Top 6 Best Analyses of the Song 'Sad Laments' for Grade 7

A. MAIN KNOWLEDGE

1. There are many sad lament songs in Vietnamese folklore, often using simple, familiar objects and animals as metaphors or comparisons to express human emotions and lives. For example:
   - 'Alone, drifting across waters'
   - 'The heron climbs the mountain, descends the ravine alone'
   - 'Who made the lake full, made the pond dry, and made the heron thin?'
   - 'Pity the life of the silkworm, working endlessly to spin'
   - 'Pity the tiny ant, struggling to find food.'
2. The crane, exhausted from flying without rest, faces an uncertain future.
3. 'I am like a waterlogged mangrove fruit, tossed by storms, unsure where to rest.'

B. EXERCISES AND SOLUTIONS

Question 1 (Page 49 of the textbook) In folk songs, farmers used the image of the heron to describe their lives and struggles. Collect some folk songs that illustrate this and explain why this image was used.

Answer:
The heron in folk songs is often used as a symbol for the poor farmer’s life because it represents a hardworking, small, humble creature. These qualities mirror the lives of the laborers.
'The heron waits for the rain,
In the dark, alone. Who will lead the heron home?'

Question 2 (Page 49 of the textbook) How is the life of the heron depicted in the first song? What other messages are conveyed in this folk song apart from lamentation?

Answer:
The heron’s life is portrayed as difficult, full of challenges. It struggles alone to survive, like the farmers who face many hardships. The song also subtly critiques the unfair feudal society that makes life more difficult for the poor.

Question 3 (Page 49 of the textbook) What is the meaning of the phrase 'pity' in the songs? What significance does its repetition have?

Answer:
The phrase 'pity' expresses empathy and sorrow. Repeating it emphasizes the hardship and sorrow of the laboring class, and it connects different stories of suffering. It strengthens the emotional impact and invites the listener to share in the sorrow of the workers.

Question 4 (Page 49 of the textbook) Analyze the figurative language in the second song, showing the suffering of the workers.

Answer:
Images of small creatures like silkworms, ants, and cranes are used to depict the laborer’s suffering. The silkworm symbolizes exhausting labor for others, the ant represents small, constant toil, and the crane reflects weariness and a lack of stability. Together, these images form a vivid picture of a life full of struggles.

Question 5 (Page 49 of the textbook) Find folk songs starting with 'My body.' What do these songs usually talk about, and how do they compare in terms of artistic style?

Answer:
Some folk songs starting with 'My body' depict the hardships and suffering of women in the past.
'My body is like a falling rain,
Some drops fall on the palace, some on the field.'

Question 6 (Page 49 of the textbook) Song 3 discusses the fate of women in feudal society. What is special about the comparisons in this song?

Answer:
The mangrove fruit, sour and bitter, symbolizes a life of struggle and pain. The storm and waves represent the oppressive forces in society. The imagery of the fruit drifting aimlessly, battered by storms, reflects the helplessness and powerlessness of women in feudal society.

Question 1 Practice (Page 50 of the textbook) What common points can you find in the content and artistry of the three songs?

Answer:
All three songs express lamentations of people in the old society, each with a unique form of resistance. They highlight the hardships of life through vivid imagery and figurative language. The songs all use the traditional 'Lục bát' verse form, which creates a gentle, heartfelt rhythm, making the sorrow even more poignant. They also employ comparison, metaphor, and rhetorical questions to deepen the emotional effect.

I. Lamenting Folk Songs

1.

Alone in the world, adrift

The little heron climbs the rapids and descends the falls, struggling through the days.

Who caused the lake to overflow?

Who drained the pond, and made the heron weak and thin?

2.

How pitiful is the fate of the silkworm,

Who can only eat little and must rest while spinning silk.

Pity the tiny ants,

Who work tirelessly, searching for food with little reward.

Pity the stork that avoids the cloudy sky,

Its wings weary, unsure when it will rest.

Pity the cuckoo lost in the sky,

Singing its heart out, but who listens?

3.

My body is like a drifting mangrove fruit,

Blown by the wind, tossed by the waves, unsure where it will land.

II. Text Understanding

1. Poem 1

- Theme: This folk song expresses the sorrow and fate of the peasant class in old society. It also critiques the feudal system that oppressed and exploited the innocent.

