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Childhood and Schooling in (Post)Socialist Societies pp 107–126Cite as

Palgrave Macmillan

Uncle Ho’s Good Children Award and State Power at a Socialist School in Vietnam

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Abstract

This autoethnographic account of a “socialist youth” explores how state power influences and shapes youth’s concept of nationalism. Embracing the teaching of Ho Chi Minh’s philosophy and Marxism-Leninism, Vietnam’s school programs and activities in the 1980s were designed to evoke patriotism and to ensure Vietnamese children would revere Uncle Ho and stay loyal to the Communist Party . In the name of the nation, this system also motivated youth to dedicate their lives, to commit their time and energy, and to sacrifice personal interests for “the success of communism.” Within this system, symbolic rewards, such as the “Uncle Ho’s Good Children” award, provided important meanings that could make childhood under socialism a fulfilling and memorable experience.

Small children do small tasks (Tuổi nhỏ làm việc nhỏ)

According to your strength (Tuỳ theo sức của mình)

[…]

Prove that you are worthy (Các cháu hãy xứng đáng)

Uncle Ho’s children! (Cháu Bác Hồ Chí Minh!)

Ho Chi Minh ( 1952 )

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, University of California Riverside, Moreno Valley, CA, USA

    Violette Hoang-Phuong Ho

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  1. Violette Hoang-Phuong Ho
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA

    Iveta Silova

  2. Faculty of Education, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland

    Nelli Piattoeva

  3. Institute for Advanced Social Research, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland

    Dr. Zsuzsa Millei

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Ho, V.HP. (2018). Uncle Ho’s Good Children Award and State Power at a Socialist School in Vietnam. In: Silova, I., Piattoeva, N., Millei, Z. (eds) Childhood and Schooling in (Post)Socialist Societies. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-62791-5_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-62791-5_6

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-62790-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-62791-5

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