General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and his love of literature

Throughout his life and revolutionary career, from his time as a student at the Faculty of Literature, Hanoi University, to his later role as the highest leader of the Party and State, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong has always paid special attention to and devoted much of his passion to the cause of building and developing the national culture. The General Secretary has published more than 40 books, which have become valuable assets to the culture and literature.

General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and Party and State leaders with delegates attending the ceremony commemorating the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Vietnam Union of Literature and Arts Associations (July 25, 1948 - July 25, 2023). (Illustrative photo: Tri Dung/TTXVN)

A Precious Asset of Culture and Literature: According to the recollections of Professor, People's Teacher, and writer Ha Minh Duc, a member of the first generation of lecturers at Hanoi University, former Director of the Institute of Literature, and homeroom teacher of the K8 Literature class, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong was one of his youngest students. He was gentle, humble, diligent in his studies, actively participated in student union activities, and was one of the outstanding students admitted to the Party in his final year. Professor Ha Minh Duc affirms that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made a great contribution to the national cultural cause, clearly demonstrated through his speeches, directives, and published books. The General Secretary always showed a strong sense of national identity, respect for culture, and considered culture on par with politics and society. The General Secretary's guiding views on culture are compiled in many books. Professor, Dr. Dinh Xuan Dung, former Director of the Publishing Department, Central Committee for Ideology and Culture (now the Central Propaganda Department), who has been closely associated with General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong for 60 years, believes that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's thoughts on culture are persuasive and closely linked to reality. From his high school days, he loved literature. When he went to university, his graduation thesis also related to literature. In particular, the book "Building and Developing an Advanced Vietnamese Culture Rich in National Identity," which was released in June 2024, contains numerous articles and speeches by the General Secretary that quote poems and songs no less than 20 times. Thanks to his profound research and practical experience, the guiding views on culture of the Party leader always have depth and a clear personal imprint. Pham Thi Thinh, Deputy Director and Deputy Editor-in-Chief of the National Political Publishing House, shared that she has been fortunate and honored to edit books by General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong since 2004. With experience editing nearly 20 books by the General Secretary, Ms. Pham Thi Thinh said that with each book, she often learns from his experiences and remembers his advice, so that subsequent books are better and more complete. Ms. Pham Thi Thinh said that she has learned a lot of knowledge from the General Secretary's books and also from the book-making mindset of this exemplary leader. During the editing process, Ms. Pham Thi Thinh learned everything from how to revise articles and title them to the meticulousness in her work and political sensitivity in book publishing and journalism… Dr. Tran Thien Khanh of the Institute of Literature noted: Even during his university studies, Comrade Nguyen Phu Trong chose revolutionary lyric poetry, the leading flag of revolutionary poetry, and the national question in poetry as his research subject, approaching To Huu's poetry from the perspective of folk culture and literature. His graduation thesis, "Folk Poetry and the Poet To Huu" (1967), supervised by Professor Dinh Gia Khanh, received the highest possible score. Based on this meticulous and outstanding scientific research, with many outstanding new contributions, in 1968 Comrade Nguyen Phu Trong published his first article, "The Flavor of Folk Songs and Ballads in To Huu's Poetry," in the Literature Magazine, issue 107, November 1968.

Dr. Tran Thien Khanh stated that since its establishment, the Institute of Literature has always received attention and favorable conditions from the Party and State leaders for its development and innovation. In 1999, the Institute of Literature celebrated its 45th anniversary and received the First-Class Independence Order. Comrade Nguyen Phu Trong, Standing Member of the Politburo and Secretary of the Hanoi City Party Committee, attended the ceremony to congratulate and share the joy with the Institute of Literature. Speaking at the commemoration ceremony, Comrade Nguyen Phu Trong affirmed: The Institute of Literature is “the largest literary research institution in the country, a place associated with the names of many dedicated, talented, and prestigious scholars in the national literary and artistic circles… The Institute of Literature has accomplished many great things, achieved many important accomplishments, and deserves the high honor bestowed by the State,” and has “chaired many research, study, and compilation projects of high scientific value in all fields: literary history, theory, criticism, translation… making an important contribution to affirming and clarifying the great viewpoints of Marxist-Leninist aesthetics and of our Party on literature and art, and making a positive contribution to the formation and development of literary research in our country.” According to Comrade Nguyen Phu Trong, the direction of creative writing and research, theory, and criticism is to encourage works about the reform process, highlighting positive elements in society and exemplary figures of the era; to promote what is right, good, and beautiful in the relationships between people, between people and society, and with nature; to criticize bad habits and vices, to condemn evil and baseness; and to encourage the exploration and experimentation of all methods and styles of writing for the purpose of meeting the healthy and beneficial spiritual needs of the public. Dr. Tran Thien Khanh shared that on major anniversaries of the Institute of Literature, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong always showed affection for the institute's staff and employees. On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the first issue of the Journal of Literary Studies (1960-2020), General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong sent a congratulatory letter to all staff and employees of the Journal throughout its history. In 2023, the Institute of Literature celebrated its 70th anniversary, and the General Secretary sent a congratulatory floral arrangement… “The special attention of Comrade Nguyen Phu Trong in particular and the leaders of the Party and State in general to the field of literature and the Institute of Literature has created motivation, confidence, and encouragement for generations of staff at the Institute to continuously study, improve the quality of basic research, promote applied research, and innovate thinking and research paradigms in literature. We have absolute confidence in the leadership of the Party, maintain our direction, and are determined to rebuild the position of a leading modern literary research center in the country, worthy of the trust and expectations of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong,” affirmed Dr. Tran Thien Khanh.

Phuong Ha (VNA)

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/thoi-su/tong-bi-thu-nguyen-phu-trong-va-tinh-yeu-van-hoc-20240728074329025.htm