- Literary techniques:

The onomatopoeic “lận đận” vividly describes a difficult, unstable life. The metaphor “climbing the rapids and descending the falls” represents life’s challenges and struggles. The contrasting imagery of water and loneliness illustrates hardships in life. The heron symbolizes the small, lowly peasants in ancient society. The rhetorical question “Who...?” conveys the hardships of the working class.

2. Poem 2

* Theme: This folk song laments the harsh fate of various lives in ancient society.

* Literary techniques:

- The repetition of “pity” emphasizes the sorrow felt for these figures, expressing deep empathy for their suffering.

- Metaphorical imagery:

The silkworm symbolizes those exploited for their labor. The tiny ants represent the hard-working but often unappreciated common people. The stork avoiding the clouds suggests those who wander, searching for a living. The cuckoo’s cry represents the powerless voices that go unheard. These metaphors reflect the plight of peasants in feudal society.

3. Poem 3

- Theme: This folk song portrays the unstable, suffering life of women in feudal society, who had no voice or control over their fate.

- Literary techniques:

The simile “my body is like a drifting mangrove fruit” captures the uncertainty and struggle in life. The image of “wind and waves” reflects the trials and tribulations faced by women, who live under the control of others.

III. Conclusion

- These lamenting folk songs form a significant part of Vietnam’s folk literature.

- They frequently use small, humble images from nature and animals to symbolize human lives and destinies.

- Literary techniques include symbolism, metaphor, simile, and personification to express human emotions and fate.

- The content focuses on lamenting one’s fate, showing empathy for the working class, and criticizing the exploitation of the feudal system.

IV. Answer the Questions
Question 1. In folk songs, peasants often use the image of a heron to represent their life and fate. Please collect some folk songs to prove this and explain why?
- Some folk songs:
The heron went out to forage at night

Landing on a soft branch, it fell into the pond

Oh, my dear, help me out

If I must be saved, let it be in clear water

Don’t save me in muddy water, for the little heron’s heart will be hurt!

The heron swims along the riverbank

Its neck long, its beak sharp, its wings curved, back hunched

In the distant field, along the wide river, with the strong waves

It seeks food to fill its belly.
In the rain

The bitter melon wilts,

The snail curls up,

The shrimp fights the rock,

The heron hunts for food…
The heron wanders the pond

Sometimes sweet, sometimes sour.

The heron flies about

From the house to the field,

Born with empty hands

It must fly east and west in search of food.
- The heron: a familiar and close figure in rural life, embodying the helplessness and struggle of small creatures unable to resist, who must work tirelessly to survive.

Question 2. In Poem 1, how is the heron’s difficult and weary life depicted? Apart from lamenting, what other themes are expressed in this poem?
- The heron’s struggles are depicted through the use of the descriptive “lận đận,” symbolizing an unstable, arduous life. The idiom “climbing the rapids and descending the falls” illustrates life’s turbulence and obstacles. The contrasting imagery of full and empty waters captures the ups and downs of life. The heron metaphor represents the peasant’s humble, lowly status in ancient society. The rhetorical question “Who…?” portrays the hardship of the working class.
- In addition to lamenting, the poem criticizes the feudal society’s injustice in oppressing and exploiting the innocent.

Question 3. How do you interpret the phrase “pity”? Identify the meanings behind its repetition in Poem 2.
- “Pity”: compassion, empathy.
- The repetition of “pity” emphasizes the sorrow and deep sympathy felt for the lives depicted in the poem.

Question 4. Analyze the lament of the laboring people through the metaphorical imagery in Poem 2.
- The silkworm: symbolizes those exploited for their labor.
- The tiny ants: represent small, overlooked individuals who work hard but suffer greatly.
- The stork avoiding the clouds: symbolizes those who wander, unable to settle, always in search of livelihood.
- The cuckoo’s cry in the sky: represents those who have no voice in society.
These metaphors reflect the plight of peasants in feudal Vietnam.

Question 5. Collect some folk songs beginning with “my body.” What do these songs typically address, and what artistic similarities do they share?

- Some folk songs:

My body is like the summer rain

The drops fall into the pond, the rest into the garden flowers.

My body is like the falling raindrops,

Some fall into the pond, others into the plowed fields.

My body is like a pink silk sheet

Flowing in the market, unsure who will possess it.

My body is like a well in the street

People wash their faces here, others wash their feet there.

