Bac-Hat (Bạch Hạc) - On nous écrit (1904)

Depuis quelques jours, le tam-tam, ne cesse pas, dans un village voisin. Le tam-tam, souligne les pantalonades ou les passages saillants de spièc es jounés par des acteurs ambulants.

Il y a, en effet, théâtre offert par quelques uns des cais qui ont gagné pas mal d'argent en fournissant le gravier nécessaire pour le ballastage de la ligne Viétri-Yen-Bay. Certains disent avoir ramassé ainsi 5 ou 6,000 piastres, ce qui est une petite fortune, et je comprends leur joei un peu bruyante et leur désir d'épater leurs compatriotes.

Mais n'est-il pas pénible de constater que presque partout des cais indigènes s'enrichissent alors que nombre d'Européens végétent, quand ils ne se ruinent pas.

Il est vari que l'Administration, toujours bienveillante vis-à-vis des Asiatiques, se montre inflexible lorsqu'il s'agit d'Européens.

Et puis, certains moyens employés par les Annamite répugnent aux Francais, et c'est peut-être là la cause de leur insuccès.

Quoi qu'il en soit, l'argent dépensé ici par la France ne va pas aux Francais; il s'en va aux Chinois et aux Annamites. Vive la liberté.


For the past few days, the drum beat has been incessant in a neighboring village. The drum beat underscores the slapstick and prominent passages of plays performed by traveling actors.

Indeed, there is a spectacle being put on by some of the cashiers who have earned a considerable amount of money by supplying the gravel needed for ballasting the Vietri-Yen-Bay railway line. Some claim to have amassed 5,000 or 6,000 piastres this way, which is a small fortune, and I understand their somewhat boisterous joy and their desire to impress their compatriots.

But isn't it distressing to see that almost everywhere native cashiers are getting rich while many Europeans are barely scraping by, if not going bankrupt?

It is true that the Administration, always benevolent towards Asians, is inflexible when it comes to Europeans.

Furthermore, some of the methods employed by the Annamites are repugnant to the French, and this may be the cause of their failure.

In any case, the money spent here by France does not go to the French; it goes to the Chinese and the Annamites. Long live liberty.

Trong những ngày gần đây, tiếng trống ở một ngôi làng kế cận vẫn không ngừng. Tiếng trống nhấn mạnh những màn hài kịch hoặc những đoạn nổi bật trong các vở kịch do các đoàn chèo lưu động biểu diễn.

Quả thực, có một màn trình diễn được dàn dựng bởi một số người thu ngân, những người đã kiếm được khá nhiều tiền nhờ cung cấp sỏi đá để làm đá dằn cho tuyến đường sắt Việt Trì - Vịnh Yên. Một số người tuyên bố đã thu được 5.000 hoặc 6.000 đồng theo cách này, một khoản tiền không nhỏ, và tôi hiểu được niềm vui có phần ồn ào và mong muốn làm sĩ diện đồng bào của họ.

Nhưng chẳng phải thật đau lòng khi thấy rằng hầu như ở khắp mọi nơi, những người thu ngân bản xứ được làm giàu trong khi nhiều người châu Âu chỉ đủ sống đơn điệu, thậm chí có thể bị phá sản?

Đúng là chính quyền, luôn luôn nhân từ với người châu Á, lại cứng rắn khi đối xử với người châu Âu.

Hơn nữa, một số phương pháp mà người An Nam sử dụng lại rất gớm guối đối với người Pháp, và đây có thể là nguyên nhân họ bị thất bại.

Dù sao đi nữa, số tiền Pháp chi tiêu ở đây không vào túi người Pháp; mà vào tú người Trung Quốc và người An Nam. Tự do muôn năm!

nguồn: On nous écrit, "Bac-Hat," Courrier d'Haiphong 10 mai 1904

The thrust of the article is a complaint that the government paid local Vietnamese for labor and resources instead of French who were said to be experiencing economic hardship - (cais indigènes s'enrichissent alors que nombre d'Européens végétent, quand ils ne se ruinent pas). French money should be paid to the French! 

The Chinese and Vietnamese who were paid for the ballast evidently employed laborers who worked under dangerous or difficult conditions that the French would never allow French workers to experience.

