Before the late 1980s, nearly all
Vietnamese people lived in villages, and the cultivation of wet rice was the
principal economic activity. The basic component of rural society was the
nuclear family, composed of parents and unwed children.
Respect for parents and ancestors
is a key virtue in Vietnam. The oldest male in the family is the head of the
family and the most important family member. His oldest son is the second
leader of the family. Sometimes, related families live together in a big house
and help each other. The parents chose their children's marriage partners based
on who they think is best suited for their child. When people die, their
families honor their ancestors on the day of their death by performing special ceremonies
at home or at temples and by burning incense and fake money for the one who
died.
The Vietnamese believed that by burning
incense, their ancestors could protect them and their family from danger and
harm. Days before the ceremony starts, the family has to get ready, because
they won't have enough time to get ready when the guests arrive and the
ceremony starts. Usually the women cook and prepare many special kinds of food,
like chicken, ham, pork, rice, and many more including desserts.
While the women are busy cooking,
the men are busy fixing up and cleaning up the house, so it won't be messy and
dirty because of all the relatives of the person that died will come for the
ceremony and show honor and respect to that person. Families venerated their
ancestors with special religious rituals. The houses of the wealthy were
constructed of brick, with tile roofs. Those of the poor were bamboo and
thatch. Rice was staple food for the vast majority, garnished with vegetables
and, for those who could afford it, meat and fish.
The French introduced Western
values of individual freedom and sexual quality, which undermined and the
traditional Vietnamese social system. In urban areas, Western patterns of
social behavior became increasingly common, especially among educated and
wealthy Vietnamese attended French schools, read French books, replaced
traditional attire with Western-style clothing, and drank French wines instead
of the traditional wine distilled from rice. Adolescents began to resist the
tradition of arranged marriages, and women chafed under social mores that
demanded obedience to their fathers and husbands. In the countryside, however,
traditional Vietnamese family values remained strong.
The trend toward adopting Western
values continues in South Vietnam after the division of the country in 1954.
Many young people embraced sexual freedom and the movies, clothing styles, and
rock music from Western cultures became popular. But in the North, social
ethnics were defined by Vietnam Communist Party’s principles. The government
officially recognized equality of the sexes, and women began to obtain
employment in professions previously dominated by men. At the same time, the
government began enforcing a more puritanical lifestyle as a means to counter the
so-called decadent practices of Western society. Traditional values continued
to hold sway in rural areas and countryside, where the concept of male
superiority remained common.
In the 1980s, the Vietnamese
government adopted an economic reform program that freely from free market
principles and encouraged foreign investment and tourism development.
