Tag Archives: Vietnamese

“Gần mực thì đen, gần đèn thì sang”

Nationality: Vietnamese-American
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, California
Performance Date: Mar 2007
Primary Language: English
Language: Vietnamese

“gần mực thì đen, gần đèn thì sang”

Literal translation: “close to ink then black, near by light then bright”

The informant learned of this Vietnamese proverb when he was in third grade of Vietnamese school, while studying for a test.  Again he heard it from his grandmother also, which is when he began to remember it clearly.  His grandmother would tell him this proverb whenever she talked about his studies and friends at school.  She would say, “gần mực thì đen, gần đèn thì sang,” which implies that you are what your friends make of you.  If you hang out with bad friends (ink), you will become bad (black).  If you have good friends (light), they will influence you to become good (bright).  The informant believes this piece of wisdom because he sees it come true in his cousins’ lives.  One was really wild and rebellious and when she found a boyfriend who was very religious and good, she began to change into her old, nice self.  The informant likes to retell this to his friends who are Vietnamese, often making them laugh because normally one would not randomly quote a proverb out of the blue, but he likes to lighten the mood with quirky sayings.

This is a fairly common Vietnamese proverb, often used to teach younger kids to have good friends and be influenced by good people, opposed to bad friends.  The original proverb is actually a play on words as well as a useful saying about choosing your friends wisely.  It is slightly repetitive yet different, it also uses “đen” for black and “đèn” for light, in order to emphasize the similarities between the two phrases for increased memorability.  This creates the most unique phrase that is easy to learn and easy to say.  Usually it is the older generation teaching the younger generation, as it is in the informant’s case.  However, the younger generation can also spread it to others.  I believe they spread the knowledge because somewhere deep down they have an appreciation for the Vietnamese language and because that proverb is so true and the play on words is so easy to memorize, it remains in one’s memory, even from childhood.

“Mắt to hơn bụng”

Nationality: Vietnamese-American
Age: 52
Residence: Orange, California
Performance Date: Dec 2006
Primary Language: English
Language: Vietnamese, German

“Mắt to hơn bụng”

Literal Translation: His eyes are bigger than his belly

The informant first heard this from his mother when he lived in North Vietnam when he was a young boy, about age nine or ten.  The entire family of six had been eating dinner together for some time when the informant became full.  However, he still had food left over on his plate.  His mother then said to his father, “mắt to hơn bụng” and made him finish the rest of his food.  This proverb essentially means that the person wants more than he can handle.  The informant remembers laughing when his mother said this, because he had never heard such an odd saying.  The informant remembered this proverb until now because it sounded so strange.  “How can one’s eyes be bigger than one’s stomach?” he thought to himself.  So whenever his children put more on their plates than they can eat he reminds them not to have eyes bigger than their stomach and makes them eat it all.  He thinks this proverb is very popular in Vietnam where food is scarce because it reminds people who are blessed enough to have food on the table to not be greedy and wasteful when so many people are starving in the world.

Because the Vietnamese people are starving and hungry in Vietnam, they have learned to appreciate the importance of food and how hard it is to come by.  The Vietnamese people who generally use this proverb are adults who have experienced that hunger and try to convey that experience onto their children, who generally have not experienced hunger to the most extreme yet in their lives.  When people are hungry they tend to crave different types of food.  “I want this and this and this and that,” when in reality they want it but don’t have the stomach room to eat all of it.

Vietnamese Rock Formation Legend

Nationality: Vietnamese-American
Age: 52
Residence: Orange, California
Performance Date: Dec 2006
Primary Language: Vietnamese
Language: English, German

There once was a woman who lived in North Vietnam with her husband.  One day he left to fight overseas when the woman was pregnant.  She missed him so much that she waited for him every day outside on the cliffs overlooking the land and sea, holding their child.  No matter what the weather, she remained outside waiting for her warrior husband to return home, in the storms, sun, and the rain, but he still did not return.  So as she waited and waited until finally, she turned into stone, and is still waiting alone at the top of the cliff.

The informant first heard of this legend from his mother when he was living in Vietnam at the age of about ten or twelve.  His loved his mother and followed her around everywhere and she would tell him stories about Vietnam and how it was created and about famous people or events in the past.  The day his mother told him this legend he was complaining about having to walk outside when it was extremely hot and humid, even more so than normal.  This is when she told him of the woman who would wait outside no matter what, heat or cold, just to see her husband again.  The informant believes this legend is a story that serves as a model to Vietnamese women, telling them that they must remain strong and loyal to the central nit of life in Vietnam, which is the family.  It is the woman’s job to hold the family together when the father is out trying to earn money to feed the family.  He retells this legend primarily just to little children, as a form of entertainment and to keep them quiet and attentive during family gatherings.

