Rereading the epic poem "Dragon Vein" by Hoang Tran Cuong

In Hoang Tran Cuong's rather large literary career, he "released" both prose and poetry and epic poems, of which there are 4 epic poems alone: ​​Dinh Vua (2002), U Minh (2002), Tram Tich (1999) and Long Mach (2015). While epic poemsSedimentmade Hoang Tran Cuong ranked by critics as a "poet master" after winning many important awards such asFirst Prize in the poetry contest of the weekly Van Nghe newspaper 1989-1990, Ministry of National Defense Literature and Arts Award (1994-1999)),Ho Xuan Huong Award of Nghe An Literature and Arts Association (1997-2002), translated into English, published in 2007 and especially the State Prize for Literature and Arts (2022), the long poemDragon veinwritten later had a different “fate” even though this epic poem was honored to receive the Vietnam Writers Association Award (2015). Perhaps, this coincides with the assessment (or prediction) of a critic at that time after the resounding success of the epic poemSediment“Then Hoang Tran Cuong also found it difficult to overcome himself." (Thai Doan Hieu)*.

So is it true that Hoang Tran Cuong, despite his creative strength, on the path of victory to continue his creative journey, being recognized and highly appreciated through the epic poem Long Mach, in reality still cannot surpass himself compared to the previous peak, as the epic poem Tram Tich has reached? In our opinion, answering this question is not easy if the reader has the necessary distance to read and ponder both of the above epic poems, to be able to see the valuable contributions of Hoang Tran Cuong in terms of content and art, what is new and different compared to the previous brilliant successes as many people know?

There have been many critical and research articles, there have been seminars on the epic poem Sedimentation when this epic poem was born, it was immediately widely received and highly appreciated. I would like to quote the profound impression when talking about Hoang Tran Cuong: "Sedimentation of poetry, for Hoang Tran Cuong, is sedimentation of pain, sedimentation of hope, and above all, fossilization of the most beloved images of his hometown, a Nghe An countryside with many ups and downs, hardships, endurance and resilience like smoked bamboo..." (Thanh Thao)**.

If in the epic poem Sediment, Hoang Tran Cuong narrated "My mother gave birth to me beside a rice mortar/ I landed dirty on the ground/ The Lao wind dressed me in a brown shirt" (Origin) and "At the age of seven//Followed my father to Hanoi" (Wooden Fish), then in the epic poem Long Mach, he appeared with a different mindset "I carry within me/At once three rivers/Red Red River/Blue Lam River/Blue Cau River..." (River and You). That means from a mischievous, hot-tempered man from Nghe An who was devoted to his brothers, friends, and homeland, Hoang Tran Cuong absorbed the culture of the Red River and Cau River so that in him and in his poetry there were many new qualities, more profound, more intense, and more resonant.

Reading carefully the two epic poems Tram Tich and Long Mach, it is easy to see that he both started from a poor and benevolent homeland to go far and wide to all regions of the country. In the epic poem Tram Tich, he excellently portrayed the image of the Central region in general and the Nghe village in particular: "The Central region is thin and sharp like bamboo ribs/Sculpting his heart into a silk strip of the Lam River" (Central region). Meanwhile, in the epic poem Long Mach, Hoang Tran Cuong with the "main vein" also from his hometown Nghe, from his father, mother, familiar places such as Do Luong bar, Luong river wharf... but knew how to reach the height and generality of each issue and event he mentioned. The following poem is a specific example taken from the chapter Net dat:

“Oh! Lam River, don't have a day

No more downstream flow

And all the streams and rivers that once flowed through the green land of Vietnam

Don't have a day

Don't know where to flow"

Talking about the hunger and fullness of everyday life, Hoang Tran Cuong describes it very well, impressively and surprisingly:

“The fire was removed.

Still have fingernail marks

Plow up

"The bottom of the pot is swollen"

(Origin – Sediment)

has come to look straight into the harsh, ironic reality of life, without flowery words but focusing on delving into the depths of the mood of each person's life and life:

“I stood outside the river.

Silently watching the rushing water"

(Water Demon – Dragon Vein).

It is easy to see that the epic poem Tran Tich with its intense emotional flow, with its sublime artistic talent, Hoang Tran Cuong's pen has left behind many excellent verses, good verses, even impressive chapters such as Mien Trung, for example. This is not shown in the epic poem Long Mach, although the later epic poem is longer, more specific and more general, the author's emotions and energy are equally intense. Is that why the epic poem Long Mach no longer creates the same impression as the epic poem Tram Tich did?

Many readers and writers know that after the great success of the epic poem Tram Tich, Hoang Tran Cuong felt that he still had enough strength to write 4 more epic poems, although in reality he only published the epic poem Long Mach that we are discussing. The success of Tram Tich is a cause for celebration, a big milestone, but at the same time it also created an… obstacle in the creative process of Long Mach as well as all other creations later, forcing the poet to act decisively with the motto of renewing/changing himself, to go higher and further than the poetic peaks he had set foot on.

