Hero and Deity is an eloquent and fascinating journey into the world of the worshippers and the cult of Tran Hung Dao. The legendary fourteenth-century hero and savior of Vietnam has evolved as a key symbol of the nation as well as an efficacious deity in its spiritual pantheon. Today he is a ubiquitous, multivalent symbol of the contradictions of contemporary Vietnamese society. Intertwined with this rich ethnography is a work of self-interrogation and engagement with the author's complex and changing "home," and with the diverse women and men - intellectuals, Communist Party cadres, and market sellers alike - whose lives are centered to a significant degree around the cultof Saint Tran and other deities. The book is a contribution to the ethnography of Vietnam, cultural studies, and Asian studies and also an original and stimulating introduction to contemporary Vietnamese society.
ISBN: | 9789743031571 |
Publication date: | 4th March 2009 |
Author: | Pham Quynh Phuong |
Publisher: | Silkworm Books an imprint of Silkworm Books / Trasvin Publications LP |
Format: | Paperback |
Pagination: | 240 pages |
Genres: |
Asian history |