Concepts of Nature
From: Kirsten W. Endres <kirsten.endres@gmx.net>
Date: 2008/10/24
To: vsg@u.washington.edu
Dear list,
a student of mine is interested in learning more about (indigenous as well as politically/ideologically charged) concepts of "nature" that exist in Vietnam. If you know of any publications (in Western languages) in this direction, please let me know.
Thanks for your help!
Kirsten
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Kirsten W. Endres
University of Freiburg
Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology
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From: Lauren Meeker <meekerld@yahoo.com>
Date: 2008/10/24
To: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Dear Kirsten,
I came across this article a number of years ago which might be of use to your student:
Jeremy Davidson, "Images of Ecstasy: A Vietnamese Response to Nature." In, Natural Symbols in South East Asia. Edited by G.B. Milner. London: School of Oriental and African Studies, 1978.
All the best,
Lauren Meeker
Department of Anthropology
SUNY New Paltz
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From: Hue-Tam Ho Tai <hhtai@fas.harvard.edu>
Date: 2008/10/24
To: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>
The word "nature" has so many meanings that are conveyed by different terms in Vietnamese and Chinese.
For example, Mencius' famous dictum, rendered in Sino-Vietnamese as "nhan chi so, tinh ban thien" is translated as "at birth, human nature (tinh) is intrinsically good" or a variation thereof. It is different from the word used to convey the concept of the "natural world" or "thien nhien."
For Vietnamese ideas on the second, Huynh Sanh Thong's Heritage of Vietnamese Poetry includes many many poems on nature that would be of relevance.
Hue-Tam Ho Tai