Associate Professor, Dr. Pham Quang Long - manager and teacher

On the surface, everyone would think that this man is really “lucky”, it seems that he was born to be an “official”, to be a leader. Actually, he was trained to become a literature lecturer, because if we consider both his personality and professional qualifications, I am 100% sure that Pham Quang Long is truly a person with more than enough ability to become a good literature teacher. However, since graduating from the General Literature Department (in 1975), he was retained as a lecturer in the Department of Literary Theory (in fact, he graduated with a thesis on foreign literature), and did not have much time to teach, he was sent to Russia to do research (also a topic related to foreign literature). Returning to the country after 1984, in 1987, he left the Faculty to become Deputy Head of the Science Department. Then there was a continuous path of promotion. It was not until recently, in June 2013, when he left his position as Director of the Hanoi Department of Culture and returned to the Faculty of Literature, taking on the most ordinary job like all his peers, teaching literature, that he truly became his own person.

Associate Professor, Dr. Pham Quang Long/Photo: Thanh Long

He was Head of the Faculty of Philology (1992-1996); Vice Principal and Rector of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities (1996-2001); Vice Director of Hanoi National University (2001-2005); Director of Hanoi Department of Culture (2005-2013).

Talking about the days when Associate Professor Dr. Pham Quang Long was a manager, I really don’t know much. Because I had a relationship with him more as a friend than as an employee or boss, and I wasn’t close enough to “hear” or “intervene” in his private affairs. When he first became the head of the Faculty of Philology, succeeding Professor Nguyen Kim Dinh as manager, I only felt that he was enthusiastic about the common work, got along with everyone, knew how to listen and was humble. It was only natural, because Pham Quang originally had a background as a youth union officer. When I was a student, I knew that he had participated in the work of the youth union branch, then the youth union branch, and the class executive committee for many years; after graduating, he stayed on to be a teaching staff, still in the youth union and association, a job that I know not many teachers in the Faculty of Philology want to do, because it takes up a lot of everyone’s private time. But coming from a revolutionary family (the son of a martyr, a heroic Vietnamese mother), