Nguyen Huy Thiep
Another memorable name in Vietnam's long literature history is Nguyen Huy Thiep, whose palpable impact on contemporary Vietnamese literature has been noted by both readers and critics.
Born in 1950, Huy Thiep began his writing career in the late 1970s - at a time when his country, Vietnam, was undergoing significant political and social changes. As a result, his writing is characterized by its unflinching portrayal of the human condition, with a focus on social issues and the struggles of ordinary people. Most of Thiep's stories often explore the darker aspects of human nature, such as greed, corruption, and violence; and all characters in these stories are complex and nuanced, reflecting the complexities of Vietnam's real-life situations at the time.
Regarding Nguyen Huy Thiep's most famous works, the obvious answer is his short story collection "The General Retires," (Tướng Về hưu), which won the prestigious Southeast Asian Writers Award in 1992. The collection is a searing critique of the corruption and moral decay that characterized Vietnam's post-war period, and its characters are drawn from all levels of society - from the poorest farmers to the highest-ranking government officials.
To this day, Nguyen Huy Thiep's impact can still be found even in modern literary writing. His work continues to inspire and challenge readers/writers both in Vietnam and around the world, a remarkable milestone that we should never (not that we can, though) let ourselves forget!
Age: 1950 - 2021
Most famous works: The General Retires and Other Stories (Tướng Về hưu), Crossing the River: Short Fiction (Sang sông: Tuyển Truyện ngắn)