The author adds emphasis to this terrible state of affairs by lamenting the din that came from an itinerant theater troupe that was hired to celebrate this windfall. I translated performance as chèo because it was described as comedic (pantalonades) but it could have easily been tuồng.

trích: Viet Nam: La tragédie indo-chinois (1931)

Je partais "pour France"... je gravissais, à minuit, un escalier sur le ventre du paquebot Porthos, constellé d'ampoules électriques et je quittais la ville pour entrer dans la rivière de Saïgon.

Ces nuits-là, le dancing du Perroquet fait relâche, la terrasse du Continental est abandonnée, on peut traverser la rue Catinat sans danger. Le "Tout-Saïgon" français se retrouve sur le quai. Les belles voitures sont rangées devant les docks des messageries. A bord du bateau-palace s'accomplit la fête des adieux; le salon est encombré, il faut ruser pour s'emparer d'une table dans l'intérieur du grand ou à la terrasse qui empiète sur le pont-boulevard; les femmes ont leur robe parisienne de l'unique saison, car il n'est point d'hiver, de printemps ni d'automne pour interrompre l'éternel été de Cochinchine.

I was leaving "for France"... at midnight, I climbed a staircase on the belly of the Porthos, electric lights ablaze, and I left the city to enter the Saigon River.

On those nights, the Perroquet dance hall takes a break, the terrace at the Continental is deserted, and one can cross Catinat Street without danger. All of French Saigon gathers at the quayside. Elegant cars are arrayed in front of the shipping company docks. Aboard the palace vessel, the farewell party is in full swing; the lounge is crowded, and one has to be cunning to snag a table inside the main room or on the terrace that spills onto the deck-boulevard; the women wear their Parisian dresses, the only style for the season, for there is no winter, spring, or autumn to interrupt the eternal summer of Cochinchina.

Tôi đang rời đi "đến Pháp"... lúc nửa đêm, tôi leo lên cầu thang trên boong tàu Porthos, sáng rực ánh đèn điện, và ra khỏi thành phố để vào sông Sài Gòn.

Vào những đêm như thế, vũ trường Perroquet nghỉ việc, sân thượng khách sạn Continental vắng tanh, và người ta có thể băng qua đường Catinat mà không gặp nguy hiểm. Toàn bộ người Sài Gòn Pháp quốc tụ tập trên bến tàu. Các chiếc xe sang trọng sắp xếp phía trước bến tàu của các công ty vận tải biển. Trên con tàu cung điện, bữa tiệc chia tay đang diễn ra sôi nổi; phòng khách đông nghịt, và người ta phải khéo léo mới kiếm được một chỗ ngồi trong phòng chính hoặc trên sân thượng hướng ra boong tàu; những người phụ nữ mặc chiếc váy kiểu Paris, chỉ phù hợp với một mùa duy nhất, vì không có mùa đông, mùa xuân hay mùa thu nào làm gián đoạn mùa hè vĩnh cửu của xứ Nam Kỳ.

nguồn: Louis Roubaud, Viet Nam: La tragédie indo-chinois (Paris: Librarie Vallois, 1931)

https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k58052821/f10.item.r=jazz%20indochine

Reading many accounts of colonial Saigon, it sounds like for the French elite life was a continuous dance party. The Perroquet / Parakeet / Con Vẹt at the Continental Hotel was the main hotspot. Its popularity apparently gave way when a steamship visited the port. These vessels had their own dance bands and were an attractive novelty in town. The hullabaloo described here was accented by the fact that the Porthos was about to depart for France and it was a good chance to see friends off before their lost journey.

image source: Images défense

Pro Musica (On Behalf of Music) - Le Velléitaire (1935)

Hier soir, à 18 heures, la société Pro Musica donnait son soixante-dix-huitième concert de musique enregistrée. L'industrie de la confection des disques est arrivée à une telle perfection, et l'emploi du pic-up donne à l'émission une telle puissance en même temps qu'une telle finesse, qu'on croit souvent entendre directement la musique instrumentale ou la voix.

C'est dire qu'on peut passer à Pro Musica, quand on est amateur de musique, des soirées exquises.

Malheureusement, les Hanoïens semblent méconnaitre cette distraction supérieure. Faut-il croire qu'ils préfèrent délibérément les coruscations pauvrement brutales du jazz et les tristes trémoussements du dancing? Encore y a-t-il temps pour tout, et le concert semi-hebdomadaire de Pro-Musica devrait-il, il nous semble, avoir un autre succès. C'est à peine si, hier, trente personnes étaient venues entendre, outre quelques morceaux de choix, dont la jolie Valse triste de Sibelius et un solo de violon admirablement joué par Enesco, de longs fragments de La Vie du Poète, de Georges Charpentier! Et pourtant c'était là régal de choix.

