Chúng tôi phân tích cấu trúc, biểu tượng, tư tưởng của "Dã Tràng Ca" trong tương quan với toàn bộ sự nghiệp của Trịnh Công Sơn. Văn phong
được triển
khai theo chuẩn mực nghiên cứu nhân văn.
Abstract.
This study examines "Dã Tràng Ca" as the
foundational work that shaped the philosophical and aesthetic trajectory of
Vietnamese composer Trịnh Công Sơn. Through a close reading of symbolic structures, existential
motifs, and the interplay between personal narrative and collective
consciousness, the paper argues that "Dã Tràng Ca" constitutes the earliest
articulation of a distinctly Vietnamese form of existential humanism. The work
anticipates the thematic concerns that would dominate Trịnh Công Sơn’s later oeuvre:
impermanence, human vulnerability, compassion, and the longing for peace.
1 . Introduction: The Genesis of
a Philosophical Voice.
In Western scholarship, the
emergence of an artist’s "early style" is often examined to trace the origins of their
mature aesthetic. "Dã Tràng Ca" occupies precisely such a position in the oeuvre of Trịnh Công Sơn. Composed
when the artist was still in his twenties, the work reveals a remarkably
coherent philosophical worldview. It is not merely an early experiment but a
conceptual blueprint for the decades of songwriting that followed.
The central thesis of this
paper is that "Dã Tràng Ca" represents the "inaugural articulation of a Vietnamese existential poetics", one that blends
Buddhist notions of impermanence with the existential concerns of a generation
living through war and upheaval.
2. Symbolic Framework: The Dã
Tràng as Existential Archetyp.
2.1. The Myth Reinterpreted.
The figure of the dã tràng
(the sand crab) is a well-known symbol in Vietnamese folklore, representing
futile labor. However, Trịnh Công Sơn’s reinterpretation transforms the myth into a
philosophical archetype. The dã tràng becomes:
- a self-aware subject,
- a witness to its own
fragility,
- and a metaphor for the human
condition.
This shift parallels the
existential reinterpretation of classical myths in Western literature such as Camus’s "Sisyphus" where the mythic
figure becomes a vehicle for exploring human agency within an indifferent
universe.
2.2. Impermanence as
Ontological Condition.
The repeated imagery of "xe cát" (rolling sand) and
"sóng triều lên" (rising tides)
evokes a cyclical erasure that resonates with Buddhist metaphysics. Yet, unlike
traditional Buddhist didacticism, Trịnh Công Sơn’s treatment is not prescriptive. Instead, it
presents impermanence as an "ontological condition" a state of being that must be
confronted, not transcended.
This aligns with the
existentialist emphasis on confronting the absurd rather than escaping it.
3 . The Sea as Metaphysical Interlocutor.
3.1. The Sea as the Other.
In "Dã Tràng Ca", the sea (trùng dương)
functions as a metaphysical interlocutor. It is not merely a natural force but
a symbolic "Other" against which the
self defines its existence. The sea:
- calls,
- erases,
- consoles,
- and forgets.
This dynamic mirrors the
existential tension between the self and the world-between human intention and
the vast, impersonal forces that shape existence.
3.2. The Aesthetics of Lamentation.
The lamentation embedded in
the dialogue between dã tràng and trùng dương anticipates the elegiac tone that
would become a hallmark of Trịnh Công Sơn’s music. His later anti-war songs, though more
explicit in their social critique, retain the same metaphysical sorrow first
articulated in this early work.
4 . Autobiographical Inflection:
The Artist at Twenty.
4.1. The Emergence of Self-Reflexivity.
The second part of the work,
often referred to as "Dã Tràng 2", introduces a self-reflexive dimension. Here, the dã tràng is no longer
a mythic figure but a projection of the young artist himself. The introspective
passages-marked by
references to sleepless nights, existential questioning, and the search for meaning-align with the confessional
mode found in Western modernist poetry.
4.2. Youth as Existential Threshold.
The age of twenty is portrayed
as a threshold between innocence and awareness. This mirrors the Western
philosophical tradition in which youth is often depicted as the moment of
existential awakening (e.g., Kierkegaard’s The Concept of Anxiety). For Trịnh Công Sơn, this
awakening is inseparable from the historical context of a nation on the brink
of war.
5 . Love as Humanistic Redemption.
5.1. Love Beyond Romanticism.
In "Dã Tràng Ca", love emerges not
as romantic sentiment but as a humanistic force-a refuge against existential
despair. This anticipates the dual nature of love in Trịnh Công Sơn’s later works, where
love songs and anti-war songs share a common emotional foundation: compassion.
5.2. The Angelic Imaginary.
The imagery of love "growing wings" or becoming
“angelic” reflects a symbolic elevation of human connection. This aligns with
the humanistic strand of existentialism, which emphasizes solidarity and
empathy as responses to the absurd.
6 . Toward a Vietnamese
Existential Humanism.
6.1. Synthesis of Eastern and
Western Thought.
"Dã Tràng Ca" exemplifies a synthesis of:
- Buddhist impermanence,
- existentialist confrontation
with meaninglessness,
- and humanistic compassion.
This synthesis constitutes
what may be termed a Vietnamese existential humanism-a philosophical orientation
that is neither purely Western nor purely Eastern, but a hybrid shaped by the
historical and cultural conditions of mid-20th-century Vietnam.
6.2. The Work’s Legacy.
The thematic seeds planted in "Dã Tràng Ca" blossom throughout
Trịnh Công Sơn’s later
oeuvre. His anti-war songs echo the lamentation of the dã tràng; his love songs
echo its yearning; his meditative songs echo its philosophical resignation.
Thus, "Dã Tràng Ca" is not merely an
early work-it is the matrix
from which the entire Trịnh Công Sơn universe unfolds.
7. Conclusion.
This study has argued that "Dã Tràng Ca" represents the
foundational articulation of Trịnh Công Sơn’s philosophical and aesthetic vision. Through
its symbolic complexity, existential depth, and humanistic orientation, the
work anticipates the major themes of his later compositions. It stands as a
seminal text in modern Vietnamese music, offering a unique contribution to
global existential thought.
* Huỳnh Tâm.
Aucun commentaire:
Enregistrer un commentaire