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Prompt: Tràng Giang embodies a beauty that is both classical and modern. Analyze the Tràng Giang poem to clarify the aforementioned observations.
Tràng Giang encapsulates a beauty that is both classical and modern. Analyze the poem to elucidate the observations mentioned above.
Tip: Techniques for analyzing poems and verses for high scores
Solution:
Before the August Revolution in 1945, Vietnamese Literature was predominantly influenced by sentimentalism, expressing indefinite sorrows. Poetry revolved around individuals, placing the self as the highest and most precious entity. One of the standout works of the New Poetry era was 'Tràng Giang' by Huy Cận, a prominent writer of the 'Self-Reliant Literary Group.' The beauty of nature served as the main inspiration in the poem, through which the author conveyed profound, poignant feelings for a small, uncertain class of people. The sorrowful theme created the soul of the work, bringing about a beauty that is both classical and modern, simultaneously old-fashioned and contemporary, unique yet surprisingly familiar and endearing.
Primarily active in the period from 1930 to 1945, Huy Cận's poetry portrays a tragic poet entangled in love, directionless, a talented poet yet to find the right path for himself. After the Revolution, his poetry took on an optimistic, life-loving outlook, guided by the liberation and nation-building efforts with songs about labor and battle. 'Tràng Giang' was composed before the Revolution, part of the collection 'Sacred Fire,' the author's first poetry collection. Set against the backdrop of a sentimental character gazing into a late afternoon by the Red River estuary, the work is an intersection of era-specific beauties, echoing classical influences from ancient verses and tales, melancholy evoked by familiar scenes. However, through the author's pen and poetic character, these familiar elements become distinct, unique, and more modern.
From the choice of the poem's title, the author beautifully blends modern aesthetics with a pure touch of classical essence. 'Tràng Giang,' a long river, adopts two Han Viet words, where 'tràng' means long, and 'giang' means river. Based on phonetics, 'tràng giang' elongates the name, opening up an infinite sensation for readers. The use of Han Viet imparts an elegance to the poem's title, evoking associations with ancient rivers in Tang and Nom poetry.
The poem begins with an epigraph:
Lost in the vast sky, remembering the long river
The concise epigraph opens up a wave of intense emotions. 'Lost,' the contemplation of a sensitive soul. Before the 'vast sky,' the 'long river' extends broadly, the human heart resonates with a rhythmic sensation of being 'lost.' The nostalgia seems to add a pang, a melancholy feeling. Amidst the grandeur and vastness of nature, the human heart cannot escape an unnamed sorrow. Hidden beneath the waves is the human sentiment, borrowing the imagery of nature to express one's emotions, where the human heart intertwines with nature, feeling sadness and solitude amidst the boundless universe. The blend of classical and modern beauty is subtle, a timeless sentiment engraved in the human spirit. Throughout the ages, humans have always been moved by beauty, especially when feeling isolated within the expansive scenery. The timeless sadness, from one era to another, can never fade from the sensitive hearts of individuals.
The classical beauty is portrayed in the opening lines of the work:
Waves ripple along the sorrowful Tràng Giang
Boat drifting smoothly along the parallel water.
Returning boat brings melancholy in a hundred directions
A dry branch of firewood drifts a few lines.
Continuously, the archaic terms at the end of the lines, 'ripples,' 'parallel,' carry a classical breath, depicting waves cascading onto the sandy shore. The rolling waves stack upon each other, letting the wind and water push towards the endless horizon. On the 'parallel' of the water, the 'ripples' of the waves paint an image of a boat drifting smoothly along the water. These archaic terms effectively enhance the dynamism of the verse, making it vivid. Like a slow-motion film, the boat gradually appears from the distant trees, silently floating along the flowing water, graceful and gentle. It's as if the movement of the boat is so light that one can't perceive the disturbance of the water's surface. The quietude arises from the refined nature of classical poetry, where humans perceive beauty through the soul and intellect. The river flows incessantly, carrying the boat away, and there is no scenery more romantic and dreamlike than this
Immersed in the epic beauty is the human sentiment:
Returning boat brings melancholy in a hundred directions
A dry branch of firewood drifts a few lines.
