SOURCE: “The Literature of Vietnam, 1954–1973,” in Literature & Society in Southeast Asia, edited by Tham Seong Chee, Singapore University Press, 1981, pp. 321–345.

In the following excerpt, Huan surveys the poetry, drama, and fiction of North and South Vietnam between 1945 and 1975.

Before examining Vietnamese literature over the past twenty years, it would be interesting to take a closer look at the historical and geographical context of Vietnam over the two decades. The period was rich in events of considerable international importance which contributed to the evolution of its literature.

Above all, Vietnam should be considered in its ambient milieu, that is, Southeast Asia, one of the greatest cultural crossroads of the world today. Vietnam extends to the edge of the Indochinese Peninsula and opens to the east on the Pacific Ocean. Its coastline totals over 3,000 kilometres and it has common frontiers to the north with China (1,150 kilometres) and to the west...