My body is like a durian fruit

Some find it bitter, others call it delicious.

My body is like a spiny water chestnut

Its flesh is white, its skin is dark.

Whoever tries it will know it’s sweet.

My body is like the summer rain,

Falling into the pond, into the garden flowers.

My body is like the falling raindrops,

Some fall into the pond, others into the plowed fields.

My body is like the fish in the net,

Who will catch me and take me away?

My body is like the stork at the temple gate,

Unable to lift its wings and soar.

My body is like the ripe chili pepper,

The fresher the outside, the hotter the inside.

My body is like a piece of dried betel nut,

Thin for the noble, thick for the common.

- These songs often discuss the fate of women in ancient feudal society, comparing their lives to small, delicate objects.

- Common artistic elements: Similes comparing “my body” to objects that are small, fragile, or beautiful.

Question 6.
- Similes:
The simile “my body is like a drifting mangrove fruit” expresses the instability and struggles of life.
The image of “wind and waves” represents the challenges women face in life, controlled and affected by external forces.
- Life in feudal society for women: difficult, oppressed both physically and mentally, with no control over their own lives.

II. Practice
Question 1. Please summarize the similarities in the content and art of these folk songs.
- Artistic techniques: Symbolism, metaphor, simile, and personification used to convey emotions and human fate.
- Content: Lamentation, empathy for the working class, and critique of the feudal system’s exploitation.

Question 2. Students memorize the folk songs they’ve learned.
- Self-study for students.
- Pay attention to words that may be confused during study.

I. General Overview

Definition of folk songs of suffering

Folk songs, also known as traditional Vietnamese poetry, are passed down orally through melodic lines that do not adhere to a fixed tune, often in a hexameter structure for easier memorization and recitation.
Folk songs of suffering express the grievances and hardships of life, portraying feelings of deep sympathy for those enduring misery and pain.

II. Answering the Questions

Question 1, Page 49, Grade 7 Literature Textbook, Volume 1

In traditional folk songs, the image of the stork is often used to depict the hardships and plight of the common people:

The stork goes out in the night,
Perches on a fragile branch and falls into the pond.
Oh, dear! Please help me out,
If you care for me, help me without delay.
If you help, let it be clean water,
Do not stir up muddy water, for that will break my heart.

The image of the stork, frail and delicate, symbolizes vulnerability and the heavy burdens carried by the impoverished, encapsulating their suffering and fragile state in the face of life's challenges.

Question 2, Page 49, Grade 7 Literature Textbook, Volume 1

The first folk song vividly describes a difficult and troubled life using various literary techniques:

It uses metaphor, with the stork symbolizing the human condition.
Personification is employed with terms like “frail stork,” “stork's body,” “struggling,” and “alone.”
It also uses idiomatic expressions like “climbing mountains, crossing streams.”
Beyond simply expressing suffering, the song is a voice of empathy and protest against the hardship faced by individuals in society.

Question 3, Page 49, Grade 7 Literature Textbook, Volume 1

The phrase “How pitiful!” is an exclamation expressing deep sorrow and empathy, as if a cry of distress.

The significance of repeating the phrase “How pitiful!” in the folk song:

By placing this phrase at the beginning of each line, it introduces another sad fate, amplifying the hardship faced by each individual.
It conveys a deeper, more poignant sense of compassion, and creates a mournful rhythm that resonates with sorrow.

Question 4, Page 49, Grade 7 Literature Textbook, Volume 1

The sorrow of the laboring class is depicted through metaphors in the second song:

The silkworm: The silkworm consumes mulberry leaves and spins silk, but when the silk is taken, its life ends, symbolizing the exploitation of workers under the oppressive power of the ruling class.
The ants: The term “swarm” refers to a large group, yet these tiny creatures are often disregarded, struggling day in and day out to survive, representing the plight of the powerless working class in a society where they remain poor and hungry.
The crane: A crane's wings grow tired, with no place to land, symbolizing the hopeless and wandering lives of the poor laborers.
The cuckoo: The cuckoo calls out in vain, with no one to respond, representing the ignored, weak, and suffering laborers whose cries for help go unheard.

Question 5, Page 49, Grade 7 Literature Textbook, Volume 1

Several folk songs begin with the phrase “my body”:

My body is like the prickly lotus root
The inside is white, but the outside is dark.
My body is like a silk cloth
Floating in the market, who will claim me?

My body is like a falling raindrop
Some fall into the palace, others into the plow.

These three folk songs convey the uncertain and dependent fate of women in traditional society.
Similarities in the artistic style of these three songs:

All begin with the phrase “my body”
They use metaphors (prickly lotus root, silk cloth, falling raindrop) to depict the fate of women.

Question 6, Page 49, Grade 7 Literature Textbook, Volume 1

The third song uses the metaphor of a “floating bần fruit” to describe the fate of women in feudal society.

The bần fruit: a sour, bitter fruit, symbolizing the miserable and painful lives of the impoverished.
The floating bần fruit: representing an uncertain, drifting fate, unable to predict the future.
The storm and waves: symbolizing the dark forces that work together to crush and drown the lives of virtuous individuals, such as oppressive rulers, patriarchal systems, and the power of wealth, driving women into deep suffering.

This highlights the difficult and tragic life of women in feudal society, characterized by dependency, uncertainty, and hardship.

III. Practice

Question 1, Page 50, Grade 7 Literature Textbook, Volume 1

Common themes in the three folk songs:

Content characteristics:

All address the misfortune of the working class in traditional society.
They speak out against the societal forces that push workers to despair.
They express deep sympathy for the poor and virtuous.

Artistic characteristics:

They all use the hexameter form.
They use metaphors, similes, and rhetorical questions.

I. Overview of the work "Songs of Suffering"
1. Content Value
These songs of suffering are abundant and highly representative of the treasure trove of Vietnamese folk songs. Beyond lamenting personal hardship and resonating with the painful lives of laborers, they also convey a sense of protest against feudal society.
2. Artistic Value
- Written in the six-eight meter
- Utilizes small, pitiable images for metaphor and comparison.

II. Guide to preparing the lesson

Question 1 (Page 49, Literature Textbook 7, Volume 1)

Some folk songs use the image of the stork:

- The stork struggles by the riverbank

Carrying rice to nourish her husband, crying in sorrow

- The stork goes out at night

Perching on a soft branch, falling into the river

"Oh, sir, please rescue me!"

"I have no ill will, just please help me out"

→ In the past, farmers often used the image of the stork to describe their own lives and fate. This small, gentle bird works tirelessly to survive.

Question 2 (Page 49, Literature Textbook 7, Volume 1)

The stork's hard and painful life is depicted:

+ Through the word "lận đận" (unfortunate) and the idiom "up the mountain, down the river": expressing the stork's hardships.

+ Contrasts: water >< loneliness

stork >< rough waters

+ Opposites: up (mountain) >< down (river)

full (sea) >< dry (lake)

→ Contrasting the small, fragile with the harsh, tumultuous life.

+ Rhetorical question: expressing the unfair fate of the stork and the hardship, suffering, and bitterness of ancient laborers.

Content of the folk song:

+ Lamenting fate: using the stork's image to express the life and fate of old laborers.

+ Protest: the rhetorical question reflects dissatisfaction with those who made the farmer's life difficult.

Question 3 (Page 49, Literature Textbook 7, Volume 1)

The phrase "Thương thay" (pity): a lament expressing deep sympathy and sorrow.

- "Thương thay" is repeated four times. The significance of the repetition:

+ Each repetition expresses pity for a different animal, symbolizing the different hardships of workers.

+ The repetition emphasizes the deep sympathy for the suffering, hard lives of laborers.

+ Repetition connects and opens up new layers of sympathy, causing the folk song to evolve.

Question 4 (Page 49, Literature Textbook 7, Volume 1)

The sorrow of the laborer's plight is shown through:

+ Pity for the silkworm: reflecting a life drained of all strength and resources.

+ Pity for the tiny ants: showing lives that are perpetually toiling for survival.

+ Pity for the crane: depicting a life wandering aimlessly, struggling without hope.

+ Pity for the cuckoo: showing an insignificant, unheard life, crying without sympathy.

→ The cries of these four animals symbolize the humble, oppressed lives of those suffering injustices.

Question 5 (Page 49, Literature Textbook 7, Volume 1)

The folk songs starting with "Thân em" (My body):

- My body is like a well in the middle of the road

Wise men wash their faces, commoners wash their feet

- My body is like falling rain

Some falls into the palace, others fall into the fields

- My body is like a fine silk cloth

Floating in the market, who knows who will take it?

