Đổi mới phương thức tự sự trong văn xuôi hư cấu việt nam đương đại tt tiếng anh

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INTRODUCTION
1. Significance of topic research
1.1 In every culture, literature is a mental activity constructed
depending on specific age. Since 1975, Vietnam has entered a new era: the
era of development as a peaceful and unified country that favors integration
with the world. From the wartime we return to peace. New needs arise,
issues require reconsideration. The comprehensive reform process launched
by the Party aims to get our country out of the poverty crisis and lagging
behind many decades of war devastation. The market economy replaces
subsidized economy. Exchange opens in a multidimensional way, life
changes rapidly with so many new experience; achievements came but also
challenges... They are all reflexed into literature. There have been many
researches on this period’s literature from different angles, from the
generalization of features, rules, movements of literature, of specific
genre... to speculations on specific works and authors. Our thesis chose to
study the narrative methods in fiction (ie novels and short stories, the part
with outstanding achievements) in this period as an approach which is both
a historic summarization and a thorough interpretation of the typical works
based on modern literary theory.
The narrative method is part of Narratology with which modern
literary researchers show great interest. The change of the narrative method
allows the recognition and evaluation of literature of a period, an era, a
movement, or an author ... in a vivid way. Vietnamese fictional prose from
the mid-80s onwards has borne great motions, gained numerous artistic
values, been admitted by public opinion and researchers. Literary history
can be seen as the continuation of literary schools, literary currents, which
based on different conceptions of human. In prose, the most sustainable
tendency is to investigate the representation of human through narrative
method. Throughout the history of national literature, there have been

numerous different literary schools but the concept of narrative remains


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unchanged: the content is more important than how it is told. The common
form is a story that has a beginning and an end with a plot changed
according to the changing personality or fate of characters ..., all presented
as a credible reality. Contemporary prose tends to emphasize text
construction or form over content. Many literary authors claimed that the
writing process is the content itself, the very topic of the work.
Researchers, therefore, acquire new perspectives. Exploring the works of
Pham Thi Hoai, Nguyen Huy Thiep, Bao Ninh, Ta Duy Anh, Ho Anh Thai,
Nguyen Thi Thu Hue, Phan Thi Vang Anh, Nguyen Binh Phuong, Nguyen
Viet Ha, Chau Dien, Doan Minh Phuong, Phan Viet, Thuan, Nguyen Danh
Lam, Thuy Duong, Nguyen Dinh Tu ... we have noticed a remarkable
change in narrative method. The thesis, therefore, with the name
"Innovation in narrative methods in contemporary Viet Nam fiction prose",
choose to study this problem with the desire to capture and describe the
breakthrough of Vietnamese prose after 1986 in comparision with
traditional one. Knowledge on text construction will serve as a reliable
ground to clarify the characteristics of a new aesthetic.
2. Research subject and scope
2.1. Research subjects
The thesis focuses on identifying and explaining the fundamental and
outstanding aspects of the innovation of narrative methods in fictional
prose from 1986 up to now: The dominance of the narrative principle upon
narrative point of view, character type, how writers deal with genre,
narrative techniques and artistic language. In order to clarify the new points
of the narrative method in this period, we have consulted and compared

with the literary period before 1986 and some art forms of the same period
as cinema, theater...
2.2. Research scope
The thesis will examine the short stories and novels from 1986 up to
now (ie contemporary fiction prose), which are praised by public opinion
or outstanding innovations in narrative methods.


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3. Objectives and research tasks
3.1. Target
- Identify, describe and explain the basic traits in the innovation of
narrative methods of Vietnamese fictional prose from 1986 to present,
confirming the forming of a new aesthetic system in literary life.
- Evaluate the significance of this innovation in the national literary
process, affirm the achievements of contemporary Vietnamese literature.
3.2. Research tasks
The thesis focuses on solving the following tasks:
- Identify, explain the causes leading to innovation of narrative
methods.
- Survey typical authors and works (Appendix) in the reform of the
method of narrative, thereby, clarify the fundamental innovations of
fictional prose from 1986 up to now.
- Point out some useful lessons for literary writing and reception.
4. Research Methodology
In this thesis, we apply a combination of research methods, including
the following main methods:
- System method: Recognizing the innovation of narrative methods in
connection with the innovation of the entire national literature in the post1975 period from the concept of reality, writers, the reader, literary

language; relate the subject to other art forms such as cinema, music,
theater.
- Interdisciplinary method: Exploring literature in relation to cultural
studies, psychology, semiotics ... This helps to better understand the spirit
of the era, the cultural interactions reflected in literature.
- Comparison method: Compare with the literature before 1975 to
realize the motions and changes of literature in the post-1975 period.
Compare aesthetic trends among the authors of the same period to clarify
the diversity in the narrative methods of contemporary fictional prose.


