There is a letter addressed to Khuon from Mrs. Nguyen Dang. Mrs. Dang mentions her mixed feelings about Khuon’s failure to leave Saigon. On one hand, Mrs. Dang being happy that she won’t be alone because Khuon missed the flight out of Saigon makes Mrs. Dang seem like a selfish person. On the other hand, Mrs. Dang feeling sad for Khuon’s situation makes her at least have empathy. The letter continues saying that Mr. Dang and his two children have escaped to Bangkok, but Mrs. Dang couldn’t follow. Despite that, she remains hopeful that Mr. Dang will send a helicopter back to get her. She plans to use that moment to help Khuon and her family escaped. While the escape plan originally was her husband’s idea, Mrs. Dang is showing a sneaky side to her as she helps her friend.
By William H.
I think it's interesting that you interpret Mrs. Dang's feelings of happiness that she won't be alone as indicative of her selfishness. My initial response was very different, but I can see how/why you'd feel that way. When reading, I felt Mrs. Dang to be one of the most sympathetic friends to the Nguyens - she's the only one who helps them without asking for anything in return time and time again, and when she takes Kien with her to leave Vietnam, she seems to truly love him and intends to treat him as a son. These actions lead me to interpret her feelings of "happiness" at not being left alone as more relief-based and truly happy. While your version is certainly a valid possibility, I'd like to think that she's a little more caring than that, and that instead it's just relief at knowing that she's not alone, that she has someone to both lean on and support, and that she's glad for their safety. If they had escaped, I don't think she'd wish them any ill-will, and I think for the most part this type of emotion is understandable, forgivable, and very human.
ReplyDeleteCheers!
Brittany K
I agree with you Brittany, my initial response to the letter that Mrs. Dang wrote to Khuon was one of hope. Although William makes a good point I don’t feel that Mrs. Dang is selfish in wanting Khuon to stay. I think that she genuinely wanted Khuon to escape and to have a better future outside of Vietnam. I think that knowing that she wouldn’t be alone and that Khuon and her family would be there to accompany her was a source of a lot of hope and a reason to keep fighting for survival. I think this is definitely strengthened by Mrs. Dang’s cleverness in always coming up with ideas about how to make money in order to survive and including Khuon in those business endeavors. Also Mrs. Dang is really sweet and loving toward Kien and his siblings. William, I think you bring a different perspective and it's really interested to see it that way.
ReplyDeleteBy. Karen S.