Last night at 6, the Pro Musica Society presented its seventy-eighth concert of recorded music. The record industry has reached such heights of perfection, and the use of amplification gave the show such power and such finesse, that one often thinks that we are hearing the instruments and voices directly.

This means that music lovers can spend exquisite evenings at Pro Musica.

Unfortunately, the people of Hanoi seem unaware of this superior form of entertainment. Are we to believe that they deliberately prefer the crudely simplistic sounds of jazz and the dreary gyrations of the dance hall? Still, there's enough time for everything, and Pro Musica's semi-weekly concerts should, it seems to us, be more successful. Barely thirty people came yesterday to hear, besides a few choice pieces, including the lovely Sad Waltz by Sibelius and an admirably played violin solo by Enescu, long fragments from The Poet's Life by Georges Charpentier! And yet it was a choice treat.

Chiều hôm qua, lúc 6 giờ, Hội Khuyến Nhạc [tức Hội Pro Musica] đã trình bày buổi hòa nhạc thu thanh lần thứ 78. Kỹ nghệ công thu âm đã đến đỉnh cao hoàn hảo, và việc khuếch đại âm thanh đem cho buổi nghe nhạc sự sức mạnh và stinh tế đến mức người ta thường có cảm giác như đang nghe trực tiếp nhạc cụ hoặc giọng hát.

Có nghĩa là những người yêu âm nhạc có thể thưởng thức những buổi tuyệt vời tại Hội Khuyến Nhạc.

Không may là dân Hà Nội dường như không biết đến hình thức giải trí ưu việt này. Liệu chúng ta có nên tin rằng họ cố tình ưa chuộng những âm thanh thô sơ, đơn giản của nhạc jazz và những điệu nhảy buồn tẻ của các vũ trường? Tuy nhiên, mọi thứ đều có thời điểm riêng, và những buổi hòa nhạc hai lần một tuần của Hội Khuyến Nhạc, theo chúng tôi, nên thành công nhiều hơn. Chỉ có độ ba chục người đến nghe trong buổi hôm qua, ngoài một số tác phẩm chọn lọc, bao gồm bản Valse buồn tuyệt đẹp của Sibelius và tác phẩm độc tấu violin xuất sắc của Enescu chơi, còn có những trích đoạn dài từ Đời Thi Sĩ của Georges Charpentier! Mặc dù vậy, đó vẫn là một bữa âm nhạc thú vị rất chọn lọc.

source: La Velléitaire, "Pro Musica" La Volonté Indochinoise 10 octobre 1935

 

Many experts place Western classical music at the pinnacle of musical creation. So why do people persist in listening to tawdry jazz and dance music? Despite the strong endorsement of these record listening parties organized by a group called Pro Musica [on behalf of music], the people of Hanoi, in this case, the European people of Hanoi, are not showing a requisite level of support. Jazz and dance music remain their music of choice.

Here's your 1935 listening party. Enjoy the uplift!

Sibelius's Valse triste has been established as a work within classical music's standard repertoire.

It's not clear what musical work by Georges Enescu the Pro Musica audience heard. Enescu was a composer, conductor and violinist of Rumanian origin, a fascinating musician who should be better known.

 

I don't wish to belittle this work, but La vie du poète by Georges Charpentier has been lost to the sands of time.

Arrivage de disques en Marocain, Algérien, Tunisien et Egyptien (1950)

No 516 - Arrivage de disques en Marocain, Algérien, Tunisien et Egyptien. Dernières nouveautés et Classiques de Jazz aux Arcades Rue Paul Bert Hanoi.

Number 516 - The arrival of Moroccan, Algerian, Tunisians and Egyptian records. The latest releases and jazz classics at Arcades, Rue Part Bert [phố Tràng Tiên], Hanoi.

Số 561 - Đĩa mới từ Marôc, Angiêri, Tuynizi và Ai Cập đến. Các bản phát hành mới nhất và tách phẩm jazz kinh điển tại Arcades, phố Tràng Tiên, Hà Nội.

 

nguồn: L'Entente 28 février 1950

Les Arcades was located at 43 rue Paul Bert, Hanoi. This advertisement shows them selling 78 rpm recordings to troops from the Corps Expedionnaire Française d'Extrême Orient (CEFEO) or French Far East Expeditionary Corps. (or Quân đội viễn chinh Pháp vùng Viễn Đông). These soldiers numbered over 100,000 during the 1st Indochina War. Egypt was not a colony, but it had the strongest record industry in the Arab-speaking world.

