What Were They Like? Essay Questions

What is the effect of the poem’s use of the past tense?

The poem takes place in a hypothetical future in which the Vietnamese culture has been destroyed by war. Therefore, all descriptions of this culture use the past tense. We see this first in the title: “What Were They Like.” Then there are phrases like “they gathered once,” “most were peasants,” and “fathers told their sons old tales.” The use of the past tense shows exactly what the cost of war is: an entire culture can be destroyed. This forces readers to recognize that if action is not taken, this hypothetical future can become reality.

Why does the responder stress how difficult it is to know things about the Vietnamese people?

The responder repeatedly uses phrases that show how any information about the Vietnamese way of life might be wrong: “it is not remembered,” “perhaps,” and “a dream ago.” As with the use of the past tense, this emphasis on uncertainty shows the permanent effects of war. This culture has been wiped out. Similarly, even the knowledge we have about them is purely speculative because no one is left to tell the tale.

How does the poem stress the humanity of the Vietnamese?

The poem shows that Vietnamese people are just like anyone else. They tell stories, grow food, sing songs, and use ornaments on their bodies. They are described as a peasant society that lives calmly and in harmony with nature. Similarly, they value their children. For these reasons, the war affects them terribly. As the bombs rain down, they lose their joy, worry about their children, and stop their ceremonies.

How are the first and stanzas different in tone and emphasis?

The first stanza has a formal and curious tone. The questioner speaks as if reading a list. He wants precise information about Vietnamese culture, such as “Had they an epic poem.” The responder uses a more poetic tone, describing “stone lanterns illumin[ating] pleasant ways” and “water buffalo stepp[ing] surely along terraces.” This more descriptive language provides images of the everyday life of Vietnamese peasants. It also emphasizes the violence of war that destroyed this life with images of charred bones and rice paddies bombed by airplanes.

How does the motif of speaking and singing function in the poem?

The questioner wants to know whether the Vietnamese people “distinguish[ed] between speech and singing.” This suggests that perhaps this was not an advanced society, as this should be a fundamental distinction any culture should be able to make. The responder’s answer turns the question on its head. The Vietnamese language is described as so beautiful that “their speech [...] was like a song.” With their spoken language this beautiful, their songs are even more impactful. These are compared to the “flight of moths in moonlight.” While the questioner suggests that the culture might be primitive, the responder stresses the intense beauty of their language that is lost because of the war.