It was not easy, full of pitfalls, but Hoang Tran Cuong had the courage and spirit to overcome it. Obviously, when writing the epic poem Long Mach, Hoang Tran Cuong dared to take risks by posing "a topic that cannot be verified by reality, a topic that is difficult to limit by history" and "satisfiedly found a prime space to roam both the content of thoughts and the form of expression" (Vu Quan Phuong)***. When writing the epic poem Long Mach, Hoang Tran Cuong even promoted more of his inherent creative power, to build up in a realistic and vivid way the atmosphere and position of mountains and rivers, of water, of land, of people's hearts, not only the people of Nghe An, the people of the difficult Central region but also of the entire Vietnamese nation. Obviously, Hoang Tran Cuong's awareness of space, time, and the scope of creative themes has expanded more than before, the destination is also farther, the ambition is also greater, even though reaching the destination, reaching the new peak is completely independent of the poet's will.

Although "unable to be verified by reality", the structure of the epic poem Long Mach with 11 chapters firmly adheres to the dragon-mach-tho with unique creations that are still not far from the original such as chapters Net dat, Hon song, Mach chu, Quy nuoc, Via bien, The nui... plus the author's own dragon-mach-rieng such as Khan tham, Song va em, Huyet thong... With abundant realistic material, especially the reality of Nghe An bearing strong traces of traditional and modern culture, the rhythm of the poem is rolling, hurried, the verses change and roam thanks to the abundant internal force, Hoang Tran Cuong continues to create a sound that is both heroic epic and fiery reality in each verse, verse, and each chapter, and fits smoothly and flexibly in the overall work.

“My father

Eyes still smiling

Sad and happy hit and miss

Children and grandchildren reunited

small kitchen

Smoke of hesitation

(Bloodline)

is a stanza written in the author's abundant personal inspiration. This chapter contributes to the general poetic vein of the work, talking about the specific to contribute to the larger general, talking about a specific person, a specific familiar space but still creating a generalization, drawing the soul of that space thanks to the mystical verse "Smoke of hesitation". The poet not only describes but through description also reveals thoughts, worries, bringing events from fixed to non-stop movement...

On the contrary, the general poetic vein also leads to the individual vein very skillfully, as when Hoang Tran Cuong narrated about the Soul of the River, describing the flowing river in general:

“Flowing like haunted

Flowing like the anxiety of a pregnant woman

The frogs are slowly jumping in the footprints of the mad dogs in July.

Quietly walking along the dike

Growling in the sun

Crossing the mountain

"The shadow of the village is worn out...".

The free verse bursts open, the bold comparison style filled with the vitality of reality suddenly shines, soaring with a poetic line full of romantic and thoughtful spirit "The shadow of the village is worn out". Maybe someone remembers the Nom poem of Nguyen Trai "Opening the door at night waiting for the scent of cinnamon to come in/Sweeping the porch on the day the tears and shadows of flowers melt" with a poetic idea full of poetic qualities, humanity and ultimate wisdom: the poet hesitates to sweep the porch because "afraid the shadows of flowers melt"! (Vu Binh Luc).

Surely Hoang Tran Cuong with his excellent knowledge has read the masterpiece poem of his father and in the turbulent flow of creativity has both known how to learn from his predecessors and known how to avoid forced repetition. Obviously, the poem describing the flowing water "Sơn bóng quê lang" by Hoang Tran Cuong creates its own mark, first of all it is consistent with the poetic atmosphere in the above stanza, and creates a difference, depth in the way of looking at a specific phenomenon. "Bông hoa tan" and "Sơn bóng quê lang" share the same virtual concept of the shadow, the same movement in the direction of regret, not wanting "tan" and "sơn" but clearly the level is different. That is the difference of a moment of emotional explosion and a persistent process, look closely to see, to feel. Hoang Tran Cuong learns and learns very well to overcome, to continue is exactly that.

As poet Vu Quan Phuong commented, “This work is a realistic experience and also a crystallization of a lifetime of thoughts about the people and the country. The way of expression and content leaves a clear mark of aesthetic and poetic labor. A step forward in the stature of thinking, the way of handling the topic and the technique of writing is very noteworthy”***. Clearly, the epic poem Long Mach deserves a solid place in the hearts of readers and the way Hoang Tran Cuong achieved this result is like a new record of a champion, seemingly nothing, very little but in fact, when at the top, striving to the end to increase even small achievements is a miracle that not everyone can achieve. /.

^{Burning incense on the 5th anniversary of the death of poet Hoang Tran Cuong (9/4/2020-2025)}

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*http://vanhoanghean.com.vn/chi-tiet-tin-tuc/1156-hoang-tran-cuong-nguoi-hoa-giai-nhung-noi-niem-khat-vong

**https://thanhnien.vn/hoang-tran-cuong-da-nhap-vao-tram-tich-185945248.htm

***Vu Quan Phuong: The shape of mountains and rivers reflects the soul of the country - In lieu of an introduction to the epic poem Long Mach, Writers Association Publishing House, 2015

****Vu Binh Luc: A true poet, personal fb page August 12, 2024