Top 5 Best Analyses of the Folk Verse 'Being a Son Worthy of Strength' - Ngữ văn 10

In our country's treasury of folklore, folk verses and proverbs hold a crucial position. They contribute a considerable wealth of beautiful poems, expressing the sentiments of Vietnamese farmers of old. Among them, the folk verse:

Being a son worthy of strength,

Stooping to support a pillow, carrying two sesame seeds on the back.

Conveys a humorous, satirical spirit. It mocks the young men, tall and strong, yet lazy, averse to labor, incapable of doing anything worthwhile for their families and society. The folk verse uses exaggeration and contrast to enhance humor and satire. Our ancestors have long said, 'Tall and strong,' to refer to young men in the prime of their youth, full of vitality. This is the age of strength and health.

Uncle Ho also had words about young people: 'Youth is not needed. Nothing is difficult with youth,' or the verse:

“Nothing is too difficult

If your determination is strong.

To dig a mountain, to fill a sea,

Firm determination will accomplish it.”

These portray the robust health of young people, full of vigor, in their twenties, inspiring many ideas and dreams. However, in this folk verse, our ancestors painted the portrait of an extremely humorous young man, full of sarcasm. It reflects the laziness of the young man, depicting the labor he performs as not grand tasks like digging mountains or filling seas, but simply 'Stooping to support a pillow, carrying two sesame seeds on the back.' The imagery of 'stooping' and 'supporting a pillow' indicates that a person must exert strength, engage in a strenuous task, like carrying the heavy burden of earth and stone, breaking rocks and the like. However, our young man has to stoop and support a pillow, signifying a lack of health, weakness due to prolonged idleness, akin to a person paralyzed for a long time.

The folk verse sarcastically portrays these lazy young men who refuse to move their limbs, causing their health to deteriorate over time, much like a plant that withers away from staying in one place for too long. When tasked with carrying two sesame seeds, they have to stoop and support a pillow, indicating their lack of strength, weakness from long-term idleness, resembling a long-term paralyzed person trying to carry two sesame seeds.

Moreover, the folk verse wants to mock and satirize these weak and indecisive young men, lacking the will to fight, the lack of dreams and ambitions in life, only knowing to wander around their homes, causing their bodies to become feeble, weak, squandering their youthful years on trivial matters that do not contribute to a large, useful career for society, not befitting the role of a worthy son.

The treasury of Vietnamese folk verses is extremely rich, carrying profound ideological and artistic values that evoke a range of emotions, allowing us to empathize with the sentiments of ancient laborers. And the proverbial folklore mentions the vices of the ancients, especially the male gender. The people of old held beliefs about men:

'Being a son worthy of strength,

Going down in winter, going up in summer.'

Or:

'Being a son, resolute and threefold-minded,

To reveal the face of a true hero must be steadfast.'

In the medieval literary period, Confucian scholars believed:

'Being a son standing in the heavens and on earth,

Must have a reputation with mountains and rivers.'

Or:

'The will of a Southern, Northern, Eastern, Western son,

Waves and sways in the four seas.'

Every time they mentioned a man, they always referred to the idealized concept of a national hero—extraordinary strength, exceptional talent—accomplishing great deeds for others to admire. But in the proverbial folk verse, the ancient laborers speak of the vices of men:

'Being a son worthy of strength,

A hundred banquets, none surpasses any other.'

The phrase 'being a son' itself encompasses praise, expectations, affirming the courage and strength that a man should possess. Only then can one understand why the proverbial verse is structured so distinctly, with the first part as an affirmation of the natural qualities a man should possess (qualities that should naturally be endowed from birth, in accordance with life's laws). However, the subject of folk humor and general satire often points to unnatural phenomena for amusement. Just like:

'Being a son worthy of strength,

Stooping to support a pillow, carrying two sesame seeds on the back.'

Or:

'A hero is a straw hero,

We give up the fire for the sake of a hero.'