→ These folk songs reflect the fate of women in ancient society: dependent, without autonomy, and treated unjustly.

Question 6 (Page 49, Literature Textbook 7, Volume 1)

The special comparison images used:

- The fruit of the bần tree, which sounds like the word "bần" (poverty, destitution)

- The image of the bần fruit drifting, battered by the wind and waves. The storms make the fruit drift aimlessly.

⇒ The fate of women is depicted as floating, aimless, and enduring many trials in life.

Exercise

Exercise 1 (Page 50, Literature Textbook 7, Volume 1)

Common themes of the content:

- Content:

+ Lamenting personal hardship and sharing the bitter life of workers.

+ Protesting and denouncing the feudal society.

- Artistic techniques:

+ Both use the six-eight poetic form.

+ They feature symbolic imagery, metaphors, and comparisons to express emotions.

Answer to Question 1 (Page 49, Grade 7 Literature Textbook):

Several folk songs use the image of a stork:

- The stork goes out to eat at night

It lands on a soft branch, falls into the pond

…

- The stork goes to welcome the rain

In the darkness, who will bring the stork home?

The stork returns to the banyan tree

He draws his bow, why shoot the stork away?

The stork visits the uncle and aunt

Visiting the northern relative, visiting the eastern aunt.

…

* People in the past often used the image of a stork to depict their own life and fate, as the stork is a gentle, hardworking animal, tirelessly searching for food. These qualities resonate with the hardworking nature of the peasants.

Answer to Question 2 (Page 49, Grade 7 Literature Textbook):

* In the first folk song, the stork’s life is described as full of hardships, as it faces many challenges alone: crossing rivers, climbing mountains, enduring dangers, and exhaustion. The stork’s frailty from this struggle is evident, and these struggles last for a long time.

- The stork’s difficult life is vividly expressed through the repeating word “lận đận” (troublesome) and the contrasting pairs “up – down,” “full – empty.”

b. Beyond lamenting the hardships, the song also critiques the unjust feudal society that exacerbates the stork’s misery and fatigue.

Answer to Question 3 (Page 49, Grade 7 Literature Textbook):

* The phrase “thương thay” expresses deep sympathy and sorrow.

* In the second song, “thương thay” is repeated four times.

The significance of the repetition: each time it expresses compassion for a different creature in a different plight: pity for the silkworm, pity for the ants, pity for the crane, pity for the cuckoo. Despite the different creatures, they share the common fate of laborers. This repetition emphasizes the sorrow for the harsh lives of working people.

Answer to Question 4 (Page 49, Grade 7 Literature Textbook):

Analyze the sorrow of laborers through the metaphors in the second song:

- Pity for the silkworm represents the exploitation and loss of vitality by others.

- Pity for the tiny ants symbolizes the helplessness of the small, constantly working for survival, easily oppressed by others, reflecting the impoverished status of laborers.

- Pity for the crane represents a life of wandering, suffering, and hopelessness, echoing the struggles of workers in the old society.

- Pity for the cuckoo represents the plight of the small and powerless, whose cries are ignored and unheard, reflecting the lack of justice and empathy for the pain of the oppressed.

Answer to Question 5 (Page 49, Grade 7 Literature Textbook):

Several folk songs begin with the phrase “Thân em” (My body):

- My body is like a raindrop

The drop falls into a well, the other into a flower garden.

- My body is like a dry areca nut

The refined person is thin, the coarse person is thick.

⟹ These folk songs reflect the difficult and unfair lives of women in the past society.

⟹ In terms of artistic technique, the phrase “Thân em” evokes sadness and employs metaphors to depict the different fates and hardships of women.

Answer to Question 6 (Page 49, Grade 7 Literature Textbook):

The “bần fruit” metaphorically refers to poverty. The drifting fruit, battered by wind and waves, symbolizes the uncertain and unchangeable fate of the individual. The folk song expresses the lament of a woman from an impoverished past, who has faced life’s hardships and cannot determine her own destiny.

Practice Exercise

List the common points regarding the content and artistic techniques in the three folk songs:

- Content:

+, All three songs express the sorrow and fate of people in the old society.

+, Each song contains a theme of resistance.

- Artistic Techniques:

+, All three use the traditional hexameter poetry form.

+, Rhetorical techniques include simile, metaphor, and rhetorical questions.