Tale of Kiều – Viewing Guide

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We have two presentations on the Tale of Kieu, considered “the national poem” of Vietnam. This guide refers to, The Tale of Kiều, which discusses the story. The other video, Poetic Structure & Genre in the Tale of Kiều, explains meter and rhyming in the poem

**Appropriateness of Content of the Tale of Kieu for secondary students: The Tale of Kieu is an epic poem, or a long historical and culturally important story told in poetic verse about 15 years in the life of a young woman named Kieu. The story begins with Kieu’s engagement to be married, but parts of the story feature Kieu being forced to work as a prostitute before she is reunited with her fiancé. At one point, Kieu considers suicide.

The poem is the national poem of the Vietnamese people, its popularity thought to reflect the experience of the Vietnamese over the course of the 20th century.
It also presents a deep exploration of the Confucian and Buddhist values that inform Vietnamese culture and the Buddhist understanding of pain and suffering.
The poem’s richness provides a marvelous read for mature students who are learning about Vietnam’s history and culture, particularly in the upper grades of high school – while the first of the four sections of the poem might be appropriate for younger students who are simply learning poetic form. See viewing guide to the Poetic Structure and Genre of the Tale of Kieu.

Vocabulary of Note

The literary genre called Caizi Jiaren meaning “Talented Boy and a Beautiful Girl,” is a classic story genre in Chinese and Vietnamese literature where a young man studying for the civil service exam falls in love with a young woman; their love, particularly her morality, is tested, and the couple is reunited at the end.
Imperial or Civil Service Exam – the notoriously difficult national exam given in China from the Song dynasty (960 BCE) to 1911 and the end of the Qing dynasty that was based on neo-Confucian ideas about morality, the role of the emperor, social order, literature, and poetry. Young men studied for years for the exam, and if you passed at all three levels—local, state, and national—you could become a government official, which usually guaranteed a prestigious job and a good salary.
Ideology – a way of thinking, or a system of ideas, sometimes a formal philosophy in a religion, economic policy, or political party.
Confucianism – also called Ru-ism, this way of thinking or ordering society is based on the teachings of Confucius, who lived around 500 BCE. It is not really a religion, but an ideology that at its core emphasizes respectful behavior and good relations with other people. To maintain proper social order and organization one must start with family relations, and so respect for parents, called filial piety, is the first building block of Confucianism. Confucianism extended beyond family roles to include politics, and the emperor was expected to adhere to proper Confucian behavior by following traditional rituals and ceremonies, particularly regarding funerals and memorials for ancestors, and acting in a moral, righteous manner. Confucianism was extremely important for many generations of Chinese dynasties and extended beyond China to influence the politics and social order in different parts of East Asia, particularly Vietnam.
Buddhism – a religion brought to China from India that became extremely popular starting in the Tang dynasty (618–907 CE). Buddhism assumes there is much pain and suffering in life, and if adherents practice good behavior they can be reincarnated, or born again after they die, into a better life form. Ultimately, they will not be reincarnated at all once they have perfected understanding of the world and escaped the life of suffering. So stories about suffering often have a Buddhist element, which is true in much of the Tale of Kieu.
Neo-Confucianism – this way of thinking incorporates Buddhist beliefs into Confucianism and became popular in the Song dynasty (960–1140). Neo-Confucianism is quite mystical, and while there is no belief in reincarnation, Buddhist spirits and deities—which do hint at reincarnation—help the deceased, and scare, guide, and interact with the living.
- Neo-Confucianism also includes fundamental Chinese ideas about the natural balance of the world in the form of yin-yang (light and dark, day and night, the relationship between human beings, nature, and the cosmos), which also influenced thinking about social order and the stability of the government. Neo-Confucianism became extremely important and was made part of the imperial exam system.
- When Professor Phan refers to a “neo-Confucian fairytale,” he means it will incorporate some mystical elements, like spirits, but be based on a Confucian ideal of social harmony where ancestors are respected, men are chivalrous, and women are virtuous and obedient to their husbands and fathers.
- The Confucian or Neo-Confucian element in the Tale of Kieu refers to the characters’ desire for a proper life where everyone acts humanely, respecting social relationships, and where good behavior (sacrificing yourself for other people) is rewarded by a stable place in the social order.
Chu Nom – the form of written Vietnamese language that uses a script of Chinese characters to write spoken Vietnamese. It was used from the 15th to the 19th centuries to write Vietnamese literature. The use of Chu Nom was discontinued in the 1920s when Portuguese missionaries transcribed Vietnamese into Roman letters. Many Vietnamese classics are written in Chu Nom, however, and there is an effort to preserve the language.
The Four Noble Truths of Buddhism
1. The truth that life involves suffering and pain; it is a part of life.
2. The truth that suffering is caused by desire—wanting things too badly, including love, wealth, or a happy life.
3. The truth that it is possible to escape suffering and overcome desire and attachments.
4. The truth that the way to escape suffering is by following a particular Buddhist path, or way of thinking and behaving.
Bodhisattva – a person who is ready to achieve full enlightenment, having followed the Buddhist path, but who then postpones his or her own release from reincarnation in order to help others also achieve enlightenment (the speaker refers to this type of person in the conclusion of the presentation).
Chinese Opera, also popular in Vietnam – a highly stylized, exaggerated theatrical form with different regional variations, the most popular of which is Peking Opera. Stories are taken from folk tales, histories, and literature and are known for the elaborate costumes, minimalist stage sets and physical movements, traditional Chinese instruments, and distinctive singing.

