An opportunity to be yourself!
(Baonghean)At the 2014 high school graduation exam, a pleasant surprise was the open-ended nature of the first exam (morning of June 2nd), Literature – a subject in high school education. This deviated from the traditional method of requiring students to recite answers or memorize information. This article does not address the answer key; instead, it expresses some subjective feelings about the connection between the first and second parts of the exam, and some reflections on the exam's relevance to the events occurring concurrently while students were taking the test.
Specifically, the Literature graduation exam has two parts. Part I requires candidates to read and understand an excerpt from the article "Calmness and wisdom demonstrate patriotism" by Nguyen The Hanh, published in the Education and Training Newspaper on May 15, 2014, about China's blatant intrusion and illegal placement of the Haiyang 981 oil rig in Vietnam's sovereign waters and its aggressive actions... Part II, the essay section, quotes an excerpt of dialogue between the soul of Truong Ba and the Emperor Thich in the play "The Soul of Truong Ba, the Butcher's Skin" by Luu Quang Vu (Literature 12, Volume 2), requiring an analysis of the character Truong Ba's soul's aspirations in the excerpt and a reflection on the issue: that people need to live as themselves. At first glance, the two parts of the exam seem unrelated, but upon closer examination, a very close and unified connection is evident.
In the Reading Comprehension section, the excerpt addresses two fundamental issues: the encroachment of national territory by China; and the rising patriotic spirit and solidarity of the Vietnamese people and the international community, prompting us to remain calm and wise in order to take appropriate action. These two points evoke the story of the soul and the body mentioned in the essay section of the exam. With the sensitivity of every citizen living in a country constantly oppressed by great power ideology, perhaps anyone looking at the map illustrating the location where China placed the Haiyang 981 oil rig deep within Vietnam's exclusive economic zone would feel as if a part of the country's body is being pierced and stabbed. The massive oil rig, the size of a standard international football stadium, is firmly planted at coordinates 15°29′58″N 111°12′1″E, approximately 120 nautical miles east of Ly Son Island (Quang Ngai province, Vietnam). Its gradual movement is a tangible, visible image, as if a part of the nation's physical being is being violated.
But is such an invasion the greatest pain? Looking back from the "oil rig perspective," it will surely awaken many things. On the "physical" part of our country, it seems that not only the Haiyang 981 oil rig, but also many other foreign things are deeply embedded to the point where we are almost dependent. Don't believe it? Just look again. If you suddenly check the clothes you're wearing, how many people can be sure they don't have any "Chinese goods"? Oh dear, from supermarkets, trade fairs, to wholesale and retail markets, fashion shops to grocery stores, how many places, how many things are completely free of "Chinese goods"? One day, I suddenly broke out in a sweat reading a newspaper about a country that, after hosting the World Cup, discovered that almost all the national flags, horns, and portraits of leaders on display were made and imported from... China. I wonder, that country is located continents away from China, while our country is right next door, is that possible?!
At the same time that students were taking their high school graduation exams, during the 7th session of the 13th National Assembly, delegate Le Nam (Thanh Hoa province) raised concerns about the fact that major projects were all awarded to Chinese contractors. “We don’t understand how 90% of power projects and 80% of transportation projects are awarded to Chinese contractors?” Furthermore, the Chairman of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Vu Tien Loc (delegate from Thai Binh province), argued that Vietnam is facing the need for economic reform, and the key is to find solutions to reduce its dependence on China!
In the era of globalization, economic trade is a regular phenomenon. However, when economic dependence occurs, it deviates from this normal pattern. In such a situation, the disadvantages suffered by the dependent nation are undeniable. It's crucial to recognize this as a great pain, a pain comparable to the soul of Truong Ba being forced into the body of a butcher.
The confessions of Truong Ba's soul to the Emperor of Heaven were imbued by the renowned playwright Luu Quang Vu with a profound philosophy of life regarding the relationship between content and form, name and reality, aspiration and ability, soul and body. One can sense within it the anxieties that transcend the limitations of a single individual's fate, not just that of a specific character or person: "...I cannot bear the body of the butcher anymore, I cannot! (...). I cannot be one way on the inside and another on the outside (...). Living off the belongings and possessions of others is already wrong, but now even my own body has to live off the butcher's."
Returning to the event of China illegally placing the Haiyang 981 oil rig, although we are being violated on the ground, the spirit, will, and determination of the Vietnamese people are such that the Haiyang 981 rig cannot be allowed to remain in Vietnam's legally sovereign waters. Similarly, in the hearts of the Vietnamese people, there can be no room for any form of dependence.
In his responses to AP and Reuters, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung emphatically stated: "Vietnam has always desired peace and friendship, but it must be based on ensuring independence, self-reliance, sovereignty, territorial integrity, and maritime boundaries. We will absolutely not accept trading these sacred principles for some illusory, dependent form of peace and friendship."
The Prime Minister's statement perfectly captures the spirit and will of the entire nation. It reminds us of President Ho Chi Minh's now-truthful saying, "Nothing is more precious than independence and freedom." This truth transcends boundaries and time, becoming a frame of reference for examining and evaluating common values across different spatial and temporal dimensions. "Nothing is more precious than independence and freedom" is an aspiration to affirm one's own value, with a profound and positive spirit of self-awareness and self-respect. In simpler, more relatable terms, "people need to live as themselves" is also a path towards "independence and freedom," avoiding dependence, both physically and spiritually.
However, in Luu Quang Vu's "The Soul of Truong Ba in the Body of a Butcher," Truong Ba's soul could only rely on the Emperor Thich, on supernatural forces. But for us today, to live authentically, to have independence and freedom, we must rely primarily on our own intelligence and strength. Because true independence and freedom are impossible without living authentically and relying on our own strength!
Ngo Kien