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5. New contributions of the thesis
- The thesis is the first in-depth study on the innovation of narrative
methods in contemporary Vietnamese fictional prose.
- Through surveying the narrative method of typical works, the thesis
contributes to shed a new light on the appearance and motions of artistic
notion in contemporary Vietnamese cultural and literary life in particular.
- Identify universal rules of contemporary literature (rules of
integration, genre interaction, public demands, writer’s aspiration ...), direct
the aesthetic perception of readers.
- The results of the thesis are useful references for researchers and
lecturers of modern Vietnamese literature.
6. Structure of the thesis
In addition to the Introduction and Conclusion, the thesis is divided
into 4 chapters including:
Chapter 1: Overview of research problems
Chapter 2: The desire for democracy and the diversification of
narrative methods

Chapter 3: The efforts to renew the notion of literary character
Chapter 4: Renewing notion of genre and the practice of technologyaffected techniques
CHAPTER 1. OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH PROBLEMS
1.1. Concept of narrative methods
Narrative is one of the main ways of constructing a text: narration,
description, expression, presentation, and argument. The narrative is, in
fact, storytelling, a way to reflect the objective reality through specific
events and characters, so that the truths are revealed.
To narrate is to present a series of events in a certain order with a
beginning, a main body of events and an ending. The specific expressions


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of the textual narrative method include the use of "narrator" (oral or verbal)
to help the listener (or reader) grasp the content of the story (story about
whom, context, main events, development of the event, how it ends,
meanings of the story, ...).
Along with the literary movements appearing continuously, which
brought forth new asthetic experiences and readjusted the old art
experiences, the concept of "narrative" also embraced new connotations.
The concept of "narrative" needs to be expanded: besides the "discourse"
and "story", it is necessary to think of "untellable stories", which means
events or dialogues presented as "a floating representation". The method of
narrative is a concept that describes how the writers practice their writings.
It is considered to be one of the expressive methods that reflect the
common kernel of an artistic thinking of a literary movement, a trend or a
set of universal expressions. In each specific case, the narrative method will
be individualized, concretized or personalized with distinguished traits,
which are often called the art of narrative. Therefore, the art of narrative

expresses personal imprint, associated with the author's style.
Our thesis still uses the concept of "narrative" due to its familiarity
and universality, but in dealing with the topic of this research, we would
still include the extended connotations of narratology, that means we pay
attention to not only the "story" told in a traditional way (with the
beginning, the end, the event, the character) and the stories which are
disjointed, chaos, intentionally incoherent, like a bunch of events presented
freely. This means the "free manifestation" is also a kind of unordered
order. We will apply basic aspects of narratology in order to illuminate an
important change in Vietnam's fictional prose from 1986 to the present
which are fundamental innovations in narrative method. The essential
elements of narrative are ultimately stories (events, events, narrators
(viewpoints), narrative methods. From our point of view, the undersurface
principles which dominate the narrative structure always lie in the depth of


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literary thought as a sense of reality, a conception of the functional nature
of literature, of the relationship between writers and readers... With the
name The innovations in narrative methods in contemporary Viet Nam
fiction prose, this thesis will mainly survey the outstanding features in the
innovation of narrative methods such as realistic picture, point of view,
characterisation, genre governing and some writing techniques.
1.2. The status quo of research on narrative method in contemporary
Vietnamese fictional prose
The innovation of the narrative method is a matter of great concern to
domestic literary critics. Between 1975 and 1990, the most pronounced
transformation in literary writing in general was the infusion of worldly
matters into epic stories. Therefore, critics focus on the story, giving first

attention to the innovation of the realistic observation expressed in the
work of the writer. Much of the critics' opinions like Dang Quoc Nhat, Tran
Dang Tuyen, Phan Cu De, Lai Nguyen An ... still move toward that
direction. In addition, there have been some studies that began to pay more
attention to the narrative innovation, mainly revolving around the literary
works in the 80s by Nguyen Minh Chau, Nguyen Huy Thiep, Pham Thi
Hoai. Although it was not the main stream in the critics circle, but many
researchers have felt a different motion in the fiction which is the effort to
renew the writing style... From the early 90s onwards, the trend of contentdirected researches is still continuing however studies that are interested in
the new writing style have conveyed a strong impression, provoking
arguments. Opinions by Lai Nguyen An, La Nguyen, Dang Anh Dao,
Nguyen Ngoc, Tran Dao, Thuy Khue, Phung Van Tuu, Pham Xuan Nguyen,
Hoang Ngoc Hien, Nguyen Thanh Son, Vuong Tri Nhan, Nguyen Van Long
... tried to grasp the trend of innovation in writing and led to many
discoveries as well as new and interesting interpretations. Nguyen Thi
Binh's Vietnamese prose after 1975 considered the innovations of artistic
prose from 1975-1995 on three perspectives: the notion of writers, artistic


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conceptions of people and signs of genre innovation. In researches on
Vietnamese prose after 1975, we found that most of them mentioned the
reform of the narrative method at different magnitudes. Some thesis (by
Bui Thanh Truyen, Nguyen Van Thuan, Do Hai Ninh, Nguyen Thi Thu,
Mai Hai Oanh, Tran Thi Mai Nhan, Tran Viet Thien, Phung Gia The,
Nguyen Thi Hai Phuong, Thai Phan Vang Anh...) have studied the artistic
innovations of fictional prose in this period in terms of: art of
characterisation, time governing, diversification of structural arts, genre
interactions in prose, the use of mythicization, magical elements, parody...

