Born: 1947 (Thái Bình, Vietnam)
Biography:
Dương Thu Hương (born 1947) is a Vietnamese author and political dissident. Born in 1947 in Thái Bình, a province in northern Vietnam, Dương came of age just as the Vietnam War was turning violent. At the age of twenty, when she was a student at the Vietnamese Ministry of Culture’s Arts College, Dương Thu Hương volunteered to serve in a women’s youth brigade on the front lines of The War Against the Americans.
Dương spent the next seven years of the war in the jungles and tunnels of Bình Trị Thiên, the most heavily bombarded region of the war. Her mission was to sing louder than the bombs and to give theatrical performances for the North Vietnamese troops. But she also took on additional tasks, such as tending to the wounded, burying the dead, and accompanying the soldiers. Dương demonstrated immense bravery during this time and was one of only three survivors out of the forty volunteers in her group.
She also experienced the horrors of the Sino-Vietnamese War when China launched attacks on Vietnam in 1979. Dương Thu Hương, once again, found herself at the front lines during this conflict. Her experiences in both wars deeply shaped her perspective and fueled her desire for a more just society.
However, after Vietnam’s reunification in 1975, Dương became increasingly critical and outspoken about the repressive atmosphere created by the Communist government. Appalled by the stark contrasts between the conditions in the North and South, she began speaking out against the government.
Despite her courageous stance, Dương faced severe consequences for her activism. She was expelled from the Communist Party in 1989 and was denied the right to travel abroad. Moreover, she was even temporarily imprisoned for her writings and outspoken criticism of corruption in the Vietnamese government.
Dương Thu Hương’s literary career played a pivotal role in her activism. Her first novels, including Journey in Childhood (Hành trình ngày thơ ấu, 1985), Beyond Illusions (Bên kia bờ ảo vọng, 1987), Paradise of the Blind (Những thiên đường mù, 1988), and The Lost Life (Quãng đời đánh mất, 1989), were published in Vietnam and soon became bestsellers before being banned. Notably, Paradise of the Blind became the first Vietnamese novel ever published in English in the United States.
Her subsequent works, such as Novel Without a Name (Tiểu thuyết vô đề, 1991), Memories of a Pure Spring (2000), and No Man’s Land (Chốn vắng, 2002), have not been published in the United States. Despite facing significant obstacles, Dương’s writings have garnered international recognition and acclaim.
Moreover, Dương Thu Hương’s contributions to literature have been honored by the French government, who made her a Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 1994. Her passion for social justice and unwavering commitment to speaking truth to power have cemented her as an influential figure in contemporary Vietnamese literature and a symbol of courage and resilience.
Awards:
– Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French government (1994)