Names, People & Places of Note

Author Nguyễn Du (阮攸) – pronounced Win Zu (1766–1820)
Thúy Kiều – the heroine of the story
Kim Trọng – Kiều’s first fiancé, her true love
Madam Tú – runs the brothel Kiều is sold into
Hoạn Thư – wife of Thúc Sinh, whom Kiều is forced to marry
Từ Hải – one of Kiều’s lovers
Tonkin – northern Vietnam at this time
Cochinchina – southern Vietnam at this time
Tây Sơn Rebellion – a Vietnamese rebellion that became a civil war from 1771–1802, ending with the defeat of the rebels and the unification of Vietnam under a new Nguyễn dynasty (to which the author is not related)
Mencius – Confucian philosopher who maintained that human beings are born with a good moral nature, which they should cultivate through education and practice
Kiều – a young woman who is the protagonist of the story (Her full name is Thuy Kiều, with Thuy being her family name and Kieu, her given name: Thúy Kiều, pronounced Twee Kyew)
Nguyen Du – author of the Tale of Kieu (pronounced Win Zu)
Date – 19th Century (during the Nguyễn Dynasty in Vietnam)

Outline of Presentation – with [Timecode]

Introduction [00:15]

Introducing Kieu as talented: “Talent and destiny excel at despising one another”
ultimately a story of suffering, and how to make sense of suffering
piece of literature that is most beloved by the Vietnamese people all over the world

Author [01:53]: Nguyễn Du (1766–1820), pronounced Win Zu, was born into a wealthy literati family from the northern Tonkinese realm, in Bích Câu, modern-day Hanoi. He also achieved a modest degree in the Tonkinese civil service examination system (designed to select candidates for government office). He served the Trịnh lords who ruled Tonkin (north Vietnam), until the north was conquered by the Tây Sơn Rebellion, and when the rebellion was in turn conquered by the Nguyễn Clan from southern Vietnam (Cochinchina).

Nguyễn Du, the author, agreed to serve the new dynasty (though many scholars suggest that this may have been against his conscience). During his service to the Nguyễn dynasty, he was promoted and led a diplomatic mission to Qing China in 1813. He led at least one more mission to China before dying in 1820.

Historical context [02:11]

The Tale of Kiều was written during the early part of the Nguyễn Dynasty, the last Vietnamese imperial dynasty before French colonization.

While fictionally set in the Ming Dynasty of China (1368–1644), it reflects the sociopolitical turmoil of 18th–19th century Vietnam.
At this time, what we now call “Vietnam” had long been divided into two competing realms, Tonkin in the north and Cochinchina in the south. By the end of the 18th century, the devastating Tây Sơn Rebellion (1771–1802) arose in the south to consume both realms. Eventually, the lordly clan of Cochinchina in the south would return to defeat the Tây Sơn, reclaim the south, and also conquer the north, founding the Nguyễn Dynasty.
The author of The Tale of Kiều, Nguyễn Du, was from the north, and some scholars have suggested that his masterpiece, at least in part, expresses the dissatisfaction of a northern official who felt compelled to serve the new southern imperial court.
Either way, The Tale of Kiều clearly reflects the violent turmoil and moral ambiguity of the late 18th century, as remembered in the early decades of the 19th century under stable Nguyễn rule.

Colonial Period [03:26]

A long, painful, bloody period in Vietnam’s history.

Vietnam was colonized by France in 1887; the territory was known as Indo-China and included parts of what are now Laos and Cambodia.
Japan then occupied Vietnam during World War II, from 1940 until 1945; Vietnam fought for independence from Japan as well as from France.
The First Indochinese War against France lasted until 1954, when France was defeated in the Battle of Điện Biên Phủ, and Vietnam was divided into two countries: the northern Democratic Republic of Vietnam under Hồ Chí Minh, and South Vietnam under Ngô Đình Diệm.
(Vietnam was also a colony of China for over 1,000 years, from 111 BCE to 939 CE.)

Adaptations and Cultural Significance [04:11]

The Tale of Kiều has enduring popularity in Vietnam and continues to be translated, performed, and reinterpreted in many different forms, including in operas, on television, and through fortune-telling games.