Thus, when we consider different approaches, at different magnitudes,
different names, there have been a few projects mentioning the reform of
narrative. However, no specialized works have carried on a systematic
survey to reveal thoroughly the innovation in the narrative method focusing
the way of dealing with the text, narrative point of view, narrative forms,
narrative models. Our thesis will reproduce, systematize and analyze more
thoroughly the innovation of literary thinking through the outstanding
aspects of the narrative method in contemporary fictional prose.
CHAPTER 2. THE DESIRE FOR DEMOCRACY AND THE
DIVERSIFICATION OF NARRATIVE METHODS
2.1. Historical - social premises and the need to release creativity in
order to unfold the potential of narrative
2.1.1. Historical - social premise
The renovation since the mid-1980s has formed an extremely
favorable environment for artists. Rising democratic spirit, open cultural
exchanges, more cultural and literary management policies have
encouraged creativity and led writers and artists to more experimental
works. Democratization means that people are allowed to exercise the
rights defined by the Constitution, that the aspirations of the people are


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respected, the equality of opinions is achieved, oppressions and monopoly
of truth are irradicated.
The market economy not only gave prominence to the autonomy and
dynamic role of individuals but once again reincarnated the notion of
"literature - goods" before 1945 to replace the notion of "literature weapons". Literature must pay more attention to the needs and tastes of the
readers, must respect the popular culture and accept competition with many
other interesting entertaining activities. Art and literature shifted from

revolving around the historical-national "us", the collective us, to a focus
on personal self, from the purpose of conveying political propagandas
about revolutionary morality, living ideals to not overlooking both the
needs of entertainment, relaxation, relieving stress, etc.
The way the Party ruled art and literature in the new period changed
drastically. Most notably, the adopted Resolution 05 on Culture and Art has
greatly encouraged the freedom of artists. “The Party encourages artists to
explore creatively, encourages and demands daring experiences in artistic
creation.” Cultural, literary exchanges are paid attention to. International
integration has helped to regulate and accelerate the process of
modernizing national literature on many aspects, most notably the
opportunity to absorb and utilize many philosophical ideas and modern art
experiences all over the world.
The development of mass media has also triggered a boom in popular
culture. Cinema, television, video, internet, cameras, video games,
karaoke

...

all

tend

to

promote

entertainment

functions.

The

aestheticalization of daily life and worldlization of aesthetic activities are
strongly reflected in literature. And according to our observation, it is also
the prominent feature of contemporary Vietnamese prose.
2.1.2. Liberate personality and nurture the potential of narrative
Innovating artistic thinking and liberating the creative personality of
writers is the need for Vietnamese literature itself. Many writers have


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expressed their desire to innovate literature from their own experiences.
Nguyen Ngoc said: “I need to find another artistic language. Around me, and
even inside me, there were so many changes which are not simple, not small.
Must write differently... ". Nguyen Khai also became aware that: “From 1955
to 1977 I wrote in a specific way. From 1978 to now, I have written in another
way”. Carrying a common mindset with other writers of the same generation,
Le Luu also called his works before The Far Away Time "literature - work",
"literature - mission" and "cannot write like that anymore". Nguyen Khac
Truong also claimed that, "I want every book to discover, to point out
something in the deep, spiritual part of life, of people." Many other writers do
not speak directly but their notions of innovation were reflected through art
works which showed they have changed.
The changes of literary thinking of the writer who once won glory in
the previous period were firstly showed in the change of topics, the way
they approached reality. The compositions of To Hoai, Nguyen Khac
Truong, Ma Van Khang, ... present a rural reality with intense disturbances,
ups and downs, serious cultural traumas after land reform and war. Writing

about the war, after 1975, the works of Nguyen Trong Oanh, Nguyen Minh
Chau, Chu Lai, ... depicted a picture of harsh reality which loaded with
questions. Behind that realistic presentation is a serious attemp to deal with
the traditional way of representing reality. It expresses the aspiration of
writers to have their own voice, to be free to investigate the reality.
The way writers dealed with historical topics in the period after 1986
has triggered an important turning point in the concept of genre. The writer no
longer simply recorded the history, but they created their own history. Nguyen
Mong Giac believes that historical fiction must be a fiction first. Vo Thi Hao
said that "my problem is innovation and conservatism, not recounting
history". Nguyen Xuan Khanh emphasized: "I think that historical fiction is
not a recount of history but a reflection of nowadays problems." With that in
mind, historical prose works only borrow historical materials as background
or atmosphere for the writer to show their own ideas.


