The Tale of Kieu
Encyclopedia
The Tale of Kiều is an epic poem in Vietnamese
written by Nguyễn Du (1766–1820), and is widely regarded as the most significant work of Vietnamese literature
. It is even used as a source for bibliomancy
. The original title in Vietnamese is Đoạn Trường Tân Thanh (斷腸新聲,"A New Cry From a Broken Heart"), but it is better known as Truyện Kiều (傳翹, lit. "Kiều Story") .
In 3,254 verses, written in lục bát (6/8) meter, the poem recounts the life, trials and tribulations of Thúy Kiều, a beautiful and talented young woman, who had to sacrifice herself to save her family. To save her father and younger brother from prison, she sold herself into marriage with a middle-aged man, not knowing that he is a pimp, and was forced into prostitution
.
: 青心才人) in classical Chinese
, to convey the situation at the end of the 18th century. The ruling Lê Dynasty
was controlled by the Trịnh Lords in the north and the Nguyễn Lords in the south. While the Trịnh and the Nguyễn were fighting against each other, the Tây Sơn rebels overthrew both the Nguyễn and then the Trịnh over the span of a decade. Nguyễn Du was loyal to the Lê Dynasty and hoped for the return of the Lê king. In 1802 the Nguyễn lord, Nguyễn Ánh, conquered all of Vietnam forming the new Nguyễn Dynasty. Nguyễn Ánh (now Emperor Gia Long
), wanted Nguyễn Du to join the new government and, with some reluctance, he did so. His situation is partially analogous to the situation of the main character in The Tale of Kiều.
The Tale of Kieu was written under a pseudonym as it strongly suggested the old Confucian moral order was wrong, or at least, deeply flawed. Some examples:
, was widely available in Vietnam in the 1960s. The Tale of Kieu, a scholarly annotated blank verse version by Huỳnh Sanh Thông
(1926–2008), was first published in the US in 1983. In 2008, a translation by Arno Abbey, based on the French translation by Nguyen Khac Vien (1913–1997), was published in the US.
There have also been two verse translations in recent years. One of these, another bilingual edition called simply Kiều published by Thế Giới Publishers, Hanoi, in 1994, with a verse translation by Michael Counsell (born 1935), is currently the English version most widely available in Vietnam itself. A second verse translation, The Kim Vân Kiều of Nguyen Du (1765–1820), by Vladislav Zhukov (born 1941), was published by Pandanus books in 2004. Note that Zhukov's patronymic has on some sites been incorrectly given as 'Borisovich'. His full and correct name is Vladislav Vitalyevich Zhukov.
A new translation by Timothy Allen of the opening section of the poem was awarded one of The Times
Stephen Spender
prizes for Poetry Translation in 2008; further extracts from Allen's translation have appeared in Cosmopolis, (the Summer 2009 edition of Poetry Review'.') and in Transplants, the Spring 2010 edition of Modern Poetry in Translation
Quốc Ngữ
and translated into English. Most Vietnamese
speakers know these lines by heart.
, which moved the storyline into a modern Vietnamese setting. Additionally, Burton Wolfe is directing a musical adaptation making its debut this fall.
Vietnamese language
Vietnamese is the national and official language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population, and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam...
written by Nguyễn Du (1766–1820), and is widely regarded as the most significant work of Vietnamese literature
Vietnamese literature
Vietnamese literature is literature, both oral and written, created largely by Vietnamese-speaking people, although Francophone Vietnamese and English-speaking Vietnamese authors in Australia and the United States are counted by many critics as part of the national tradition...
. It is even used as a source for bibliomancy
Bibliomancy
Bibliomancy is the use of books in divination. The method of employing sacred books for 'magical medicine', for removing negative entities, or for divination is widespread in many religions of the world:-Terminology:...
. The original title in Vietnamese is Đoạn Trường Tân Thanh (斷腸新聲,"A New Cry From a Broken Heart"), but it is better known as Truyện Kiều (傳翹, lit. "Kiều Story") .
In 3,254 verses, written in lục bát (6/8) meter, the poem recounts the life, trials and tribulations of Thúy Kiều, a beautiful and talented young woman, who had to sacrifice herself to save her family. To save her father and younger brother from prison, she sold herself into marriage with a middle-aged man, not knowing that he is a pimp, and was forced into prostitution
Forced prostitution
Forced prostitution, also known as involuntary prostitution, is the act of performing sexual activity in exchange for money on a non-voluntary basis. There are a wide range of entry routes into prostitution, ranging from "voluntary and deliberate" entry, "semi-voluntary" based on pressure of...
.
Plot
Nguyễn Du made use of the plot of Chin Yün Ch’iao chuan, known in Vietnamese as Kim Vân Kiều (金雲翹), a story written by Qing Xin Cai Ren (ChineseChinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
: 青心才人) in classical Chinese
Classical Chinese
Classical Chinese or Literary Chinese is a traditional style of written Chinese based on the grammar and vocabulary of ancient Chinese, making it different from any modern spoken form of Chinese...
, to convey the situation at the end of the 18th century. The ruling Lê Dynasty
Lê Dynasty
The Later Lê Dynasty , sometimes referred to as the Lê Dynasty was the longest-ruling dynasty of Vietnam, ruling the country from 1428 to 1788, with a brief interruption....
was controlled by the Trịnh Lords in the north and the Nguyễn Lords in the south. While the Trịnh and the Nguyễn were fighting against each other, the Tây Sơn rebels overthrew both the Nguyễn and then the Trịnh over the span of a decade. Nguyễn Du was loyal to the Lê Dynasty and hoped for the return of the Lê king. In 1802 the Nguyễn lord, Nguyễn Ánh, conquered all of Vietnam forming the new Nguyễn Dynasty. Nguyễn Ánh (now Emperor Gia Long
Gia Long
Emperor Gia Long , born Nguyễn Phúc Ánh , was an emperor of Vietnam...