The verse easily evokes the lyrics of a song:
Only the boat understands, how vast the sea gives way
Only the sea knows, where the boat goes and returns
Boat and sea, or boat and water, are inherently paired images. The boat is intimately connected with the water, as the water propels the boat far and then brings it back to the shore. Here, water and boat stand before a scene of separation, parting ways. Hence, the water is 'melancholy in a hundred directions,' how painful and mournful. Whether it's the sorrow of the water or the sorrow of a person, the departing boat leaves the heart desolate, lonely, forced to borrow the water to express its feelings. The sorrow reaches its peak with the line: 'A dry branch of firewood drifts a few lines.' The inversion, instead of 'A dry branch of wood drifts a few lines,' becomes 'A dry branch of firewood drifts a few lines.' Placing 'firewood' at the beginning intensifies the sense of solitude, starkness, along with the quantifier 'a,' emphasizing scarcity. The firewood is pitiful, becoming a 'dry' branch devoid of life, 'drifting' amidst the vast and boundless universe. The sorrow here is an indefinite, directionless sadness, a loss of orientation in the turbulent journey of life, with nowhere to lean. Readers can't help but feel desolate, overwhelmed by the vastness of the earth and sky, and then sympathize with the small, fragile life. Using the familiar classical technique to describe the scenery of emotions, the author unveils a melancholic mood. Sorrow always dominates the spiritual essence in most poems of the New Poetry era, a sorrow arising from humans illuminating the landscape, humans lamenting for loneliness, emptiness, and the fear of not finding a sympathetic soul.
Huy Can adeptly incorporates a series of symbols and familiar images from Tang poetry, skillfully applying them in his work:
Lost in the stillness, amidst reeds and wind's whisper,
Where distant village voices blend with evening market's hum.
Sun descends, sky ascends deep and high,
Long river, vast sea, Cô Liêu's wharf nearby.
Where do the water ferns drift, rows connecting rows,
Endless, not a single ferry crossing.
No need for any intimate prompt,
Silently, the green shore meets the golden expanse.
Layer upon layer of clouds heap like silver mountains,
Leaning birds cast small shadows in the twilight.
The desolate image of a twilight evening slowly unfolds with embellishments in the indigo sky. Using terms like 'lost' and 'whispering,' evoking scarcity and delicacy. A melancholic scene, stark, where objects are small, sparse. The sound of 'distant village and market echoes in the evening' is sometimes near, sometimes far, resonating here and there. Utilizing both auditory and visual senses, the author describes the scenery along the Red River as a watercolor painting from ancient times. There is a slight flutter of small sandbanks, the wind gently swaying the remaining trees, and the sound merely an echo reverberating from somewhere. Clearly, there is sound, but it wants to negate its origin. The warmth of life is only faintly, sparsely present, lacking the vibrancy of a bustling evening meal. Gazing into the distance in search of a bit of sunlight, the sentimental character captures in their eyes the harmonious moment between evening and night:
Sun descends, sky ascends deep and high
Long river, vast sky, Cô Liêu wharf.
Where do the water ferns drift, rows connecting rows,
Endless, not a single ferry crossing.
Familiar images from Tang poetry emerge one by one - sun, sky, river, sea, drifting water ferns, ferry journeys. The poet's gaze glides over each object, seeking a bit of warmth to console the self. Despite the abundance, scenes carry a lonely, oppressive hue. The unique depiction of 'deep and high' suggests an endless, alluring sky. Where the gaze wanders, the sky expands, boundless. There's no conclusion, humans seem engulfed in the vast universe. Above, the wide sky stretches endlessly; below, the long river flows endlessly, without restraint, only the floating 'Cô Liêu' wharf, desolate. The poet stands at the wharf, observing myriad things. 'Cô Liêu' or Huy Cận himself feels isolated, alone. Conscious of his own smallness, the sentimental poet cleverly intertwines the image of drifting water ferns to evoke self-reflection. Each cluster of drifting ferns silently on the water's surface is commonly used in ancient poems, describing scenes of rural rivers. Mentioning water ferns brings forth a sense of cheapness, 'cheap as ferns,' drifting aimlessly, swept away by the current's whirl. 'Where do the water ferns drift, rows connecting rows,' not just one small cluster, but a cluster connecting clusters. Though numerous, it still can't stand firm, only making readers feel overwhelmed by the immensely vast nature. 'Green shore meets the golden expanse,' the writing style makes space seem boundless, one shore connecting to another, layers upon layers stretching endlessly. Within this nature's embrace, signs of humanity, of life, now seemingly vanish:
Endless, not a single ferry crossing
No need to evoke any intimacy.
No contact, no connection between this place and the surrounding world. If above, the image of a boat faintly appears and departs, the sounds of the market echo near and far, then now, not even a ferry crossing the river exists. The poet is surrounded by loneliness amidst the vast landscape. Perhaps, that boat is the only thing still carrying the colors of life, now distant to any shore. The sensitive soul remains alone, isolated, desolate, directionless.