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For young writers, the aspirations to renew, to differentiate seem to be
the starting point of their careers as writers. Pham Thi Hoai said that
"writing as a conduct"; Nguyen Viet Ha is well aware that “repeated
literature is as scary as bland literature"; Nguyen Huy Thiep constantly
shook old believes about literature ... It can be said that in the desire to
renew literature, the most obvious breaking change in writers is the concept
of literature as a game. The dynamic process of cognition and
experimentation has gradually formed a new generation of writers typical
for the process of innovation of narrative.
In contemporary prose we can clearly see the two main trends of
innovation: 1 / Write about the truth of life and human destiny with the loss
and pain in a humane way, from extrovert to introvert, explore and

experience the inner world which is rich, diverse, complex, mysterious but
also very fragile. 2/use people and the living environment as a starting
point to put efforts into reforming writing style. In this case, reality or
people can become a vehicle for the experiment of narrative art: the
playfulness is highly regarded, writers and readers meet in "the game of
storytelling", "the game of characters ","the game of language","the game
of structures "... One one hand, focusing on narrate technique would
possibly create breakthroughs, help contemporary literature surpass the
traditional rules; on the other hand, it will be difficult to avoid the the raw,
crude, awkward reality. Along with the atmosphere of innovation, the
literature of overseas Vietnamese also has many interactions with the
domestic literature, contributing to the expansion of the borders of national
literature and providing new aesthetic experience.
2.2. Diversify narrative methods: the efforts to democratize art and
literature
2.2.1. Objective-credible narration
We can recognize the form of traditional narrative (appreciate the
content, promote the credibility, the seriousness of the story, maintain the


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coherent continuity in causal relation) is still the form chosen by the
majority of writers. By the end of the twentieth century, this form still
dominates compared to some sporadic cases that seem to be experimenting
with other narrative methods (Pham Thi Hoai, Nguyen Huy Thiep, Pham
Hai Van, Bao Ninh...). What is worth noting is that even the traditional
works showed the effort to expand and revew the familiar narrative
framework, reflected in the more casual attitude of the narrator and
especially through the hesitating, ambiguous point of view. This view also

shows a major shift in the writer-reader relationship: the writer no longer
confidently teaches reader and boasts about the truth, but now moves
towards meditations; shows more respect to readers, not just focus on
telling and providing forced judgments. The common point of this kind of
narrative is the storyteller is always cautious about what he is telling. The
narrator always feels that there are truths beyond what he knows.
From the omniscent outlook of the traditional narrative to the
ambiguous and hesitating point of view, the need to meditating upon the
reality of the writer has become more visible. By creating this new outlook,
literature begins to assert an equal and democratic relationship with readers.
We call this a way to renew the narrative method on a traditional basis.
2.2.2. Subjective – uncreditable narrative
2.2.2.1. Story: reality that does not require verification
The uncredibility is understood as a result of critical thinking. It
reflects the transitions in the writer's outlook, in his notion of the subject,
the reader and the literature itself. Uncreditable narrative, therefore, tells a
story but does not require readers to believe that it is true (Nguyen Cong
Hoan generalized "story is fabrication which seems to be true")
Uncreditable narrative is an agreement between writers (game orperator)
and readers (player) that the stories mentioned are not to be compared with
the real life out there. It may be credible in details, in specific situations,
but the writer openly admits that the whole picture of reality is completely


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fabricated. The direct or indirect opinions of the writer, the doubtful detail
interwoven in the work, the distortion, exaggeration, the most
unpredictable circumstances, the caricatured characters... all aim to disrupt
the reader with the story being told, constantly reminding them that they

are watching the writer's game.
2.2.2.2. The unreliable narrator's point of view
Based on the narrator's confidence, we generalize the following types
of points of view:
The narrator is limited to an individual who may be inferior,
occasionally lighthearted, but most of the time always skeptical of life,
always wants to oppose the major opinion. By constructing such a point of
view, the narrator seems to refuse to assert the accuracy of the story,
making the story an anecdote that provokes the curiosity of the reader. It is
a way to encourage reader to think, and also a requirement for writers who
have to hold dialogue continuously, to question themselves seriously. The
point of view of the extraordinary characters has contributed to the
diversity of narrative methods. It shows that reality is not the ultimate
purpose of the literary work, but only a means for the writer to convey
certain artistic messages. With such aggressive and provocative point of
view, the narrator's status is now equal to the character’s and the reader’s.
Looking at the character from a no longer omniscient point of view, the
narrator openly expresses unreliable truth in the stories and leaves in his
story aesthetic white spaces that force readers to discover and form a
democratic dialogue.
Many contemporary prose compositions, along with uncreditable
stories, possess multi-dimensional point of view. Sometimes dialogue
erases all boundaries, even readers can "jump" into discussion and argue.
Every narrator opens up a world that forces readers to change their reading.
Readers find it hard to keep the coherence of the plot. The intention is to let


