Writer Pham Thi Bich Thuy depicts the tragedy of a family of 'four women'

The novel Family with Four Sisters by writer Pham Thi Bich Thuy seems to have "demystified" the rule "four women are not poor" that has been concluded by folklore since ancient times. Instead, the work depicts the tragedy of a family in modern society.

That is the general opinion of many writers and critics in the discussion about this novel held on October 24.

Poet Nguyen Quang Thieu, Chairman of Vietnam Writers Association.

The author tells the story of Mr. and Mrs. Binh-Bang's family, who have four daughters who are all taught and educated in the same way, yet each person in that "universe of four women" has a completely different fate.

There is Miss Thuong who is desperate for material things; Miss Ai who is pragmatic to the point of vulgarity; Miss An who is honest to the point of being thought of as crazy or deceitful; Miss Yen who just lets things be, as long as she follows the times.

Each of them tried to find the most for their own family, which led to the difference in living conditions between families. It was the gap in material life and enjoyment of social benefits that nurtured jealousy, then cruel hatred between Thuong and Ai.

According to the author, the message she wants to convey is about the inequality of opportunity due to the culture of kinship, where one person becomes an official and the whole family benefits from the Vietnamese culture.

Poet Nguyen Quang Thieu - Chairman of the Vietnam Writers Association - highly appreciated the novel Family with Four Sisters by Pham Thi Bich Thuy for its generalization of contemporary life with its selfishness, meanness, incompetence, arrogance, and absurdity.

The novel 'A Family of Four Sisters' depicts the tragedy of a family of "four daughters".

According to writer Ma Van Khang, this is a good, attractive novel, with the weight of thoughts, emotions and intelligence, written with both passionate and profound enthusiasm.

Critic Nguyen Hoai Nam believes that The Family with Four Sisters is a novel in which the author has gone beyond concern for personal fate, to place himself in concern for the fate of the community and civil society in its continuous development.

According to Associate Professor Dr. Pham Xuan Thach, Hanoi University of Social Sciences and Humanities, the author chose a linear narrative style, without using any new writing style but still very attractive to readers because it touches on the life that people are facing today. The novel helps us see the essence of the life we are living, lacking faith, lacking culture, lacking foundation.

The family tragedy in the book is worth reading because it shows how many things we think are noble, many ideals we think are good, such as love, family responsibility, and protection, have been corrupted, and have become poison to people in today's life.

Associate Professor Dr. Pham Xuan Thach revealed that this novel is one of four literary books he nominated for the Vietnam Writers Association Award this year.

Writer Pham Thi Bich Thuy was born in 1964, has a Master's degree in Business Administration, a Bachelor's degree in Literature and Russian. From 1986 to 2000, she was a lecturer in Russian Literature at the University of Foreign Languages, Vietnam National University, Hanoi. Since 2000, she has worked for international organizations and multinational corporations.
Published works: Short story collection "Escape" (2013), novel "Flying Sand Dunes" (2014), novel "Lost Flute" (2015), novel "Bottom of the Well" (2015), short story collection "Zero" (2017).

Le Chi

Source: https://vtcnews.vn/nha-van-pham-thi-bich-thuy-khac-hoa-bi-kich-cua-mot-gia-dinh-tu-nu-ar903676.html