Part I: The poetic paradox
At a state dinner for Vietnamese General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden concluded his remarks with a line from The Tale of Kieu, Vietnam’s national epic poem:
“Heaven preserved us for this day, To melt the frost in the yard, and draw the clouds from the sky.”
The quote was clearly intended to be a profound diplomatic gesture—a literary olive branch designed to flatter the General Secretary and the Vietnamese people. Yet, the choice of verse instantly exposes a deep cultural and geopolitical paradox.
How many young Vietnamese citizens—the majority of the country—actually know, let alone revere, The Tale of Kieu today? The rigid, rote-learning structure of the public education system has turned the study of this literary masterpiece into a burden. The work risks becoming the proud memory of an older generation, largely ignored by the dynamic youth. Mr. Biden’s gesture, while well-intended, may have delighted only a select few.
Part II: The irony of the inescapable shadow
The second paradox is far more painful: The Tale of Kieu is a Vietnamese adaptation.
The work is a nôm (Sino-Vietnamese demotic script) rendition of “Kim Vân Kiều Truyện” by Qing Xin Cai Ren of China. Nguyen Du’s genius was in transforming and Vietnamizing the narrative into a literary masterpiece for the Vietnamese soul.
This history means that on a day marking one of the most significant rapprochements in recent history—Vietnam drawing closer to the U.S. and the West—the diplomatic centerpiece was rooted in Chinese culture. The influence of the northern neighbor persists like a ghost, lingering over the psyche and daily life of the Vietnamese people. Our desire to seek balance and move away from China, it seems, is a struggle against the very shadow of our cultural foundations.
As I reflected on Mr. Biden’s quote, I couldn’t help but feel that old Vietnamese adage: “Rằng hay thì thật là hay; Nghe ra ngậm đắng nuốt cay thế nào” (It sounds beautiful, indeed, but beneath the words lies a hidden bitterness).
Part III: The courtesan analogy in foreign policy
Did Mr. Biden’s team know that The Tale of Kieu is essentially the life story of a courtesan, or, in crude terms, a woman forced into prostitution?
This literary tragedy leads to a painful, difficult analogy for Vietnam’s own diplomatic history: the nation, like Kieu, has often had to “sleep with everyone but marry no one,” perpetually forced to appease larger powers without ever achieving a stable, committed alliance.
We have never been truly loyal to anyone:
- China: We harbor thousands of years of shared fear and hatred, unable to escape the shadow of the celestial empire.
- Russia: Our relationship is neither powerful nor loyal; Moscow has historically been willing to sacrifice Vietnam’s interests for its own gain.
- Japan: We seek friendship but are constantly nervous about China’s reaction. The focus often leans toward material gain (ODA aid) rather than deep personal trust.
- The U.S.: We crave friendship but remain obsessed with the past. Vietnamese leaders invariably cite the U.S. as the “former enemy” during every significant meeting.
This half-hearted, non-aligned foreign policy—a policy of “no alignment, no formal alliance”—is fundamentally destabilizing. A nation that is truly committed to no one, and truly honest with no one, will struggle to find a committed defender when trouble inevitably strikes.
Part IV: A wary reunion
The final layer of irony lies in the quote’s source material. The lines chosen by Biden come from the end of the poem, when Kieu reunites with Kim Trong after fifteen years of suffering and wandering. Kim Trong accepts Kieu and argues for their reunion despite her tragic past—a resolution considered highly unrealistic and forced in the conservative society of the time.
The meeting between the two highest leaders of the U.S. and Vietnam had a similar element of strategic awkwardness and cautiousness.
Yet, from the hopeful but failed gestures of Ho Chi Minh writing to President Truman in 1945–46, to this high-level meeting decades later, the encounter is symbolically profound. Despite the history, the suspicion, and the lingering awkwardness, we can only hope that this rendezvous marks the beginning of a true, lasting relationship between the “Vietnamese girl” and the “American suitor” after a long and painful odyssey.