I find it to be little understood just how popular jazz was in French Indochina and not only among colonists. Les Arcades also stocked jazz recordings, old and new.

Kiếm nguồn nhạc mới (Seeking A New Music Source) (1949)

Ban Việt Nhạc của Đài Phát Thanh

Tiếng nói Việt Nam

Rất hoan nghênh những bản nhạc VUI TƯƠI hoặc những hành khúc dũng mạnh mà các bạn gửi đến để trình bày.

Chúng tôi thiết tha mong mỏi các nhạc sỹ sáng tác lưu tâm đến loại nhạc này để cùng nhau tìm kiếm một nguồn nhạc mới.

The Việt Music Group of the Radio Station

The Voice of Vietnam

We greatly welcome the happy, cheerful music works or bold marches that you all have sent for presentation.

We sincerely hope that music composers will focus on these kinds of music so that together we can find a new musical source.

nguồn: Việt Nhạc 16 tháng 2 1949

This Voice of Vietnam was the voice of the State of Vietnam / État du Viêt-Nam led by Bảo Đại under French guidance. They funded the radio station as well as the musicians who performed on the broadcasts, most importantly the Ban Việt Nhạc - a group that ranged in size from 8 to 10 musicians who performed in a semi-classical style.

Việt Nhạc was a bi-monthly newspaper that highlight the activities of this group and the radio station. It was compiled and edited by Thẩm Oánh and Vũ Khánh who created most of the content along with Trần Văn Nhơn. The majority of pages were devoted to articles and advocacy pieces written by Thẩm Oánh often using pseudonyms. There were very few issues that did not print not print a song and 85 percent of the songs were written by Thẩm Oánh.

The advertisement presented above dates from the period of the Central Provisional Government of Vietnam / Gouvernement central provisoire du Viêt‑Nam that preceded the State of Vietnam. The songs published in Việt Nhạc were in the "happy," "bold" style advocated here. They sought to create a rousing unifying body work musical works that could compete with the songs of the Việt Minh. They did not succeed at that goal.

The Ban Việt Nhạc did feature these works along with rousing pre-revolutionary Vietnamese songs and a sprinkling of less militant songs from Việt Minh controlled areas (notably songs by Phạm Duy). They also presented a number of romantic songs that are today known as nhạc tiền chiến that I'm sure went down much better with the listening audience. The Ban Việt Nhạc included vocalists and instrumentalists of the highest quality. It's a pity that they were never recorded.

A bâtons rompus (Casual Conversation) - (1928)

Nous avon eu pendant trois jours le régal musical le plus raffiné. Jacques Thibaud, le prestigieux violoniste était dans nos murs et tous les amateurs de musique se sont pressées en foule pour l'entendre; ils ne perdirent du reste ni leur temps ni leurs piastres. Et même pas mal de profanes qui éaient présents-parce qu'il faut bien profiter de toutes les distractions-en retiréerent une magniques impression de beauté, pendant que les connaisseurs savouraient le grand art du musicien.

Un de nos confrères a même noté que plusieurs Annamites étaient présents à ces soirées et y prenaient un plaisir manifeste et le bon journaliste de conclure un peu hâtivent que le musique était un des points d'entente des divers peuple et que l'on devait chercher à sa rapprocher par tous les moyens. La musique permettant de comprendre la civilisation d'un pays devait être utilisée dans ce but.

Parfait---je comprends fort bien que nous donnions des concert de notre musique aux Annamites, je comprends qu'ils y prennent plaisir et ce n'est que justice, puisque nous prenons bien plaisir à entendre le jazz nègre cu la guitare des Hawaiens qui ont à peu près pénétré le bon peuple francais, mais je ne vais pas pusqu'à penser que la musique, qui adoucit les moeurs ait permis aux bons Francais de comprendre la civilisation nègre ou les délicés de l'Archipel.

Au reste, je propose au rédacteur qui a émis cette affirmation d'aller entendre trois jours de suite pendant trois heures la musique chinoise, telle qu'elle est pratiquée à Shanghai ou même à Cholon et de nous dire si'l peut se faire entendre entre deux coups de cymbales, et si'l a comprise quelque chocse à la sentimentalité chinoise.

