Midterm: Itineraire d'enfance (in English)

1. Explain the sentence “J’ai franchi le seuil du Malheur” p. 113. (3 sentences)

“J’ai franchi le seuil de Malheur” translates literally to “I crossed the threshold of Misery.” Bé, having just accepted the blame for locking Gia in the closet, is expressing her sadness as she accepts the punishment (expulsion from school) for her actions. Though she feels she has done the right thing—letting Xit take the fall would not have been a moral decision—Bé, a bright student, is nonetheless upset about her expulsion and exclusion from her school and classmates.

2. Pp. 201-257. Faites une liste de 12 activités (ou objets) qui montrent la culture et les rituels vietnamiens.

1. The carpenter Moc also does some farmwork, cultivating manioc and taking care of paddies (Vietnemese crops and cultivation methods)
2. Bé and Loan collect « feuilles de lolot », leaves from a native plant, and catch snails for a Vietnemese recipe
3. Moc eats a slice of gelatin from tiger bone (he is also a good hunter, but does not brag about his accomplishments)
4. Moc’s stories (including one about a troupe of monkeys), contain morals for the children to learn. Other characters also tell stories that include small life lessons.
5. Native medicine—the man who comes in search of help for his sick wife is told that an albino horses’ bone gelatin is the cure
6. Pho restaurants, with spicy, nourishing soup that makes the diner sweat and cry
7. Cigarettes—though not Vietnamese, are smoked by Moc and many others
8. Description of the process of making gelatin and the work of the boilers, a job that was in the past miserable and made little money
9. Le penghawar: yellowish silky hairs used to stop bleeding (Hindi word)—treatment for wounds
10. The tiger hunt
11. The story of Roc and the accident with his son showcases the importance and status that goes with the hunt
12. The ululations of the village upon the hunters’ return and the death of the tiger terrorizing the village cows and pigs.
13. Also, the process of slaughtering the tiger and distributing the parts among the village.

3. Pp.267-fin Qu’avez-vous appris sur la vie au Vietnam d’après Duong Thu Huong ? Donnez des exemples precis. (300 mots)

In Itinéraire d’Enfance, Duong Thu Huong presents the reader with many opportunities to learn about life in Vietnam. Though the novel is first and foremost a coming-of-age story, but as we follow Bé and Loan on their journey through Northern Vietnam, elements of Vietnamese life and culture play a role in the story nonetheless.

The descriptions of Vietnamese food are among the most vivid examples that popped out of the novel and into the reader’s conception of Vietnam. From sticky rice candies and savory pho to snail soup and succulent meat brochettes, the food Bé and Loan prepare and consume along during their journey become memorable parts of the story.

The people Bé and Loan meet during their journey also play an important role in fleshing out Vietnamese life. Many of the characters are hospitable to our young protagonists: Moc, the carpenter who was also a great hunter and farms on the side, is particularly kind to Bé and Loan, and often tells them stories, from one about a family of monkeys to village anecdotes, all with an accompanying moral message for guidance.

The tiger hunt is one example of a Vietnamese tradition that stands out in Itinéraire d’enfance. After village calves and pigs start disappearing, the village men set out on a mission to kill the beast endangering their livestock. Though Bé wants to go, she is told very clearly that hunting is for the men and thus, waits in the village with the men’s families for their return. When they finally come home victorious, Bé and Loan see the stories Moc told them come to life as the tiger is ritually slaughtered, its claws distributed to each family and the skeleton boiled to prepare gelatin.

Last but not least, the scenery of northern Vietnam is illuminated as Bé and Loan make their way to Bé’s fathers outpost. Though the mountains, fields, and farms they traverse do not always make the journey easier, their eyes, as those of the reader, are opened to experience Vietnam beyond the girls’ native village. Altogether, the food, people, and landscape combine to complete a picture of Vietnamese life that fleshes the country and people out beyond the images and reports from microfilm research.