French colonialism

MEMORABLE MUSIC: PHẠM’ DUY’S “RIDDLES” (“ĐỐ AI”), TRACK 17 ON SAIGON ROCK & SOUL

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Phạm Duy’s “Riddles” (“Đố ai,” 1954?) is a charming song that mixes tradition and modernity. It is the last track on Saigon Rock & Soul, and this post will probably be my last one in my series-within-a-series translating the lyrics of songs from that CD. “Riddles” exemplifies a Vietnamese musical genre known as “new folk […]

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TEACHING THE VIETNAM WAR – READINGS ON COMMUNISM AND REPUBLICAN NATIONALISM IN COLONIAL VIETNAM

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I wanted to follow up my earlier posts about teaching the Vietnam War with sample readings, including some original translations. (See the full sample syllabus here and here for more detail.) In the box below is the journal prompt and readings about communism and republican nationalism that I assign for week 2 of the course

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WHAT DOES CHRISTMAS MEAN TO A VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST REFUGEE?

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“Vietnamese people love Christmas!” That’s what I usually say when someone asks me whether I celebrate the holiday, and I try to explain why I am both a lifelong Buddhist and a Christmas enthusiast. But the real answer is a little more complicated. I was a baby when my family came to the US as

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