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readers understand "every little story" in a big story that the narrator still

consider as the main plot.
Of course, online storytellers can only be born with the rise of the
internet. There is no longer an omnisient narrator or a point of view that
dominates others. Reading novels is similar to watching a movie, hearing
the voices of life resound simultaneously. That will be uncomfortable for
traditional readers but full of excitement and at least it opens up the
potential of narrative methods.
CONCLUSION: Thus, the limited, aggressive, provocative point of
view, along with stories that do not require verification, always remind
readers of the finite of human and the chaos of life. From this narrative,
especially with the unreliable narrator, a new relationship, an equal relation
which is democratic and rich in dialogue is established between writers and
readers. Readers are entitled to doubt, to be able to argue and discover the
truth by themselves.
CHAPTER 3. THE EFFORTS TO RENEW THE NOTION OF
LITERARY CHARACTER
Capable of exploring human fate, characters in prose are the most
important manifestation of the notion of human. The construction of the
world of characters, from a certain angle, allows us to recognize the
characteristics of the narrative technique of an era. In the world of
Vietnamese fictional prose from the mid-80s to the present, we are
particularly interested in the appearance of non-idealistic characters and
characters who deny typification.
3.1. Idealless character
3.1.1. Complex, multifaceted character
With a multidimensional notion of human being, the world of
characters in fictional prose after 1986 has changed a lot. It has


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increasingly departed away from the ideal human being. In some works by
Nguyen Minh Chau, Nguyen Khai, Ma Van Khang, Nguyen Huy Thiep, Ho
Anh Thai, Phan Thi Vang Anh, Nguyen Thi Thu Hue there are many
individual characters. The characters who were once honored as "gods" are
now also normalized. From ordinary characters to famous historical figures
all appear with multi-faceted, intertwined personalities between good and
bad, noble and vile. The de-idealization of the character is really an
important sign of innovation in the notion of the character of contemporary
Vietnamese prose. We could observe the fundamental innovations in the
artistic thinking of contemporary writers.
3.1.2. Small, lonely character
Instead of letting ideal characters possess the best qualities, now
writer pays attention to the private life, the ordinary life, multifaceted
characters who are inclined towards the worldliness. Among them are the
small, lonely characters. The most common manifestation of this type of
small character is that they are mainly located in personal relationships,
individual fate in the daily life (Côi cút giữa cảnh đời, Miền hoang tưởng,
Mưa nhã Nam, Nghĩa địa xóm Chùa, Tiền định, Bi kịch nhỏ, Khi người ta
trẻ, Cát đợi, Lão Khổ, Cánh đồng bất tận, ...).
The small, lonely character is common in contemporary Vietnamese
writing. Behind each character is the problem of life. From the perspective
of narrative methods, paying attention to and successfully building this type
of character is an important innovation of Vietnamese contemporary fiction:
it is the proof of writers' efforts to innovate writing style in order to explore
and reflect comprehensively and deeply the humanistic issues of life.
3.2. Characters denying the typification
3.2.1. Mystical, shapeless characters
This is one of the most notorious "separatist" from the tradition of
"typical characters in typical circumstances". This type of character is

associated with the concept of multi-dimensional reality, of the mystery, the


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sacred, the grotesque of life. Appearing in the work as literary technique,
mystical characters can pose serious, important aesthetics issues as well as
the reality that realistic characters find it difficult to approach. The
unrealistic characters of Vietnamese prose during the renovation are often
present in several major forms: the characters of the resurrected myths and
fairy tale; miraculous characters / prophetic characters; ghost character;
deformed / anomalous characters ... In modern life, man in his most
rational moment realizes that life also includes so many mysteries that need
to be interpreted and discovered. Sometimes it is impossible to use reality
to explain reality, to use pure rationality to explain everything. This type of
character undertook that task and it had fulfilled its duty.
3.2.2. Formulated characters who are erased, deleted
Different from poetics of the 1945-1975 period, the act of
formulating characters in contemporary prose deliberately exposes
incredibility and playfulness. Characters are so simplified that they are pure
formulas, yet they show the complexity of reality and the limits of writer's
expression.

