Course Description
This course surveys Vietnamese civilization from prehistory to French colonization in the 19th century, with a focus on the development of independent kingship. Topics include:
- Ethnolinguistic diversity in the Red River plain
- The Đông Sơn culture
- Vietnam under Chinese rule
- Nation-building and wars with the Mongols and Ming
- French colonization and its cultural impacts
The course examines Vietnamese culture as continuously redefined under foreign influence and historical change.
Evaluation Breakdown
- Attendance & Participation: 15%
- Weekly Coursework Postings: 15%
- Two Quizzes: 20%
- Midterm Exam: 20%
- Final Exam: 30%
Required Texts
- Taylor, K. Weller. A History of the Vietnamese. Cambridge Univ. Press. ISBN: 9780521699150
- Additional materials posted on Courseworks
Recommended:
- Sources of Vietnamese Tradition, Eds. Dutton, Werner, Whitmore. Columbia Univ. Press. ISBN: 9780231138635
Weekly Work Expectations
- Read textbook chapters before class; return after lecture to complete notes
- Weekly reflections (max 350 words) due by Wednesday at 2:40 PM
- Late submission by Friday midnight = 75% credit
- Prompts provided on Courseworks
- Lectures may cover new materials not in assigned readings
Attendance Policy
- Mandatory for both lectures and recitations
- Two excused absences allowed (no justification needed)
- More than 4 total absences = automatic course failure
- Distractions (chatting, texting, gaming) count against participation
Assignments Overview
- Two In-Class Quizzes: Closed-book. Make-ups allowed case-by-case but will be more difficult
- Midterm Exam: Covers material from first half of course
- Final Exam: Emphasizes second half but includes earlier content too
Academic Integrity
Cheating, plagiarism, or helping others violate academic rules will result in zero credit and disciplinary referral. See:
COURSE SCHEDULE (Subject to change at instructor’s discretion)
THE SILENCE OF PREHISTORY
Week 1 – Nation, Language, and History
9/4 – Taking off your nationalist glasses
- Wikipedia entry on “Vietnamese History”
Week 2 – Not an Empty Land
9/9 – The Đông Sơn
- Benedict Anderson, Imagined Communities, 1–46
- Vietnam: A Long History, Ch. 1–2
9/11 – Cổ Loa and an Iron Age city
- Imamura, “The Distribution of Bronze Drums...”
- Hilgers, “Vietnam’s First City”
- Kim, “Ancient State Formation...”
EMPIRE AND A NEW SOUTHERN FRONTIER
Week 3 – The Establishment of Giao Chỉ
9/16 – Enter the Han
- Taylor, A History, Prologue + Ch.1 (1–24)
- Primary Readings: Sources of Chinese Tradition, Classic of Documents, Analects, Book of Han, Book of Later Han
9/18 – Sĩ Nhiếp and a haven in the wilds
- Taylor, Ch. 1 (24–37)
- Primary Readings: Confucius (review), intro to Buddhism, letters Lỹ Miễu & Đạo Cao, early Chinese chronicles
Week 4 – The Protectorate of Annam
9/23 – Buddhism and Annam
- Taylor (37–40)
- Primary Readings: Lotus Sutra, Tang Assimilation of Buddhism
9/25 – The buckling of an empire
- Taylor (40–50)
- Handout on Tang regulated verse
- Maspero, The Champa Kingdom
- Primary Readings: “The Great Father-Mother King,” Du Fu poetry
