Top 4 Broader Issues Connected to 'The Boat in the Distant Horizon'

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• Vũ Như Tô is known through the excerpt 'Farewell to the Nine Levels of the Tower,' a genius architect with a transcendental artistic vision, who was forced by the tyrant King Lê Tương Dực to build the Nine Levels of the Tower as a place of pleasure and entertainment with his concubines. However, he was an artist with high moral character and noble artistic ideals, not someone who would sell his soul for fame or fear death. At first, he preferred to die rather than build the tower for a cruel king, but when he realized the artistic value his creation could leave behind, he forgot the harsh reality that the people were suffering from hunger.
• The taller the Nine Levels of the Tower rose, the more the sweat, tears, and blood of the people multiplied. Vũ Như Tô's determination to build the tower caused conflicts that became increasingly difficult to resolve, and the tensions between the farmer and the artist grew. It could be said that this was a sincere aspiration, but placed in the wrong time and place, without considering the value of life, it would inevitably turn into a disaster. In the construction of the Nine Levels of the Tower, Vũ Như Tô was both a criminal and a victim. The conflicts within Vũ Như Tô and Đan Thiềm were resolved, but not satisfactorily. Vũ Như Tô was killed despite his intention never being to harm the people, and when he died, he still didn't realize his mistake. Through the tragedy of Vũ Như Tô, the author raised deep, timeless questions about the relationship between art and life, between the lofty ideals of art and the practical, direct benefits for the people.

Writing Guide:

Art always appears from the right perspective. Indeed, when we talk about art, we cannot overlook life, as the two are always intertwined. Although the two writers Nguyễn Huy Tưởng and Nguyễn Minh Châu wrote their works in different periods, they share a common understanding of art. This concept is expressed through the characters Phùng in 'The Distant Boat' and Vũ Như Tô in 'Farewell to the Nine Levels of the Tower.'

The two authors have skillfully created characters with coincidental and subtle similarities. Through this, they uncover and develop the hidden pearls deep within the human soul.

First, Nguyễn Minh Châu, considered one of the pioneering writers in modern literature, always rooted his writing in the realities of life. This allowed the character Phùng to emerge from his pen.

Phùng is a photographer, tasked with taking pictures for the annual calendar. After days of searching, he discovers an image of a boat on the beach in the early morning fog, with a hint of pink from the sunrise.

Overwhelmed by emotion upon discovering a scene that seemed like a brush painting from an ancient artist, he quickly snaps the photo, capturing moments that would be rare in the world of art.

Upon witnessing the encounter between Đẩu, a former comrade now a district judge, and the poor woman from the fishing village, Phùng realizes that the woman endures her abusive husband because of her boundless love for her children.

Phùng bitterly smiles as he recognizes that behind the picturesque scene lies much of life's harsh realities that he hadn't fully understood. The department head is pleased with the photo, which remains hung in many places, especially in art circles and family homes. Yet, each time he looks at the photo, Phùng’s feelings are always mixed.

The situation created by the writer contrasts art and life, distant art and close life, beautiful art, and the injustice of life.

Through the character Phùng, the author shows readers a multi-faceted view of life, where the judge Đẩu and the artist Phùng come to understand more about humanity and life through their encounter with the fisherwoman. From there, he opens new, highly philosophical questions about creativity and art.

Next, Nguyễn Huy Tưởng, a writer focused on historical subjects, made significant contributions to the novel and drama genres. One of his most memorable plays is 'Farewell to the Nine Levels of the Tower,' where through the character Vũ Như Tô, we can see the close relationship between art and life.

Vũ Như Tô is known as a genius architect with a passion for art, forced to build the Nine Levels of the Tower with the blood, sweat, and tears of the Lê Tương Dực army as a place for the king to indulge with his concubines.

Yet he is an artist of strong character and noble artistic ideals, not one to sell his soul for fame or fear death. Initially, he was willing to die rather than build the tower for a tyrant king, but when he recognized the lasting artistic value, he overlooked the fact that the people were starving.

The higher the tower rose, the greater the suffering of the people. As Vũ Như Tô became more determined to build the tower, the conflicts between the farmer and the artist escalated. This was a sincere aspiration, but misplaced, failing to consider the value of life, and thus it became a catastrophe.

In the construction of the tower, Vũ Như Tô was both a prisoner and a victim. The conflict between Vũ Như Tô and Đan Phượng, though resolved, was unsatisfactory. Vũ Như Tô was killed, though he never intended to harm the people, and upon his death, he did not realize his mistake.

Through the tragedy of Vũ Như Tô, the author poses profound and eternal questions about the relationship between art and life, between the lofty ideals of art and the practical, immediate benefits for the people.

Both works feature characters who are wholeheartedly devoted to art, yet the unclear opposition between art and life leads to tragic outcomes. While Phùng corrects his understanding of the situation in time, Vũ Như Tô sacrifices his life for art.

Despite being written in two different societal contexts with differing themes and literary styles, both authors share a common message: art must be linked with life, serving life. If art becomes detached from life, it will only lead to the tragic consequences seen in Vũ Như Tô’s story or the shallow view of life expressed by Phùng.

