Vietnamese literature faces the challenge of artificial intelligence

The emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the way people create and perceive art. In that context, the question “Is Vietnamese literature afraid of AI?” at the conference summarizing Vietnamese literature after 1975 organized by the Vietnam Writers Association on October 6 in Hanoi, is not only a topical issue but also suggests thoughts about the creative spirit and mindset of writers.

AI is not scary!

Poet Nguyen Quang Thieu, Chairman of the Vietnam Writers Association , shared: “A critic asked me: Is Vietnamese literature afraid of artificial intelligence - AI? I think that AI will only overcome when writers lose their courage, personality and opinions.”

The worrying thing, according to poet Nguyen Quang Thieu, is not how AI writes, but where the creativity of writers lies. According to him, AI cannot replace writers, unless the writers themselves allow themselves to become “robots in writing”, stereotyped, safe and lacking innovation.

“There was a time when some writers turned themselves into AI when they became mechanical in their writing, not daring to leave the old path, not daring to step out of their comfort zone,” he said.

However, the Chairman of the Vietnam Writers Association also admitted that AI and digital technology are inevitable trends: “There are already signs and evidence of some works using AI to a certain extent. That is something we cannot avoid when living in the era of AI and digital technology.”

Conference summarizing Vietnamese literature after 1975 - Achievements, problems and prospects, took place in Hanoi on October 6.

In fact, AI has entered the creative life: from supporting editing, suggesting content, to experimenting with poetry, writing stories, translating... But what the literary world is worried about is not technology, but the fading of emotions and understanding.

Poet Nguyen Quang Thieu said: "Each writer, with his own creativity, with his own emotions, with his own intelligence, that is the most important weapon to fight against the intervention of artificial intelligence." He emphasized that if AI replaces writers, it means we have ended literature, ended literature in its essence.

In other words, AI is not scary if humans are still creative. Because the difference between “artificial intelligence” and “human intelligence” is the ability to empathize, which makes literature an art of the soul. Only humans with life experience and emotional depth can breathe soul into words.

Literature is looking to youth

At the workshop, writer Nguyen Binh Phuong, Vice President of the Vietnam Writers Association, emphasized: "Literature must originate from real life, must absorb nutrients from it, grow roots from it and spread shade there."

According to him, if literature over the past 50 years has lacked masterpieces and strong voices, the reason lies not in technology or the times, but in the writers themselves who have not dared to step out of their "safe zones".

Sharing the same view, poet Nguyen Quang Thieu frankly said, "The biggest obstacle to Vietnamese literature is the writers." When writers do not dare to innovate, do not dare to experiment, do not dare to face themselves, literature will close the door to development.

Over the past half century, Vietnamese literature has gone through major stages from national unification, innovation to global integration. Each stage opens up new creative opportunities, but also poses many challenges.

As poet Nguyen Quang Thieu commented: “The portrait of Vietnamese literature is still fragmented, not yet establishing its worthy position”, while “many European writers crave the reality of Vietnam, full of turmoil and emotion, but we ourselves have not yet created works that are worthy”.

That spirit was approved by poets, writers, and critics participating in the conference. Many opinions agreed that Vietnamese literature needs to look directly at itself to develop, and must face the limitations in its own creative thinking.

Poet Nguyen Viet Chien mentioned the role of memory and the responsibility of writers: after 50 years, the generation that directly experienced the war has gradually faded away, while the young generation born in peace only receives that memory through fragments. “If literature does not speak up to connect those fragments, collective memory will gradually fade, while the wound still smolders,” he said.

According to Professor Phong Le, Vietnamese literature is at a time of “a generational transition”, where youth, creativity and cultural strength will determine the new progress of the national literature. He emphasized that only when young writers dare to take risks and break away from the old trajectory, can literature truly enter a period of innovation.

MAI AN

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/van-hoc-viet-nam-truoc-thach-thuc-tri-tue-nhan-tao-post816689.html