SOURCE: “Reflections From Captivity,” in Reflections From Captivity, translated by Christopher Jenkins, Tran Khanh Tuyet and Huynh Sanh Thong, edited by David G. Marr, Ohio University Press, 1978, pp. 3–8, 59–66.

In the following excerpt, Marr introduces English translations of the prison writings of Ho Chi Minh and Phan Boi Chau.

Introduction to Phan Boi Chau's Prison Notes

Phan Boi Chau is revered today as a Vietnamese patriot of the first order. Streets are named after him in all parts of Vietnam. His birthplace in Nghe An province is a national monument. His writings—at least those that managed to survive colonial proscription and confiscation—are now published widely, analysed minutely, and incorporated in university and secondary school curricula. Several poems by Phan Boi Chau are remembered and recited eagerly by Vietnamese of all ages and backgrounds. His name is synonymous with tough, unyielding resistance to foreign domination.

Yet when Phan...