This rock is called “the Statue of the Awaiting Wife” and is very famous among the Vietnamese people.  It represents the strength and perseverance of the Vietnamese woman, as well as the loyalty and dedication that she contributes to the family.  Though it is hard to say whether or not the rock exists and really used to be a dedicated woman and her child waiting for their father and husband to return home, it is a form of Vietnamese folklore that has been passed down through the generations for so long that it is almost accepted as true, and that is the reason why it is continued to be told and retold.  I also think that in many Vietnamese legends, there are many things involved with nature and this story represents it, that we are a part of nature so it would be natural for a human to turn into stone.  The stone also represents strength and resistance, as the woman was strong and persistent as she waited for her husband to return home.

Vietnamese Bedtime Story

Nationality: Asian
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Washington D.C.
Performance Date: 4/23/2012
Primary Language: English

Story:

“It’s a bed time story that my mom used to tell me about this human eating monster that like terrorized a village in Vietnam. And I don’t know, this one hero got him to like try this delicious Vietnamese chicken dish and he liked it so much that he just ate chicken”

My informant liked this story because was funny and so easily resolved.

In this little story, it connects my informant with her Vietnamese heritage, not only in the location, but also in food.  It presses that Vietnamese food is so good, that it can stop a terrifying monster who now loves it so much, it is all he eats.  It is her mother telling her that their culture is important for her to know.  It is the last thing she hears before she goes to sleep and what she eats every day.  It was important for my informant to hear this because she grew up away from Vietnam in American culture.

The Coconut Tree

Nationality: Banh
Age: 17
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: April 25, 2012
Primary Language: English
Language: Vietnamese

Contextual data: My informant (my roommate) told me this story late at night when I asked him if he could think of any stories his parents had told him when he was younger. Another of our friends was present, and she was laughing for much of the performance. According to my roommate, his father told him this story about a coconut thief and two lovers–all of whom have horrible fates–as a joke when they were driving in the car a couple years ago. His father was goofing around and trying to make him laugh, so we can assume this story is usually told as an attempt to be funny. My informant’s father is from Vietnam, and he presumably heard this story there. The following is an exact record of our conversation:

Jackson (me): All right, why don’t you tell me that story that you just told me?

I (my informant): Ok, so once upon a time, there was a Vietnamese farmer. Within his backyard, or farm, or whatever you want to call it, he had a coconut tree. Umm, one day a thief decided that he wanted to steal some of the farmer’s coconuts, so he snuck into the backyard, climbed the really high tree, and . . . umm . . . used his knife to cut off a few coconuts, and put them . . . uhh . . . he tied them around his waist and held a few. And then, underneath the tree was a couple kissing, and when the thief had too many coconuts he accidentally dropped one and it fell onto the man’s head, and he bit off the girl’s tongue. So the girl eventually died of blood loss in her mouth, and the man died of concussion, from the coconut falling on his head from meters above the ground.

J: [Laughing]

I: And, ultimately, the thief was tried for burglary [laughing] and eventually put into jail. The end.

J: [Laughing] All right, do you remember who told you that story?

I: My dad.

J: Uhh, did he mean it as a joke, or like a—

I: I think . . . I think he was just like joking around, but it’s definitely a story that he heard in Vietnam at one point in his life.

J: Ok, so your dad’s from Vietnam?

I: Yeah, he moved over in the 70s—to the U.S. in the 70s.

J: Do you think that the story has a meaning behind it, or something like a moral?

I: Uhh . . . don’t kiss under a really high coconut tree?

[Both laughing]

I: Umm . . . pay attention to your surroundings. Like, if the farmer was actually paying attention, then the thief would have been caught before all this stuff happened and umm the couple would have avoided a tragic fate. And the thief shouldn’t have been so greedy as to grab so many coconuts and dropping them to the ground.

J: Does the story have any personal meaning for you?

I: [Laughing] Umm . . . don’t stand under a coconut tree . . . or any dangerous objects.

Even just judging by our reactions (and that of my other friend who was present), the story is meant to elicit laughter, but it does so through very dark humor. It’s all about people doing things with bad connotations–a thief stealing coconuts and a couple having a romantic rendezvous late at night–and then getting into trouble because of it. As is the nature of all contemporary legends, this story may or may not have actually occurred, but the details have undoubtedly changed as it has been passed on. I think my informant is right about the meaning behind the story; it’s about being aware of your surroundings, but, beyond that, I think it’s about not doing what you shouldn’t be doing. It’s definitely black comedy, and it’s entertaining to listen to, but, in the end, everyone has something bad happen to them almost as punishment for what they’re doing right before. And who knows? As a contemporary legend, it could have actually happened.