Although art is the beauty of life, it is not always beautiful. The reverse side of a gleaming medal is always rough and imperfect. Moreover, true art is art that serves life, and art detached from life is mere decoration, unworthy of true artistry. The true artist must explore life and understand it in many ways. True art, like the true artist, always serves the people, not just art itself. As Tố Hữu once shared:

The people are the sea,
Literature and art are the boat,
The boat rides the waves,
The waves carry the boat forward.

The war has ended, and North and South have been reunited, but the marks and wounds of war remain, along with the countless struggles of the new life. Life is precarious, full of hardship, social issues like alcoholism, domestic violence, and even the impotence of justice... All piling up, suffocating, heart-wrenching. Nguyễn Minh Châu defies all taboos to boldly expose the wrongs, the evils, and the societal flaws that exist, flaws we once longed to leave behind.

Related works:

• 'Widowed Shores' by Dương Hướng: War is brutal and violent, filled with loss and sacrifice. The scars it leaves on the people are long-lasting, and the burden it places is not only on the soldiers in the battlefield but also on the women in the rear, in the desolate, incomplete village of Đông.
• 'A Land Full of People and Ghosts' by Nguyễn Khắc Trường: When people return to a peaceful life, without the sounds of bombs or gunfire, the filth and darkness of old, long-standing traditions hidden behind village fences continue to thrive.

Writing Guide:

When the epic voices fade away, the voices of daily life rise. They don't echo across the vast fields of the cooperative like in Đào Vũ's novels or through the endless hills of the farm in Nguyễn Khải's 'The Harvest Season.' Instead, the voice of literature returns to the present, portraying the myriad of everyday struggles unfolding before us. It thrashes and struggles, overcoming all taboos to speak loudly about the wrongs, the evils, and the issues in society that we once hoped to leave behind. Nguyễn Minh Châu courageously speaks first, unveiling a society full of contradictions and absurdities in 'The Distant Boat.' Life is uncertain, filled with hardships and social vices like drinking, domestic abuse, and even the helplessness of justice... A suffocating weight, tightening the heart! Following in his bold footsteps, Dương Hướng in 'Widowed Shores' frankly acknowledges the continuing wounds of war, which still bleed day and night. War is fierce and brutal, bringing loss and sacrifice. The scars it leaves behind are long-lasting, and the burden is not only on the soldiers but also on the women left behind in the desolate, incomplete village of Đông.

Related Works

• The erasure of personal identity: No specific name or age. A connection can be made to the character of the ferryman in 'The Ferryman of the Red River' by Nguyễn Tuân. A silent, anonymous laborer entering literature.
• A mother who loves her children unconditionally: A link to Grandma Tứ from 'The Picked Wife'; a mother in traditional folk songs: 'Rocking the cradle, tears flow/ Raising children with love, a mother's worry grows.'
• Individuals caught in the tragic cycle of post-war losses: A connection to the character Quỳ from 'The Woman on the Express Train'.

Writing Guide:
After the war, the bombs no longer roar in the skies over Vietnam. But that doesn't mean the tragedies and losses have stopped. Across the country, there's an enduring pain that time cannot erase—the anguish of the war's brutality. The nation, ravaged by war, faces mounting challenges, and once again, the weight of responsibility falls upon the shoulders of those who must carry the burden. Nguyễn Minh Châu profoundly reflected that 'war is not only about victories, heroes, and bravery; it also carries the hidden, tragic parts of life—the countless sacrifices, losses, and unfinished stories we still have to suppress.' Therefore, in the years following 1975, his writings brought a fresh perspective on life, human nature, and, most notably, the fates of new generations scarred by the aftermath of war. While Quỳ in 'The Woman on the Express Train' suffers the heartbreak of reality clashing with her dreams, the woman from the fishing village struggles with the harshness of life. (An in-depth analysis of the woman from the fishing village's fate.)

Related Works:

• The character Chí Phèo from the short story of the same name by Nam Cao: The colonial prison transformed a once gentle farmer into the monstrous villain of the Vũ Đại village. He drank, collected debts, and shattered many lives in the process.
• The character Hộ from 'The Surplus Life': His spiritual tragedy and his artistic ambition reflect the struggles of the intellectual class during that time—an intellectual class that yearned to break free but was still oppressed by feudal ideology, unable to rise above life's pitfalls.

Writing Guide:

Balzac once said, 'A writer must be a faithful secretary to their time,' and Nguyễn Minh Châu belongs in this category. Through his eyes, we witness the countless hardships and struggles of the new era. What stands out more, though, is how he, with his keen perception and compassionate heart, observed the transformation of people under the weight of their circumstances. The harsh life on the coast has turned a once quiet and gentle young man into someone rough and violent. For this man, beating his wife becomes a 'medicine' to relieve the stress caused by the constant struggle for survival. Years earlier, Nam Cao had written about a similar change in a field worker named Chí. The colonial prison turned him from a mild-mannered farmer into the terrifying villain of Vũ Đại, where he drank, collected debts, and destroyed countless joys.