Je suis, du reste sur que mon mélomane de confrère, s'il a pris du plaisir à la musique exécutée par Jacques Thibaud, ne résisterait pas à semblable cacophonie.

For three days, we enjoyed the most refined musical experience. Jacques Thibaud, the prestigious violinist, was among us and music lovers flocked to hear him. They certainly didn't waste their time or their money. Even quite a few laypeople who were present—because one must take advantage of all available distractions—came away with a magnificent impression of beauty, while the connoisseurs savored the musician's great artistry.

One of our colleagues even noted that several Annamites were present at these evenings and clearly enjoyed themselves, leading the journalist to conclude, somewhat hastily, that music was one of the points of agreement between different peoples and that we should strive to connect with it by all means. Music allows us to understand a country's civilization and should be used for this purpose.

Perfect—I understand very well that we give concerts of our music for the Annamites; I understand that they enjoy it, and that's only fair, since we ourselves take great pleasure in hearing African jazz or the Hawaiian guitar, which has more or less penetrated the French people. But I don't go so far as to think that music, which soothes the soul, has allowed the good French to understand African civilization or the delights of the archipelago.

Furthermore, I suggest that the writer who made this assertion go and listen to Chinese music for three hours at a time, for three days in a row, as it is practiced in Shanghai or even in Chợ Lớn, and tell us if he can make himself heard between cymbal crashes, and if he has grasped any clash of Chinese sentimentality.

I am, moreover, sure that my music-loving colleague, if he enjoyed the music performed by Jacques Thibaud, would not be able to withstand such a cacophony.  

"A bâtons rompus," Saigon sportif 13 juillet 1928.

Jacques Thibaud was one of the great violin virtuosos of first half of the twentieth century. His Saigon performance would have been an example of Western classical music.

Annamite / Vietnamese people listened to this virtuoso and enjoy his playing. This puzzled the casual observer. They listening to Annamite / Vietnamese music with no comprehension. How could an Annamite  Vietnamese listener make anything of their music?

This experiment has been continued over nearly a century and we have results. Many more Vietnamese today enjoy and understand Western classical music than Westerners who enjoy and understand Vietnamese traditional music.

Viétri (Việt Trì) On nous écrit (1902)

La musique du 18e Colonial est muette depuis longtemps déjà, en raison des nombreux musiciens rapatriés. Fort heureusement, quelques élèves ont été formés, et la musique, la fanfare plutôt, reprendra prochainement ses concerts du jeudi et du dimanche.

Le Lieutenant-Colonel Pourrat, qui parait être un bon chef et un excellent homme, demande l'indulgence pour les musiciens. Il peut être certain que tous ici seront trop heureux de cet agrément pour critiquer ceux qui leur procurent un instant de plaisir.

Toute la population civile se plait d'ailleurs à remercier le Lieutenant-Colonel de son amabilité, n'ayant pas été gàtée sous ce rapport par les chefs de jadis, ceux qui commandèrent avant l'arrivée du 10e.

Việt Trì. Somebody has written to us:

The band of the 18th Colonial [Battalion] has been silent for a long time, due to the large number of musicians who have been repatriated. It's very fortunate that a few students have been trained, and the enemble, or rather the brass band, will soon resume its Thursday and Sunday concerts.

Lieutenant-Colonel Pourrat, who appears to be a good leader and an excellent man, asks us to be indulgent with the musicians. He's perhaps certain that everyone here will be too pleased with this entertainment to criticize those who give them these pleasurable moments.

The entire civilian population is moreover pleased to thank the Lieutenant-Colonel for his kindness, having not been spoiled by their relationship to previous commanders, those who led the regiment before the arrival of the 10th (battalion).

Ban nhạc Trung đoàn Thuộc địa18 đã im một thời gian khá lâu, bởi vì một lớn các nhạc công được hồi hương. Rất may mắn là một vài người học được đào tạo, và ban nhạc, hay đúng hơn là ban nhạc kèn đồng, sẽ sớm tiếp tục các buổi hòa nhạc vào thứ Năm và Chủ nhật.

Trung tá Pourrat, dường như là một nhà lãnh đạo rất tốt và một người đàn ông xuất sắc, xin quí thính giả thông cảm. Ông chắc chắn rằng mọi người ở đây sẽ quá vui mừng với món giải trí này đến nỗi không có ý kiến ​​gì chỉ trích những người đã đem cho họ niềm vui này.

