I am experimenting ways to promote a few elements of Vietnamese literature (e.g, thơ chữ Nôm, lục bát, etc.). Decades ago, I tried to read Truyện Kiều but could not get through the entire story. Perhaps this experimental approach may make it easier for some.
Much like Shakespeare’s Hamlet (plot: standard revenge tragedy; magic: existential crisis depth and linguistic genius), Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby (plot: guy wants girl back; magic: lyrical prose and symbolism) and Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye (plot: teenager is bored in NYC; magic: iconic, raw narrative voice), Nguyễn Du took a "mediocre" or standard soap opera plot—borrowed from a 17th-century Chinese novel, Jīn Yún Qiǎo—and transformed it into a lyrical epic with depth that defined a national identity. The "depth" of Truyện Kiều is a cultural mirror of Vietnam history. For both the Jewish "Kvetsh" and the Vietnamese "Chịu Khó", suffering is not just an unfortunate event; it is viewed as a refining fire.