THE BEGINNINGS OF INDEPENDENT KINGSHIP
Week 5 – The 11th Kingdom
9/30 – Circumstance and independence
- Taylor (51–59)
- Primary Readings: “Gao Pian”
10/2 – The Warlords
- Taylor (59–77; skim 77–107)
- Primary Readings: Lý Dynasty excerpts, stele of Đỗ Anh Vũ
- Quiz #1
FORMATION OF A NEW STATE
Week 6 – The Lý Dynasty & Southeast Asia
10/7
- Taylor Ch. 3 (108–123)
- Nguyen, Zen in Medieval Vietnam (Ch.1)
- Primary Readings: “The Meditation School,” Trần poetry
10/9 – Champa & Thiền Buddhism
- Taylor Ch. 3 (123–164)
- Primary Readings: Thiền Uyên tập anh, Việt điền u linh tập
CULTURAL REDEFINITION IN THE HIGH LÊ
Week 7 – Trouble in the Kingdom
10/14 – The Trần & the Mongols
- Taylor Ch. 4 (165–176)
- Primary Readings: Thiền Uyên tập anh, Việt điền u linh tập
10/16 – Late Trần Society
Week 8 – A 15th Century Cultural Revolution
10/21 – The Kingdom Falls
- Taylor, review Ch. 4
- Phan (2017)
- Primary Readings: REVIEW Việt điền u linh tập, The Ming Record
10/23 – MIDTERM
CREATING THE STORY OF ĐẠI VIỆT
Week 9
10/28 – A Neo-Confucian Kingdom
- Taylor, skim Ch. 4 (165–218)
- Primary Readings: Neo-Confucianism, Bình Ngô đại cáo, Nguyễn Trãi’s poetry
10/30 – Redefining everything
- Taylor Ch. 6 & 7 (selections)
- Sellers, The Princes of Hà-Tiên
- Primary Readings: Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư, Lĩnh nam chích quái, Lê Code
POLITICAL CRISIS & THE VERNACULAR RENAISSANCE
Week 10 – Quasi-Nationalism in the High Lê
11/4 – Election Day: NO CLASS — GO VOTE
11/6 – The Golden Age
- Taylor (237–257); scan 258–287
- Primary Readings: Great Learning, Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư, Lĩnh nam chích quái
EARLY MODERN VIETNAM
Week 11 – The Feudal Era
11/11 – From the Mạc Insurrection to the Lê Restoration
- Taylor Ch. 5 (232–257), Ch. 6 (258–287, 300–318)
- Phan, “Rebooting the Vernacular” (optional)
- Primary Readings: Nguyễn Bỉnh Khiêm, Trịnh Căn, Lê Quý Đôn, Samuel Baron
11/13 – The Southern Realm
- Taylor Ch. 7 (325–339)
- Primary Readings: Nguyễn Phúc Khoát, Lê Quý Đôn, Nguyễn Cư Trinh, Sãi Vãi, Christoforo Borri
Week 12 – Rise of the Nguyễn
11/18 – The Tây Sơn Rebellion
- Taylor Ch. 9 (selections)
- Primary Readings: Phan Huy Ích, Ngô Thì Nhậm, Hồ Xuân Hương, Nguyễn Du
11/20 – The birth of “Vietnam”
- Taylor Ch. 9 (398–445)
- Weber, “Campā” & “Annexation of Panduranga”
- Primary Readings: Gia Long & Minh Mạng edicts and commemorations
THE SHOCK OF COLONIZATION
Week 13 – An Identity Crisis
11/25 – Here come the French
- Taylor Ch. 10 (skim)
- Quiz #2
11/27 – THANKSGIVING: NO CLASS
Week 14 – Anticolonialism and the Future of Vietnam
12/2 – Interrogating tradition in the Nguyễn
- Taylor Ch. 11 (skim 484–508; 511–524)
- Phan, “Secularization of the Sinograph”
- Primary Readings: Nguyễn Trường Tộ, Phan Bội Châu, Phan Châu Trinh, Hoàng Cao Khai
12/4 – Revolution!
- Taylor Ch. 11 (review)
- Primary Readings: Cường Đế, Thái Nguyên Uprising, Phạm Tất Đắc, Manifesto, Phạm Quỳnh, Trần Phú, Nationalist Party
Week 15 – Vietnamese Civilization
12/9 – What is Vietnamese civilization?
Week 16 – READING DAYS
12/10–12/12
FINAL EXAM
12/18 – 1:10–4:00 PM in Mathematics 520
