Nhà văn hóa
From: Vsg <vsg-bounces@mailman11.u.washington.edu> On Behalf Of Lady Borton
Sent: Friday, October 22, 2021 7:06 AM
To: Pierre Asselin <passelin@sdsu.edu>
Cc: VSG <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] "Nhà văn hóa"
Pierre, a further thought.
At least as far as I know, many people were/are nhà văn hóa in terms of the more collective term, "cultural workers," which included and includes musicians, singers, theatrical performers, visual artists, writers, poets, etc.
Incidentally, at least to my understanding, "nhà văn" for Vietnamese means "literary writer" and refers specifically to writers of short stories and novels as well as to poets, as in Hội Nhà Văn (Writers' Association, which includes and often is and has been led by poets). "Nhà văn" usually does not mean "writer," as we might say in English when referring to authors of non-fiction books, including histories, biographies, commentaries, treatises, memoirs, etc.
Several years ago, we stacked all the books Hữu Ngọc had produced as author, translator, or editor (name on the cover), one atop another. The stack was taller than Hữu Ngọc. Yet, to my knowledge, Hữu Ngọc never claimed to be a nhà văn, but, as I said earlier, referred to himself as a "nhà văn hóa," technically a cultural worker, although I think a more accurate description specifically for him is "cultural scholar."
Warmly,
Lady
From: Lady Borton <ladyborton@gmail.com>
Sent: Friday, October 22, 2021 6:30 AM
To: Pierre Asselin <passelin@sdsu.edu>
Cc: VSG <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] "Nhà văn hóa"
Hello, Pierre,
Hữu Ngọc, author of VIỆT NAM: Tradition and Change (See links below), referred to himself as a "nhà văn hóa."
I refer to him as "cultural scholar Hữu Ngọc."
Hope that helps!
Warmly,
Lady
Terry Gross Interview (1984) with Lady Borton About Vietnamese Boat People:
https://freshairarchive.org/segments/lady-borton-plight-vietnamese-refugees
Terry Gross Program (1988) with Lady Borton About Vietnamese Who Stayed:
https://freshairarchive.org/segments/aiding-civilian-survivors-vietnam-war
Behind the Scenes, In the Forefront: Vietnamese Women in War and Peace by Lady Borton, AsiaNetworkExchange, A Journal for Asian Studies in the Liberal Arts: https://www.asianetworkexchange.org/articles/10.16995/ane.276/
For arguably the best book on Việt Nam in English, see Hữu Ngọc's VIỆT NAM: Tradition and Change, edited by Lady Borton and Elizabeth Collins: www.ohioswallow.com/book/Viet+Nam OR www.amazon.com/Viet-Nam-Tradition-Change
From: Vsg <vsg-bounces@mailman11.u.washington.edu> On Behalf Of Alex-Thai Vo
Sent: Thursday, October 21, 2021 11:53 AM
To: Pierre Asselin <passelin@sdsu.edu>
Cc: VSG <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] "Nhà văn hóa"
Hi Pierre,
"Nhà văn hoá" could be seen as a culture center, which I've seen many places being named as such. However, the "nhà văn hoá" here could also be interpreted as a culturist or culturists in the likes of "nhà thơ" (a poet), "nhà bác học" (a scholar), "nhà ngoại giao" (a diplomat), "nhà văn" (a writer), etc. From my understanding, the "nhà văn hoá" used in most contexts is in reference to an individual or group of culturist(s) whose task is to create and advocate for cultural products that advocate a certain Party-state emphasis, usually in the form of socialist-realism.
Hope this helps. See you in Paris!
Sincerely,
Alex-Thai D. Vo
From: Vsg <vsg-bounces@mailman11.u.washington.edu> On Behalf Of frank.proschan@yahoo.com
Sent: Thursday, October 21, 2021 11:08 AM
To: 'Pierre Asselin' <passelin@sdsu.edu>; 'VSG' <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] "Nhà văn hóa"
A fitting but ugly neologism of the 1970s is “culturati”. Your term is often translated as “cultural workers” – i.e. people actively working in the field of culture, not necessarily only those employed by cultural offices or collecting a salary for it.
Frank Proschan
Independent Scholar
On Thu, Oct 21, 2021 at 1:50 PM Pierre Asselin <passelin@sdsu.edu> wrote:
Beloved Comrades:
I am currently looking into the Party's so-called cultural front with an emphasis on its internationalization during the US war (I found some great dox in the Hanoi archives). As I'm going back into Party stuff, the term nhà văn hóa -- in reference to a group/class of people and not a building -- comes up. Any suggestions on how to render it into English? I don't think "those culture types" works well in an academic paper -- though that's probably what Party luminaries thought of them at the time!
Merci beaucoup d'avance.
Pierre
Pierre Asselin
Professor of History - Dwight E. Stanford Chair in US Foreign Relations
San Diego State University
History Department
5500 Campanile Dr.
San Diego, CA 92182-6050
Latest book: https://www.amazon.com/Vietnams-American-War-Cambridge-Relations/dp/1107510503