The famous blind poet NgyuyenDinhChieu bemoaned what was happening to his country.

I would rather face eternal darkness

Then see the faces of traitors

I would rather see no man

Then encounter one man’s suffering

I would rather see nothing

Then witness the dismembering of the country in

decline.

(a)What does the poet express in the given stanza?

(b) What values does it exhibit?

(a) The poet expresses his grief and sadness over the situation of the country of Vietnam. He is shaken by the condition of the colonized country. Where there is no freedom, no value of indigenous culture by the colonizers, discrimination in education and oppression of the masses.

(b) The poet exhibits the value of life and freedom. It also exhibits the value of native culture and heritage.