Analysis Of Duong Thu Huong's 'Paradise Of The Blind'

Great Essays
Instigating authoritarian control over artistic expression allows communist dictatorships to maintain their stronghold over the minds of their people (Reid, 2015: pp. 370-371). Despite government control and censorship, intellectuals within communist nations such as China and Vietnam remain keen to publish social commentary in various literary forms. Frog (2009) is a historical fiction novel by nobel prize laureate Mo Yan illustrating the consequences of China’s widely criticised ‘one-child policy’. Often lauded as the gem of China’s literary scene, Mo is also a vocal supporter of the Chinese communist regime (Phillips, 2015). The Vietnamese historical fiction novel Paradise of the Blind (1988) by banished dissident writer Duong Thu Huong depicts …show more content…
Although a family member close to the protagonist embodies the ideologies of the regime in both novels, these characters are characterised antithetically. In Frog, Gugu personifies the Party, and as the county’s family planning officer for over four decades she champions all Party principles regardless of morality. When she is wrongly punished by the regime, she emphatically states, “…though I suffered unjust treatment, my heart is as red as ever…alive Party member, dead a Party ghost. I go where the party sends me. (Mo, 2009: p. 103)”. This gives an example of Gugu passionately preaching the party’s patriotic agenda, moreover, these teachings are viewed as positive motivation by Xiaopao. Constantly exposed to this rhetoric, he never questions Gugu’s unwavering loyalty towards the party. Indoctrinated, Xiaopao becomes a Party Official himself and forces his wife to have an abortion in accordance to Party lines. He reasons that, “…having a second child isn’t worth giving up my Party membership. (Mo, 2009: p. 133)”, substantiating how acutely effective Gugu’s proselytisation to ‘walk the party line’ is. On the other hand, communism in Hang’s word is represented by her uncle Chinh. Unlike Xiaopao’s admiration for Gugu, Hang despises her uncle who had lead the Land Reform Campaign in her village which destroyed the lives of many people including her …show more content…
Primarily, the challenge both protagonists face is the clash between traditional values and current situations. Frog is narrated by Xiaopao from a first person point of view, allowing for a more personal depiction of the challenges in his life. Xiaopao experiences the main conflict between tradition and reality when he witnesses Gugu perform forced abortions, an action directly contradictory with the traditional beliefs of sacred procreation. This contradiction is apparent throughout his life, especially when his wife Renmei dies during late term abortion after he choses his Party membership over a second child. Xiaopao describes his experience of Renmei’s death as, “The silence…was broken by what sounded like buzzing bees. (Mo, 2009: p. 162)”. The use of auditory imagery and a simile immerses the reader into the traumatic situation, highlighting the contrast between complete silence and the sound of chaotic ‘buzzing bees’ inside his mind. The first person description in this case enhances the personal element of Xiaopao’s journey and his experiences of conflicting tradition and reality. Also utilising the first person point of view, Paradise of the Blind is narrated by Hang and describes her experiences of similar personal challenges. Hang objects the traditional expectation to love and respect

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