Symbol: Phuong's Light
After Phuong leaves her apartment and Kien for the last time, a light is left on for a period of time. Then, one day, Kien notices that "the light which had been left on in Phuong's apartment has now finally been turned off. It now seems to Kien that he has finally lost her" (193). Kien sees the light as a symbol for Phuong, now extinguished with her loss. All is dark and Kien is bereft; Phuong's light had been dimming for some time and now it was completely gone.
Symbol: The False Spring
Kien returns from war, but his happiness with Phuong is short-lived as she leaves him for the first time. This is symbolized by the "false spring" in Hanoi. There is a period of time when the sun comes out, the air is clean, the trees bloom, and birds return; suddenly, though, "an icy cold wind began gusting along the newly greened streets, and a sorrowful, drizzling rain began. The newly emerged buds retreated, the blooms wilted, the birds remained hidden, and the colors and the new hope that had arrived like a golden promise evaporated into the reality of harsh grey winter" (69). The spring is a symbol of Phuong and Kien's love, which is lovely, warm, and sustaining; its falseness, though, is a symbol of how barren, cold, and misleading their love actually was.
Symbol: Sun
On Victory Day, it is "pouring rain," but "after the downpour the sun came out from behind the clouds and gunsmoke" (100). This is a symbol of the war's end, new beginnings, hope, warmth, comfort, and peace.
Symbol: Ocean and Lights
At the beach, Phuong tells Kien that there is "something abnormal about the sea...frightening" (174). Whatever she senses in the ocean is a nascent symbol of the unrest that is imminent—i.e. the war. Moments later, a few sailors tell the students to put out their fires because there must be "no lights" (174). Given what they tell the students a second later—the war has started—the lights being extinguished symbolize the light of the past, of hope, of love, and of peace being extinguished.
Symbol: Water
Water is a complicated symbol in the text, particularly rain. The rain in the text is cumbersome, dreary, and sad; it symbolizes the unrelenting sorrow that the soldiers face during the war and after the war. It makes rivers that are filled with bloated corpses and prevent the MIA team from cleaning up and moving on. As a symbol rain, does not function as a purification device but rather as tears.