A very poetic beauty drawn from classical Tang poetry in 'Tràng Giang' is the verse describing the grandeur of nature:
Layers of clouds high, piling silver on the mountain.
In the past, Đỗ Phủ also had a line: 'Clouds pile up far at the gate' in 'Autumn Sketches.' Entering 'Tràng Giang,' that beauty still carries a spacious, liberating vibe. Describing the mountain clouds, the author punctuates contrasting colors. Layers of mist, each layer stacking upon the other, heaping and pushing, along with the light casting onto the mountain slope, as if silver-plated. The term 'piling' imparts a sense of motion, clouds dancing on the mountain, one layer after another, trailing each other, covering the low mountain peak in the distance. Borrowing from classical poetry to depict the scene poetically, Huy Cận cleverly filters valuable language to highlight the lofty and distant in his picturesque landscape.
It can be said that the classical beauty in 'Tràng Giang' originates from familiar images, intimate in Tang poetry. Despite coming from a petite bourgeois background and operating in the New Poetry era, Huy Cận's poetic spirit remains pure, untainted, avoiding Westernization. He returns to familiar, classical epic materials to enrich his work. Therefore, 'Tràng Giang' possesses distinctive features of classical poetry, both melancholic and serene, poetic and rich.
The modern beauty in 'Tràng Giang' is not abundant. Primarily, the modern aspect serves to elevate the spirit of personal suffering in line with the New Poetry genre.
The village heart ripples with flowing water,
Even at sunset, the yearning for home remains.
'Rippling' describes both the gentle waves on the water's surface and the emotional ripples within, a vague sentiment full of contemplation and concern. It's the nostalgia for the homeland, for home, within the backdrop of a withering evening. A lingering affection for the homeland overflows in the poet's soul. Surprisingly, the haunting and pervasive sadness that envelops all things from start to finish is purely a longing for the homeland. 'Sunset smoke' here is the kitchen smoke, the smoke from the rice cooker, the smoky memories of childhood spent with beloved ones. The prevailing sentiment of poets in the New Poetry movement at that time was sorrow. If Xuân Diệu expressed irrational sorrow, sorrow for fear of time passing, fear of fleeting youth slipping away too quickly, and Chế Lan Viên expressed a sorrow longing for harmony and empathy, Huy Cận, in contrast, mourns with a deep longing for the homeland. Standing on the banks of the Red River witnessing the fading twilight, the yearning becomes more intense, poignant. In the end, Huy Cận's feeling at this moment is also a desire for sharing, communication, and empathy, in line with the modern rhythm of the 30s-45s.
'Tràng Giang' brings a harmonious blend of the old and the new, the classical charm and the daring modern touch. The entire poem is a picturesque landscape with a skillful application of imagery, a prose style deeply rooted in Tang poetry, a rich vocabulary, evocative descriptions, and typical details such as sky clouds, rivers, birds, floating weeds, etc. There is no forced effort to breathe ancient charm into the soul of the poem, but even in the topic, the author reveals a profound understanding of ancient culture as well as the style of classical poetry. Simultaneously, modern expressions, creative language, unique images, along with a melancholic, somber mood, and a sense of compassion for a humble self, create Huy Cận's unmistakable style. If 'Tràng Giang' is a melancholic classical painting, then Huy Cận has excellently fulfilled the role of an artist by adding dark but resolute, powerful shades, expressing his distinctive self in the Vietnamese art scene.
The delicate harmony of modern and classical beauty has given 'Tràng Giang' a unique, fresh touch. Embedded in the reader's mind is the poignant nostalgia for the homeland, the intense emotional repository of a loving soul, and a precious treasure that unearths timeless classical elements from Tang poetry and Nom poetry.
The poem 'Tràng Giang' stands out in the literature curriculum for 11th grade, presenting a beauty that is both classical and modern. To elucidate the comments mentioned, students and teachers can refer to other exemplary essays such as 'Demonstrating the beauty of nature and sensuality through poems about Tràng Giang', 'Autumn is coming', 'Vĩ Dạ Village', Analyzing the hardships of poetry in the Tràng Giang poem: 'Lơ thơ cồn nhỏ... trời rộng, bến cô liêu,' Analyzing the imagery of nature in the Tràng Giang poem, Impressions of Huy Cận's Tràng Giang poem, The Tràng Giang painting and the sentiments of Huy Cận, or sections from the Tràng Giang lesson plan, Grade 11 essay - Tràng Giang.
