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Sentence Prompt

The poem "Thoughts of Hanoi" is about a speaker reminiscing on her childhood memories of Hanoi, Vietnam. She fondly remembers her brother and their school days together, but they are now on opposing sides in the Vietnam War. She fears that one day she may have to kill her brother if they meet on the battlefield. The poem uses flashbacks to the speaker's past and paradoxes to convey her complex feelings of longing for her homeland and dread of the violence that has torn her and her brother apart.

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Joyce Rodanillo Lovenario
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59 views

Sentence Prompt

The poem "Thoughts of Hanoi" is about a speaker reminiscing on her childhood memories of Hanoi, Vietnam. She fondly remembers her brother and their school days together, but they are now on opposing sides in the Vietnam War. She fears that one day she may have to kill her brother if they meet on the battlefield. The poem uses flashbacks to the speaker's past and paradoxes to convey her complex feelings of longing for her homeland and dread of the violence that has torn her and her brother apart.

Uploaded by

Joyce Rodanillo Lovenario
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Lesson 4: SENTENCE PROMPTS

PERCEIVED IDEAS

Vietnamese soup consisting of broth, rice


noodles, herbs, and meat, sometimes chicken.

PHO
commonly known by its previous name, Saigon, is the
largest and most populous city in Vietnam. 

Ho Chi Minh City


Ao dai is

Vietnamese national
garment, worn by both sexes
but now most commonly
worn by women.
PERUSE AND READ

“Thoughts of Hanoi” is a poem written by Nguyen Thi


Vinh, a Vietnamese poetess. It serves as an eloquent
testimonial of the civil war in Vietnam, waged between
communist controlled North Vietnam led by Ho Chi
Minh, and non- Communist South Vietnam with the full
support of its major ally, the United States.
“Thoughts of Hanoi” talks about the speaker’s
bittersweet recollection of a place she fondly
remembers as a child.
Thoughts of Hanoi
A poem by Nguyen Thi Vinh
Translated by Nguyen Ngoc Bich
The night is deep and chill
as in early autumn. Pitchblack,
it thickens after each lightning flash.
I dream of Hanoi:

Co-ngu Road ten years of separation


the way back sliced by a frontier of hatred
I want to bury the past
to bum the future
to still I yean
still I fear
those endless nights
waiting for dawn.
Brother,
how is Hang Dao now?
How is Ngoc Son temple?
Do the trains still run
each day from Hanoi
to the neighboring towns?
To Bac-ninh, Cam-giang, Yen-bai,
the small villages, islands
of brown thatch in a lush green sea?
The girls
bright eyes
ruddy cheeks
four-piece dresses
raven-bill scarves'
sowing harvesting
spinning weaving
all year round,
the boys
plowing
transplanting
in the fields
in their shops
running across
the meadow at evening
to fly kites
and sing alternating songs.'
Stainless blue sky,
jubilant voices of children
stumbling through the alphabet,
village graybeards strolling to the temple,
grandmothers basking in twilight sun,
chewing betel leaves'
while the children run-
Brother,
how is all that now?
Or is it obsolete?
Are you like me,
reliving the past,
imagining the future?
Do you count me as a friend
or am I the enemy in your eyes?
Brother, I am afraid
that one day I'll be with the March-North Army'
meeting you on your way to the South.
I might be the one to shoot you then
or you me
but please
not with hatred.
For don't you remember how it was,
you and I in school together,
plotting our lives together?
Those roots go deep!

Brother, we are men,


conscious of more
than material needs.
How can this happen to us
my friend
my foe?
 
Answer the following questions about the poem “Thoughts
of Hanoi”
1. What continent does the thoughts of Hanoi came from?
2.  In what country does the poet came from?
3. Why does the speaker consider the nights “Endless”
4. Why does the speaker fear being with the March- North
army? What does her joining the army imply?
5. How do the images in the poem reflect the speaker’s
thoughts of Hanoi?
LITERARY POINT
“THOUGHTS OF HANOI” by Nguyen Thi Vinh is a timeless poem
about two friends who are caught up in the brutal war in what
caused to be North and South Vietnam.
The literary devices used in the poem convey the speaker’s
deepest feelings about her memories of childhood spent with
her dearest friend. These devices are flashback and paradox.
Flashback is used to interrupt the current action
of a story to show a scene from the past and its
connection to the present. It can add dimension
to a poem or a short story by making readers see
into character’s real time that reveals his
thoughts, feelings and expressions.
Paradox is a statement that is self contradictory, yet states a truth.
Poets often use paradox to create an unusual thought or visual
image with words. Sometimes, the paradox may convey a tone of
irony on the subject of some poems. This kind of irony usually
generates a feeling of intrigue in a reader’s mind, achieving a
deeper level of contemplation.
Examples:
I want to bury the past
To burn the future
Still I yearn
Still I fear
There are also dominant images used in the poem,
Imagery, as you have learned , is a technique or device
used by a writer to describe or enhance a readers
sensory experiences while reading a literary piece
through the use of vivid and descriptive language.
Imagery is commonly utilized in a literary work for the
following purpose.
a. to entice the reader’s human senses
b. to add depth to a writer’s work.
c. to deepen a reader’s understanding of a literary work.
 
Examples:
1. The night is deep and chill.
2. The way back sliced by a frontier of hatred.
3. “jubilant voices of children”

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