Moreover,

the

creation

of

formulated

characters

in

contemporary literature is mostly to parody, to ridicule. It’s also a warning
of the simplification of human being, the lost of the original, being eroded
in a society is dominated by technocratic civilization.
The common technique of building formulated characters is to
decompose the character, turn the character identity into unfinished puzzle
pieces which is "not the multi-faceted nature of the “I” but the
“eradication” of character, which means that the character is divided into
various pieces which we cannot easily assemble and rebuild. " We no
longer pay attention to character’s appearance, personality, and fate.
Readers

see

them

through

ephemeral

moments,

fragments

of

consciousness. Appearing with a psychological state, the non-seamless
nature of the evocative character leads to a disturbed, broken, insecure,
undirected reality (In our opinion, this is the most significant change in


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dealing with the characters in contemporary fiction). Not only being
simplified in quantity, the character is also erased of personality and
becomes a meaningless presence. From formulating to erasing personality
technique, it is obvious that the concept of characters in prose nowadays is
very different from traditional one. Many works in the late 20th century
until now deliberately bleached characters (erasing names, ages, diluting
and eliminating psychological factors, personality, appearance, occupation,
family circumstances ... deliberately ignored, the border of the identity is
also lost or faint. Writers seem to express their new attitudes towards the
communication with readers. The technique of vagueness or the deletion of
character feature, on one hand makes the literary work shrink, but on the
other hand, more importantly, the character needs only a certain
psychological feature, a particular behavior in order to refer to universal
humane conditions.
CONCLUSION: The return of the individual in a multi-perspective
view of contemporary literary writing has offered writers a grand space for
imagination, meditation and experiment. Writers are now able to access
new experiences to unleash their creativity. Being creative, writers have
provided reader a rich and unprecedented character world. In addition to
the fantasy character, contemporary prose formulated characters are not a
repetition of a technique, but it contains a new dimension, new thought and

new art. It reflects a mind in the age of technocracy which is eroding,
hardening, erasing the personality and identity of human being. It is openly
opposed to framed character of a rather cramped conception of "reflecting
reality" that Vietnamese literature has been obeying for more than 30 years.


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CHAPTER 4: RENEWING NOTION OF GENRE AND THE
PRACTICE OF TECHNOLOGY-AFFECTED TECHNIQUES
4.1. Hybrid experiment, renewed genres
Genre is a well-defined "frame" in both writer’s and reader’s mindset,
including several inherent characteristics to distinguish different kinds of
relationship between literature and life. After many generations, narrative
has shaped quite fixed frameworks for novels, short stories, autobiography,
detective, adventure... From different approaches, a number of studies has
focused on investigating the looseness of the notion of genre in the prose
writing after 1975. It can be seen that the development of genre in
contemporary prose takes place with several elements. We pay more
attention to the hybrid tendency which has deformed genre because it
represents most clearly the incredibility of narrative, and reveals the playful
nature of literary work, therefore liberates literature from the burdens that it
is forced to carry. Writers often use some basic elements from the familiar
genre frame and hybridize it with other genres, distorting the original
genre, sometimes mocking, parodying the original genre in order to present
a literary work that no longer fits into the traditional genre. We re-use the
concept that some researchers used to refer to genre hybridization and
distortion.
4.1.1. Pseudo-history
From short stories by Nguyen Huy Thiep which evoked fierce

debates, the pseudo-history narrative has become more and more
diversified with the works of Vo Thi Hao, Nguyen Quang Than, Nguyen
Mong Giac, Nguyen Xuan Khanh, Hoa Vang and Le Minh Ha, Uong Trieu,
Luu Son Minh ... Utilizing densely material from history with specific
events, people, time, and space, these works do not intent to reproduce
objective history such as previous historical stories, but they aim at
constructing fictional situations, different possibilities assumed by the


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author. The author uses historical events and characters, bases on both
official and unofficial history to project a modern outlook. Thus, the story
encourages dialogue as much as possible. Characters in these works are
often famous figures in history, which means they have fixed status in
community consciousness. They are "transfused", molded in daily
relationships, which forces readers to become familiar with the multiperspective view of things. The writer writes about history not to recreate,
to restore history, but to observe the relationship between the past and the
present. To recall the past tragedies from the perspective of the present is
also to discover spiritual values, as well as cultural sources and conduct.
The writers desire to contribute an opinion, arousing in readers the need of
self-questioning, positive criticism, to propose a solution to the future of
Vietnam.
4.1.2. Detective parody
Detective is a genre with a very simple plot, that is, a crime, a
detective looking for the truth, thrilling details, an enigma solved thank to
the detective’s talents. In the world, detective fiction is considered to be the
most typical of rational literature, a genre in which the crime is identified
primarily based on deductive methods, a method that requires mental
efforts in solving the crime.

In Vietnamese contemporary prose there are many works using
detective motifs in the parody manner. In some contemporary novels such
as T.mất tích, Đi tìm nhân vật, Và khi tro bụi,... we can see the mixture of
detective stories with stream-of-consciousness novel: the plot starts with a
crime, then the detective. The character leads reader into a labyrinth of
existential and confused arguments over the human conditions and
eventually forgets his/her mission. Characters are often constructed
complicatedly. Each character is a complex, multi-personality being.
Though most of them are still experimental, their contributions in many
aspects like theme, plot, characters, and writing style are undeniable .


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The attempt to experiment with new forms has not only begun with the
creative desire of writers but also by the demands of the era, pressured by
the reader.
4.1.3. Pseudo-autobiography
Autobiography is self-written account of writer’s life. Unlike the
curriculum vitae of a writer, autobiography is where the past reborn, and the
writer's life serves only as material that the author uses for different purposes.
The fixed feature of autobiography is that the author retells his life, implicitly
assures the credibility of the story. In contemporary Vietnamese literature,
many works seem to be autobiographical, although they are actually fiction. In
Gia đình bé mọn, Ngược dòng nước lũ, Tự sự 265 ngày, Chinatown, Và khi tro
bụi, Rong chơi miền ức…., the autobiographical element is used in
combination with fiction to construct an unrealistic world which distracts
readers. On the surface we have many real details (name, biography), but the
story is fictional, fabricated. Here, the author, the storyteller and the main
character can be identical. The content tends to go beyond the boundaries of

the confessing narrator to become a mixture containing lives, fates. By
engaging in the dialogue, autobiographical authors have increased the number
of narrators and been ready to leave each character to his own point of view,
regardless of main / sub, good / bad characters, so that each character can
present life in a unique way. The narrator "I" is not the only "I": there are other
"I"s – that means the narrator imagines his status, his mentality, his emotions,
in shorts the context of the story. The use of autobiographical elements both
stimulates curiosity and distracts the gullible readers. It is a game which
destroys the distinctive boundary between reality and fiction, a powerful attack
on the crude reflection of the reality, a denial of the traditional narrative.
4.1.4. Demythologisation
Myth is also a narrative form restructured by many contemporary
writers. The most prominent trend is to demythologize the legends. This is


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how we call the literary works rewriting and demythologizing the serious
myths by mixing them with laughter and mock elements.
The incorporating of legendary elements into art works is quite
common in literature. However, from 1986 up to now, the desire to bring
the myth into the literary works has become more and more powerful in
many authors. The use of mythology in literary writing has created a
postmodern technique. Borrowing from legends or creating new legends,
perhaps the ultimate intention of writer is to change the notion of reality in
literature. The old legends and myths were reborn when they were weaved
with the life-embedded details of today: the legend of saint Giong in Giong,
the legend of Tam Cam in the Ngày xưa, cô Tấm (Lê Minh Hà), Nhân sứ,
Sự tích những ngày đẹp trời (Hòa Vang), Trương Chi, Những truyện kể ở
thung lũng Hua Tát (Nguyễn Huy Thiệp), Đường Tăng (Trương Quốc

Dũng)… The form is still identical with the ancient myths yet the variation
of the story lies in the new connotations, in powerful parables. Người đàn
bà Âu Lạc (Vo Thi Hao) compared the burden on her shoulder with Au
Co’s. Truong Chi in Nguyen Huy Thiep’s story is particularly sensitive to
blinding masses, and Truong Chi of Le Minh Ha is exceptional poor, for
whom readers feel sympathy. Familiar figures of folklore have been
modified to exist vividly. In Mình và họ (Nguyen Binh Phuong), the myths
are combined with the horror and grotesque as well as historical detail to
form a unique plot. Because it is associated with a sense of mocking and
skepticism, the playfulness is often identified as the mark of postmodern
literature.

It

plays

an

important

role

in

postmodern

writing.

Demythologizing is also a free play of writing, which is enough to create a
new kind of narrative method which is different from the traditional

credibility-based narrative.
4.2. Literary techniques affected by technology
The organization of documents is of great importance with writers. In
contemporary literature, the interference of literature with other arts and


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cultural activities, as we have affirmed, is extremely important.
Assembling, collaging are common techniques in cinema. This kind of
visual art has the advantage of representing the co-exist space and time.
Many writers have utilized it to renew their narrative structures.
4.2.1. Collaging, stacking the texts
In some studies, terms such as "fragment", "fragmentation",
"coexistence" and "assemblage" have been used to refer to the practice of
representing the plot and the mental development of character, especially
the stream of consciousness. In Vietnam, since the mid-1980s, the "stream
of consciousness" writing has appeared in many distinguished novels in
which we could realize a disturbance of plot order, even erasing the plot
and creating a "discrete", "patchy" structure "bounded" by the complex,
mysterious mental life of human being.
Reading novels by Nguyen Binh Phuong, Ta Duy Anh, Ho Anh Thai,
Thuan ... and recently Vu Xuan Tuu, Nguyen Mot, Thuy Duong, Tien Dat,
Do Phan ... readers are quite confused, even bewildered in the narrative
now similar to a labyrinth due to the assembly string created by the author.
The work contains fragments of vague memories, dreamlike thoughts,
sorrows about the past ... The past, the present are disordered, interwoven,
and they cause both gaps, illogicality, and unity in referring to a sense of
anxiety before a crumbling, chaotic reality.
The assemblage also exists in the hybridization of genre forms. Thiên

sứ of Pham Thi Hoai and Trí nhớ suy tàn of Nguyen Binh Phuong are
mixtures of novel and play, poetry, diary. Many other writers have explored
and sharpened the intertextuality in their writing by stacking puzzle pieces
as an important factor in the narrative structure. We can mention the unique
and diverse experimental writings of Thuận, Nguyễn Một, Hồ Anh Thái,
Vũ Đình Giang, Vũ Xuân Tửu, Đặng Thân...
The assemblage deliberately eradicates logic and order supposedly
established between narrative pieces, allows them to exist independently


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side by side. The plot advances no longer by conflicts, but rather by its
internal structure: Disassembly creates numerous possibilities and
situations with flexible juxtaposition. Plot is dissolved into fragments,
rupture, establishing a significant mechanism different from the common
model in the traditional realist writing. It destroyed the transparence of the
order of the events. The meaning of the story will be generated from reassembling and interpreting story fragments with endless possibilities.
4.2.2. Keyboard technique
Keyboard technique is a remarkable presentation of text. It is the
experimental literature in the age of internet and mass media. Keyboard
technique means the author creates a text as if it is happening. Clicking on
a certain keyword will reveal a new paragraph in a different font, therefore
the reader will access new content that seems to bear no relation to the
main plot but it is infact an extension of the story which expands the
meaning of the story (Rong chơi miền ký ức). Sometimes, a detail or part of
a narrative text is presented as a comment box of social network.
Commenters may have real names or nicknames. There is even a "Your
opinion" section as an invitation for interaction and dialogue. These
narrative methods have formed a kind of interactive narrative. Although

they are still new, they demonstrate a unique direction in the effort to renew
contemporary narrative.
CONCLUSION: It can be seen that breaking the traditional
conception of the genre and using technology-affected techniques clearly
reflects literature in the age of internet and mass media. Literary works now
become "compressed files" of different types of documents. Writers have
the right to recycle the random materials within their reach to express their
thoughts at that very moment. It could be a piece of news, a meeting
minutes, letter, bill, traffic sign, etc. The reader is involved in the creation
of the work which nurtures numerous potential meanings depending on the
memory and personal experience of each reader.


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CONCLUSION
1. Through various stages of development, narration is demonstrating
its advantages and potentials in discovering the nature of the era and
reproducing the reality objectively. The narrative method is not simply
form, technique, but it also includes elements of literary thinking such as
the notion of reality, conception of the nature and function of literature, and
how to construct narrative texts.
2. From the mid-80s of the twentieth century, in the context of
globalization, along with the Party's comprehensive renovation, with the
political, economic, social and cultural conditions and especially fully
enlightened writers, Vietnamese prose has witness a fundamental transition
in the narrative method. Writers shift their attention from the content to the
way "the story" is told. Along with the effort to reform the traditional style
based on credibility, many writers have turned to unreliable narrative,
showing a radical change in writer's consciousness about the object, the

subject, the reader and the literature itself.
Inevitably, the writer's desire for dialogue and for the democratisation
of literature dominated and led to profound innovations in characters and
genres during this period. The types of small, lonely, idealless characters or
characters who reject the typicalization such as fantasy characters,
formulated characters, bleached characters, and non-human characters
appear more and more. Arguing with the traditional round, on-sided
character; or break the cramped framework of "typical characters in a
typical situation”; or approach the character of modern world literature,
these types of characters do demonstrate the writer's effort in fostering
innovation in writing, which helps change the traditional reading and move
towards a new cognition of reality as well as answer the increasing demand
for democratic dialogue in literature and society.
3. Hybrid experiments which renew genres are also an achievement
in the innovation of narrative method. From the change in the perception of


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life, new forms of narrative have emerged such as pseudo-history, detective
parody, pseudo-autobiography and demythicalization. The birth of new
genres has not only satisfied the need to capture, explore and express the
chaotic reality, but also affirm the unique creative personality and the
writer’s effort to overcome obstacles.
4. Technology-affected echniques such as collage, assemblage,
stacking, and "keyboard techniques" are frequently used and constantly
expanded, experimented by each author in his/her works. It is truly a
remarkable creation of writers in the field of narrative.
5. In the restropect of three decades of innovation, it can be said that
Vietnamese fictional prose from the mid-80s of the twentieth century has

created its own achievments on the narrative method. It is these persistent
and enthusiastic innovations that have contributed significantly to the
achievement of prose in particular and literature in general. However,
exploration, experimentation, and innovation are difficult to avoid
limitations and shortcomings that time would purify to bring forth great
literary works which would enrich the national culture./.