Toàn thể dân cũng vui mừng cảm ơn Trung tá vì lòng tốt của ông, bởi vì họ đã không được đối xử tử tế như vậy bởi các chỉ huy trước đây, những người đã lãnh đạo trung đoàn trước khi Trung đoàn số 10 đến.

source: Courrier d'Haiphong 25 octobre 1902.

In 1902, Việt Trì might not have been much more than a French commercial and military outpost. It benefitted from a clear river route to Hà Nội and the Tonkin Gulf. The 18th Colonial Battalion stationed there must have numbered around 500 soldiers, perhaps as few as 300 - I couldn't say for sure how many. There were also French civilians living there, probably engaged in commerce. But there may have been spouses and children as well. Vietnamese families had to be nearby -- minimally the French would have had the need for interpreters and laborers. Vietnamese and Chinese merchants had to be present along with rice farmers and fishermen.

It was normal for a colonial military unit to have a "musique" or a "fanfare." A fanfare denote a brass band - an ensemble of brass instruments and likely some percussion. Brass instruments work best because they are loud and they are less susceptible to damage in a tropical environment. Wooden instruments like woodwinds and strings expand and contract according to the temperature and humidity. Additionally, wind instruments have pads and springs that could be damaged in inclement weather.

The sturdiness and loud volume of these instruments help to project the power of empire. It was a form of cultural conquest at the bell of a trumpet, so to speak. The music may have been incomprehensible to local residents, but it had to get their attention, even if it were resented as a manifestation of unwanted invaders. The melodic motifs of fanfare music eventually inspired Vietnamese patriotic marches in the 1940s.

The mystery in this piece is who the "students" are? They are most likely members of the battalion without previous musical experience. But could musicians have been recruited from within the community?

It might be difficult to detect the urgency behind recruiting a full complement of musicians. In 1902 there was no radio and sound recordings had yet to be introduced to French Indochina. If you wanted to hear music, somebody had to perform music. In Việt Trì, a European would be largely cut off from the elements of a normal life, including music. The twice weekly military band performances would be a welcome musical taste of home.

M... Café Fin Trà Ấm (M... Filtered Coffee, Tea By The Pot) - ?? (1977)

Thứ tư 23 / 2

[9 giờ sáng]

Đừng bỏ em một mình ..... trời lạnh quá ... Trời lạnh.

(Tệ trạng thanh niên ngồi các quán cà-phê nghe nhạc vàng trong lúc đa số đồng bào đi lao động)

Thursday February 23

[clock reads 9 AM]

Don't leave me all alone ..... it's too cold ... it's cold.

(The bad situation of youth sitting in cafés listening to yellow music when the majority of the compatriots are laboring).

nguồn: Tin Sáng 27 tháng 7 1977

I presume that this cartoon depicted something that approximated real life in Saigon in 1977. Student cafés playing sad love songs were common before April 1975. Afterwards all of that music, categorized as nhạc vàng or yellow music, was banned, much of it destroyed. The police surely cracked down on places like this one, but who know how effective the crackdowns were?

M café means "Em café" - "em" here meaning an endearing word for a girlfriend. See the hearts on the placard - this was a place for couples to hang out. Filtered coffee and tea were low level luxuries. I love the potted plant in the back giving the place a slight touch of elegance. That elegance is negated by the trash that these irresponsible, self-absorbed youth tossed on to the floor.

"Đừng bỏ em một mình" was a very popular song from 1969 written by Phạm Duy, a very respected and prolific songwriter. I always associate this song with the singer Lệ Thu.

This Youtube video is approaching 7 million views. It is a very representative song of the Republic of Vietnam -- the cartoonist made a good choice. Phạm Duy received the highest level of vilification by the communist government. He had left the resistance in the early 1950s, collaborated with the CIA for a time and was one of the most famous Vietnamese outside of Vietnam.

The important figure in this image is the poor laborer in the lower right hand corner. He's trembling! He's so innocent that he's embarrassed at the sight of couples enjoying themselves, enjoying each other's company.

More likely the concern comes from this music that is coming dangerously close to entering his consciousness and crushing his soul. In a recent article I explain how nhạc vàng was viewed as a both a cause of, and a reflection of societal dissatisfaction, that it both accompanied and promoted delinquent behavior.  Failing to heed the call to help construct the nation was a form of delinquency.

Cartoons like this point out actual behavior in society and serve as a method to encourage people to police each other and themselves and not engage in this unacceptable behavior -- i.e., not indulge in this unacceptable, illegal, dangerous music.