' In that chance encounter, Trang teased Thi, saying, 'Hey, joking aside, if you come back with me, just load your stuff on the cart and let's go home together.' Surprisingly, Thi followed Trang home for real. With just two meetings, four bowls of rice pudding, and his half-joking, half-serious remark, he got a 'wife.'

Trang's words were a joke, but they concealed a longing for his own shelter, a longing for love and happiness, and Thi was perhaps the one who helped him achieve that.

He joked, and Thi agreed for real, then he suddenly 'thought,'Theses grains are barely enough for myself, let alone carrying a burden.' Yet, 'after not knowing what to think,' was it the longing for happiness within him that made him 'bite his tongue: never mind' or what?

Trang and Thi came together amidst the famine ravaging everywhere, 'people dying like flies.' Knowing that being together was a burden amidst this hunger, Trang was nevertheless joyful and willing to share his already scarce life with Thi. Because deep inside, he always yearned for happiness, yearned for a shelter that had been lurking within him for a long time, and now, it might have become a reality.

On the way back, happiness was evident on Trang's face, he was unusually elated, 'there was something peculiarly pleasant about him. He chuckled to himself, and his eyes sparkled,' completely different from the 'weary steps' of the past. In that joy, Trang forgot everything, 'forgot all the bleak, dark living conditions, forgot even the frightening hunger threatening, forgot the days before his eyes,' because in his heart, there was only happiness and 'the bond between him and the woman walking beside him.' That feeling permeated his flesh, 'as if there were a gentle hand caressing his back,' which he had never felt before. Trang couldn't define it, but the joy was evident on his face, overflowing in his soul, making him 'delightfully laugh heartily.' The feeling of happiness, the joy of having a family, of having a wife to love, he had never experienced that feeling of joy and happiness before.

When he arrived home, for the first time in his life, in his own house, he became embarrassed, awkward, he snapped at Granny Tu - his mother when she came home late. He even felt 'frightened,' and 'he himself didn't know why he was afraid.' In this man, we can feel the extreme contradictions after he 'picked up' a wife. The feeling of joy, but also fear, happiness but also worry, he was happy because his long-standing longing had become a reality, yet worried because he didn't know how long this hunger would torment people, whether they would survive this period.

So many worries, so much turmoil in that man's mind, he still couldn't truly believe that he had a wife. He was still in a daze, still 'doubting as if it weren't true'. Could it be that the overwhelming joy made Trang unable to believe it right away? When talking to his mother, being advised by Granny, Trang also obediently complied - things that he had for the first time in that house.

Kim Lan has cleverly constructed a situation that is unexpected yet very reasonable, encompassing both humanitarian and profound content values. This is the love that Kim Lan gives to poor peasants, to simple laborers.

The next morning, he woke up when 'the sun rose like a hoe,' yet he didn't feel tiredness, only 'a sense of peace, floating like someone emerging from a dream.' Happiness for him still seemed vague, the joy of having a wife, a family making him 'still bewildered as if not real'.

For the first time, Trang realized that his home was truly a shelter for human life, he suddenly felt more responsible, becoming deeper and more serious 'Suddenly he felt the need to worry about his future wife and children.' Since when did Trang think about more distant things, having children, having a warm, happy family? That made him happier than ever!

The first family meal of the three, he suddenly became a good son when Granny Tu mentioned the future, a future where they would have chickens, a brighter, better future. At that moment, 'Trang just obeyed. Trang obeyed very obediently. Never before in this house has the mother and son been so warm and harmonious.' Thị's presence in Trang's life has transformed him into a good son, a responsible husband. Although it was the first meal of the daughter-in-law, it was just thin porridge, a dish 'like a lump of bitter and choking rice bran.'

The sound of the tax collector's drum startled Trang, he 'looked thoughtful' when he heard his wife say, 'In the Mạn area of Thái Nguyên, Bắc Giang, people don't pay taxes anymore.' He also thought of the people who had raided the Japanese rice storehouses that he had met on the way to hauling rice, 'suddenly he felt regret, pity, inexplicable.' Could these be the first hints of the revolutionary consciousness that Kim Lan wanted to incorporate into his work?

Kim Lan has portrayed the image of poor laborers during the famine of 1945 exceptionally well. He has depicted the most authentic picture of the famine that caused two million of our compatriots to die, those who survived had to struggle like ghosts. The development of the character Trang is also depicted very vividly, very realistically.

Trang is a typical character representing the poor laborers during the famine of 1945. They are materially poor, but not poor in love. They are willing to share with others, to shelter the weaker ones to together strive for a brighter future.

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The Wife Who Picks Fruits is an unparalleled masterpiece in Vietnamese literature. To delve deeper into the work and its characters, one can explore articles such as An Insight into the Character of Mrs. Tu in The Wife Who Picks Fruits, Demonstrating the significance of the anonymous fruit-picking wife in the short story The Wife Who Picks Fruits..., Appreciating the Maternal Beauty of Mrs. Tu in the work The Wife Who Picks Fruits, Analyzing the humanity and hopefulness in life portrayed by the characters in the short story The Wife Who Picks Fruits.