), wanted Nguyễn Du to join the new government and, with some reluctance, he did so. His situation is partially analogous to the situation of the main character in The Tale of Kiều.
The Tale of Kieu was written under a pseudonym as it strongly suggested the old Confucian moral order was wrong, or at least, deeply flawed. Some examples:
- The initial trouble encountered by Kieu is caused by the greed of a mandarinMandarin (bureaucrat)A mandarin was a bureaucrat in imperial China, and also in the monarchist days of Vietnam where the system of Imperial examinations and scholar-bureaucrats was adopted under Chinese influence.-History and use of the term:...
- but mandarins were all supposed to be morally upstanding individuals. - The rebel Tu Hai is portrayed in a very favorable light - a margin note in a copy owned by the Nguyễn King Tự Đức says The author would deserve a good thrashing from my soldiers if he were still alive.
- Kieu falls in love with men not chosen for her by her parents. Romantic love was regarded with deep suspicion by Confucian scholars.
- Kieu falls in love with three different men, but a woman was supposed to be faithful to one man her entire life.
English translations
There have been at least five English translations of the work in the last half century. Kim Van Kieu by Le-Xuan-Thuy, presenting the work in the form of a noveletteNovelette
A novelette is a piece of short prose fiction. The distinction between a novelette and other literary forms is usually based upon word count, with a novelette being longer than a short story, but shorter than a novella...
, was widely available in Vietnam in the 1960s. The Tale of Kieu, a scholarly annotated blank verse version by Huỳnh Sanh Thông
Huynh Sanh Thong
Huỳnh Sanh Thông was a Vietnamese American scholar and translator.-Life:He was born to a rice-miller mother and a Francophile primary schoolteacher father in Hóc Môn, close to Sài Gòn...
(1926–2008), was first published in the US in 1983. In 2008, a translation by Arno Abbey, based on the French translation by Nguyen Khac Vien (1913–1997), was published in the US.
There have also been two verse translations in recent years. One of these, another bilingual edition called simply Kiều published by Thế Giới Publishers, Hanoi, in 1994, with a verse translation by Michael Counsell (born 1935), is currently the English version most widely available in Vietnam itself. A second verse translation, The Kim Vân Kiều of Nguyen Du (1765–1820), by Vladislav Zhukov (born 1941), was published by Pandanus books in 2004. Note that Zhukov's patronymic has on some sites been incorrectly given as 'Borisovich'. His full and correct name is Vladislav Vitalyevich Zhukov.
A new translation by Timothy Allen of the opening section of the poem was awarded one of The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
Stephen Spender
Stephen Spender
Sir Stephen Harold Spender CBE was an English poet, novelist and essayist who concentrated on themes of social injustice and the class struggle in his work...
prizes for Poetry Translation in 2008; further extracts from Allen's translation have appeared in Cosmopolis, (the Summer 2009 edition of Poetry Review'.') and in Transplants, the Spring 2010 edition of Modern Poetry in Translation
Original text
The original text was written in Vietnamese using the vernacular Chữ Nôm script. Below are the first six lines of the prologue written in modern VietnameseVietnamese language
Vietnamese is the national and official language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population, and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam...
Quốc Ngữ
Vietnamese alphabet
The Vietnamese alphabet, called Chữ Quốc Ngữ , usually shortened to Quốc Ngữ , is the modern writing system for the Vietnamese language...
and translated into English. Most Vietnamese
Vietnamese people
The Vietnamese people are an ethnic group originating from present-day northern Vietnam and southern China. They are the majority ethnic group of Vietnam, comprising 86% of the population as of the 1999 census, and are officially known as Kinh to distinguish them from other ethnic groups in Vietnam...
speakers know these lines by heart.
| Chữ Nôm http://nomna.org/home.php?IDcat=13&cat=2 | Modern Chữ Quốc Ngữ Vietnamese alphabet The Vietnamese alphabet, called Chữ Quốc Ngữ , usually shortened to Quốc Ngữ , is the modern writing system for the Vietnamese language... version (recitation) & translation |
|---|---|
English translation:
-Translation from Lê Xuân Thuy--Kim Vân Kiều (page 19), Second Edition, 1968 Another English translation of the same opening lines:
----
---- Vladislav Zhukov's version of the same, reproducing the rhyme scheme of the original: Were full five-score the years allotted to born man, How oft his qualities might yield within that span to fate forlorn! In time the mulberry reclaims the sunk sea-bourn, And what the gliding eye may first find fair weighs mournful on the heart. Uncanny? Nay—lack ever proved glut's counterpart, And mindful are the gods on rosy cheeks to dart celestial spite ... |
Artistic adaptations
Truyện Kiều was the inspiration for the 2007 movie Saigon EclipseSaigon Eclipse
Saigon Eclipse is a 2007 Vietnamese film. The 90-minute film, directed by Othello Khanh and starring Dustin Nguyen, Trương Ngọc Ánh, Marjolaine Bui, Johnny Nguyen, Nhu Quyen, Daniel You, Edmund Chen, and Joseph Chen Tseng, is based on Nguyen Du's epic poem, The Story of Kieu.-Plot summary:The...
, which moved the storyline into a modern Vietnamese setting. Additionally, Burton Wolfe is directing a musical adaptation making its debut this fall.
Sources
- Renowned Vietnamese Intellectuals prior to the 20th Century (essay on Nguyễn Du by the Vietnamese historian Nguyen Khac) published by The Gioi Publishers, 2004.