Origins of the Poem [05:53]

The story of The Tale of Kiều is based on a Chinese vernacular novel entitled Jin Yun Qiao Zhuan (金雲翹傳), or The Story of Jin, Yun, & Qiao, written by an anonymous author under the pen name Caizi Qingren (清心才人), meaning “The Pure-hearted Man of Talent.”

It is unknown how Nguyễn Du came into contact with this novel. He may have acquired it during one of his missions to China, or it may have been circulating in Vietnam.
At this time, it was a relatively popular trend to take different base texts and cast them into what is known as six-eight verse, a Vietnamese form of long poetry that takes advantage of an alternating tonal prosody and interlinear rhyming scheme for easy memorization and recitation (see related video on Poetic Structure and Genre in The Tale of Kiều).
Nguyễn Du took the main elements of the original story and recreated them into this form, a creative act similar to taking a Grimm’s fairytale and turning it into an opera.
The narrative poem could be read and easily memorized, and therefore, was commonly recited or chanted.
This genre of six-eight narrative poems is also known as Truyện Nôm, because they were written using the vernacular character script known as Chữ Nôm, which was designed to represent the Vietnamese language (rather than Literary Chinese, the “official” literary language of high culture in premodern Vietnam). This also probably contributed to the popularity of the genre, and ultimately, the popularity of The Tale of Kiều.
The poem was embraced especially in the early 20th century under French colonial rule and was promoted by a literary magazine known as Nam Phong, whose editor, Phạm Quỳnh (1892–1945), crowned it the most important masterpiece of Vietnamese literature and a treasure of national literary culture.

Qing Dynasty [06:12]

China’s last dynasty; it was led by the foreign (non-Chinese) Manchus and lasted from 1644–1912.

Epic Poem [07:39]

A poem that tells a story, also called a narrative poem, about the life of an individual (see also the video on Poetic Structure and Genre in The Tale of Kiều).

Poetic Form [07:42]

The poem is in six-eight verse, which means that one line is comprised of six syllables, followed by one eight-syllable line. Every other syllable follows a regulated pattern of alternating tones (Vietnamese is a tonal language with six tones).

Script/Language [07:52]

Vietnamese language written in a character script (Chữ Nôm) based on Chinese characters. It looks almost exactly like Chinese script, but there are many differences, and a Chinese language reader would not understand it.

Genre [09:01]

The story is comprised of four different thematic genres (or styles) bound together into a single narrative or story. The poem begins in one genre and proceeds to break through to the next, and the next, and so on, until one reaches the coda in section four, where all narratives are brought together.

These genres are, in chronological order, as follows, and the plot of the poem follows these categories:

Neo-Confucian Fairytale [09:35 and 11:29] Classic Neo-Confucian romance based on the Scholar-Beauty (才子佳人 or tài tử giai nhân) genre. The heroine Kiều is about to get married, but trouble intervenes.
Neo-Confucian Drama [10:00 and 15:29] A grittier and more psychologically intense version of the Scholar-Beauty genre, reminiscent of traditional theatrical forms.
Giang hồ (江湖) Adventure [10:32 and 19:23] An adventure outside the realm of orthodox life and society, between the “rivers and lakes” of the proper world. Often associated with martial arts adventures. The heroine is married to a bandit king.
Buddho-Confucian Contemplation [10:54 and 26:38] The coda, in which all aspects of the story are woven together to form a Buddhistic message about desire and suffering. The author gives a Confucian veneer, showing how good behavior is rewarded by a good life (love, social standing, wealth, etc.), but the story is really a Buddhist one—about the nature of suffering and how to escape it. Kiều is reunited with her first love, Kim, but it does not work out the way we thought it would.
Desire and Suffering [30:21] The definition of life, according to Buddhism, is suffering, which is caused by desire—or craving things, including love. The way to escape the cycle of suffering, which is what Kiều has learned over the course of the story, is to extinguish desire. Kiều and Kim are reunited, but Kiều has moved beyond love or desire for Kim; she marries him, but she is beyond or above needing or wanting him.

Detail on Each of the Five Genres:

Neo-Confucian Fairytale [11:29]
Neo-Confucian Drama [15:29]
Giang hồ (江湖) Adventure [19:23]
Buddho-Confucian Contemplation [26:38]
Desire and Suffering [30:21]

Comparison with The Tale of Genji [34:17]

A Japanese novel written in the 11th century whose themes include the fleeting nature of love and attraction, and the temporariness and impermanence of life.

Deeper Meaning of Kiều [38:09]

It does not matter how talented or beautiful someone is, or how good a person (or a Confucian) someone is. The root of salvation is in our heart, which allows us to realize that desire is what causes our suffering.

The Tale of Kiều as a Religious Meditation on Suffering in Existence [39:16]

Also explains why this poem might be so important to the Vietnamese people after the experiences of suffering in their country over the 19th and 20th centuries.