Signaling Humanist Transition: “Blood-Stained Dignity”
“Blood-Stained Dignity” was a state-commissioned song written in 1986
to commemorate the soldiers who died in the Sino-Vietnamese War
(1979-89). Instead of the middle-aged musicians usually assigned to
write official songs, it was written by two young men, the musician Su
Yue and the lyricist Chen Zhe. Chen had lost a close friend in this war.
For this reason, the lyrics had actually been finished before the song
was formally commissioned.10 The content of the song
can be read as a conversation between a couple about to be separated (Ex
3). In verse 1, the man (soldier) comforts his partner, telling her not
to be sorrowful if he dies because he will have devoted his love to his
country. In verse 2, the woman answers she will not be sad if it happens
because she understands his devotion.