RELIGIOUS AND FOLK BELIEF CONSCIOUSNESS IN SOUTHERN VIETNAM AS REFLECTED IN BÌNH NGUYÊN LỘC’S PROSE

Abstract

Binh Nguyen Loc's prose is an artistic space imbued with the cultural identity of the South, in which religious and belief elements are not only the context or artistic motif but also a profound expression of regional consciousness. Under his pen, the underworld, ghosts, mantras, ancestor worship practices, land worship, water worship, shamanism, as well as the presence of religions such as Buddhism, Catholicism, Hoa Hao, Cao Dai... are vividly reflected, rich in emotion and imbued with indigenous spirit. The article approaches Binh Nguyen Loc's prose from a cultural studies perspective, analyzing how he built an artistic world on the basis of Southern religion and belief, expressing the harmony between tradition and modernity, folk and urban, indigenous and acculturation. Thereby, the article affirms that Binh Nguyen Loc's literature not only reflects society but also preserves the "spiritual memory" of the Southern community in the midst of the modernization process.