The proverbial verse with an affirmative statement in the first part is entirely contradictory in the second part. The image of the male entirely contradicts the common belief of the people, utilizing the contrast technique combined with metaphorical language to emphasize these qualities. A man must undertake great responsibilities in life, not be like the young man in the proverbial verse who only enjoys feasts, revels in drunkenness, neglects family and responsibility—a burden to society. Such a person is unworthy of being a man in life. Just like the heroes in ancient society who had dreams, aspirations, and the consciousness to confront reality, even if that reality was as dark and mysterious as it could be, they courageously sought solutions. A man must face the truth in life, not spend days in drunkenness, neglecting wife, children, and family, becoming a burden in society. Such a person is unworthy of being a man in life. A young person like us, living in an increasingly developed society, must continuously strive, rise with dreams and aspirations, to make life joyful and meaningful. Especially, a man must have bold thoughts, dreams to contribute to the construction of the nation, developing society for the better.

Within the treasury of our nation's folk proverbs, there are countless verses sung by the working people, covering topics of love, parental love, nostalgic sorrow, and more. All are encapsulated in these tender verses. Among them, there are also humorous verses, but with a fierce satirical attitude. The following proverb is one such example, focusing on mocking those who are gluttonous but lazy in their work. It satirizes a young man seemingly feeble, unable to accomplish even seemingly trivial tasks.

Being a son worthy of strength,

Stooping to support a pillow, carrying two sesame seeds on the back.

This proverbial verse expresses a critical attitude, reflecting those who are gluttonous, lazy, and satirizing a young man who appears weak and incapable of accomplishing any meaningful work. It brings about unfavorable outcomes for both the individual and society.

The verse vividly portrays a humorous and interesting image through exaggeration and contrasting techniques. The ancients often praised the strength and vigor of young men who could move mountains and fill seas. In ancient times, there were often writings praising a young man, such as 'Born with a reputation in heaven and earth, what does he owe to mountains and rivers.' We've all heard children singing the nursery rhyme, 'Carrying, carrying, hauling, hauling, carrying rivers, carrying markets.'

Furthermore, the essence here is the fate of young men burdened with the debt of their homeland. Yet, here is an unusually feeble young man, which is unacceptable. A young man stooping and bending to carry a series of descriptions of a laborious and difficult image. The term 'carrying' is often used when carrying something very heavy for a long distance, seemingly only the act of carrying can help that person carry multiple items at once.

However, upon reaching the last word, one cannot help but be astonished by what is being 'carried' here. What this young man has to exert effort to 'stoop' and 'bend' for is merely two sesame seeds. Laughter seems to burst forth from the contrasting details beyond imagination. And after that laughter is the expression of the mocking attitude of people when encountering those thick in eating but thin in doing, lazy, and feeble.

Through the tone of that concise proverbial verse, we seem to understand the content of the verse in two meanings. The first meaning is that the weak condition of this young man is due to his parents giving birth to him, yet he refuses to train to have a robust and healthy physique. The second is that this young man is too lazy, feeble, lacking courage in life, afraid to take on significant responsibilities in both family and society. Such a person is only a burden to everyone.

Each song, each folk proverb, opens up many truths, lessons about life and humanity. It also clearly shows the critical attitude of the ancients towards the bad actions of humans, such as laziness, gluttony, and more.

Being a son worthy of strength,

Stooping to support a pillow, carrying two sesame seeds on the back.

It can be seen that this proverbial verse satirically reflects those who are gluttonous, lazy, mocking a young man seemingly feeble, as if unable to accomplish anything.

The above proverbial verse seems to paint a truly humorous and interesting portrait. Through the art of exaggeration and with the combination of contrasting techniques. We can see that the ancients often praised the strength and vigor of young men who could move mountains and fill seas. And young children often sing the nursery rhyme: Carrying, carrying, hauling, hauling, carrying rivers, carrying markets. Moreover, this is also the fate of young men burdened with the debt of their homeland. Yet, here is an unusually feeble young man, reaching a level of hilarity.

Perhaps in life, there may be weak young men, but no one is weak to the point of only being able to carry... two sesame seeds. The humor is expressed, and it is noteworthy that he has to stoop and support his pillow. The actions of this young man seem to imply that he must exert all his effort to bear this burden. We can almost hear the laughter echoing from the contrasting details beyond imagination.

Through the tones, readers and listeners alike can understand the content of the proverb in two meanings. The image of the young man in the above folk verse is a state of weakness due to his parents giving birth to him. And seemingly, he refuses to train to have a strong, healthy physique at all. The second thing here is that this young man is too lazy, feeble, lacking courage in life, and also seems afraid to take on significant responsibilities in both family and society. It can be seen that such a man is only a burden to everyone.

The young man is a young man, according to the beliefs of the ancients, if considering the family, the young man must be the pillar for the family. As for society, there must be glorious achievements on the battlefield. Those are ideal and beautiful models that all 'men' aspire to. Like someone once said:

Born with a reputation in heaven and earth

What does he owe to mountains and rivers

One of the ideals of a young man of the time. But it must always be a beautiful and strong ideal, alongside high ideals, is a good physique, good health, to be able to establish a career and live proudly in heaven and earth. To avoid shame. But in this folk verse, the young man appears truly humorous, and after that humor is priceless advice. The proverb speaks of a weak young man, using the image of two small sesame seeds, making the young man have to 'stoop' and 'bend' to be able to 'carry' two sesame seeds. The proverb also provokes many thoughts for readers, as well as conveying a valuable message to the young men of the past as well as today. That is 'Being a son worthy of strength.'

A unique, humorous proverb, but with a lesson like a reminder for young men to have ideals, health to be able to do useful things for the homeland.

Being a son worthy of strength,

Stooping to support a pillow, carrying two sesame seeds on the back.

Embedded in that satirical folk verse cluster. This proverbial verse, with just two short sentences, criticizes and condemns those young men who are supposed to be robust and capable but are, in reality, lazy and useless.

In the olden days, being a worthy son meant having the ambition to establish oneself, to travel far and wide for knowledge and experience. It required the ability to: 'Go down to the East, the East is quiet, go up to the West, the West is tranquil...'. Many poets later wrote about the spirit of being a worthy son:

'The spirit of the worthy son treads a thousand miles, Gieo Thái Sơn is as light as rose petals.' (Đặng Trần Côn)

'The spirit of the worthy son spans the north, south, east, and west, Brandishing his strength and courage in all four directions.' (Nguyễn Công Trứ)

'Being a worthy son must be extraordinary in life, Otherwise, it's like dust, wandering aimlessly.' (Phan Bội Châu)

According to the old beliefs, a worthy son should stand out, achieving great feats. Therefore, lazy, useless, and feeble young men became the targets of criticism and ridicule by the common people. In this folk verse, the subject is such a young man.

This young man is not worthy of strength, so he has fallen into the sights of the folk author. Here, the author of the folk verse uses the techniques of exaggeration and vivid contrasts. The young man in the folk verse appears tired and unusually feeble, which is unacceptable. A young man who has to stoop and support a pillow, a series of descriptions depicting a tough and strenuous image.

The verb 'carry' is used to describe an action of carrying something very heavy on both shoulders to cover a long distance. This verb expresses the hardship and difficulty of the person performing it. However, look at the young man in the folk verse carrying what? 'Carrying two sesame seeds.' People usually carry things that are heavy and cannot be held with bare hands, such as carrying two bundles of rice, two buckets of water, etc. In other words, things that cannot be done all at once, so they need the support of a shoulder pole. However, sesame seeds, light as down, are what the man has to carry. Truly, he is feeble beyond measure.

Furthermore, the folk verse's words make the reader more astonished when he carries two sesame seeds and has to 'stoop' and 'bend the knee.' Something seemingly light becomes extremely hard and arduous in his hands. And laughter seems to echo from the contrasting details beyond imagination. It can be said that after that laughter is the expression of the mocking attitude of people when faced with cases of indulgence, laziness, and cowardice.

The folk verse can be understood in two meanings. The first meaning describes a young man who, from the moment he was born, is inherently weak but refuses to train to improve, to have a strong, healthy physique. The second meaning is that this young man is too lazy, feeble, lacking courage in life, and is afraid to take on significant responsibilities in both family and society. Such a man is only a burden to everyone.

The folk verse exposes a phenomenon in life. In society, apart from diligent farmers working hard all year round, there are also young men who, despite being robust, are lazy. With just two short sentences, it imparts valuable lessons to readers. In this life, nothing is given for free, or readily available; everything must be created by the hands of genuine labor. Therefore, to be happy, prosperous, there is no other way but to labor oneself.