The Loss Of Innocence In Paradise Of The Blind By Duong Thu Huong

Objects, no matter how small, can spark memories of childhood, bringing to life a painful realization that childhood innocence is forever lost. This occurrence parallels the story told in Paradise of the Blind, written by Duong Thu Huong, a novel banned in its home country, Vietnam, for its provocative presentation of the poverty and struggles of Vietnamese citizens. Duong Thu Huong utilizes the duckweed flower as a motif to illuminate the change in perspective from childhood to adulthood. The novel explores different generations of characters during the time of Land Reform, a time of violence. Duong Thu Huong exposes the harmful effects of the communist regime causing people to live through poverty, broken families, and in a constant state

The audience is able to see that Hang’s story is one of many, therefore they are able to recognize that losing innocence is prevalent within all lives and they question their own changing views as they grew to understand societal customs and structures. In the very same flashback described prior, one character called the old woman represents how age causes one to lose sight of the beauty in the world around them. Duong explores this theme in the dialogue between the woman and Hang’s mother, “‘...My girl just loves duckweed flowers. She had to see them’…’What’s so special about them?’ The woman shrugged, turning back to her washing,” (131). The audience, witnessing Hang as both a child and an adult, can clearly identify the similarity between the old woman and Hang’s views. Although Hang continues to see them as “special” to her, the audience understands that Hang is no longer limited to the flower itself, now she sees the environment in which the flower thrives, “stagnant, oily bogs flecked with bubbles from rotting algae…the mud, the decomposing toads, the dead fish, their scales gone black, their scorched carcasses twisted into arches,”

Duong tells a story not only through the characters but also through Hang’s natural world, she engulfs the audience and reveals that perspectives do not solely change as you age mentally, but also one’s view of the world changes. In Hang’s case the ugliness of the world reigns, “...those purple flowers always glistened, radiant in the middle of filth: the atrocious ornament of a life snuffed out,” (131) Duong signals that Hang no longer will be blinded by the flower’s beauty expressing that she has reached the state of being completely overwhelmed with the pain and stagnation of the Vietnamese people. This also effectively conveys to the audience that Hang’s innocence is completely extinguished, defining her adult perspective as pessimistic. Duong is able to develop this by disregarding the flower and shifting Hang’s focus to the pond. The pond is symbolic of the stagnation experienced by the Vietnamese people, where one can not escape poverty, always working to survive, or are held by the traditions of Vietnamese culture fostering toxicity. Duong resorts to this symbol to emphasize the pinnacle of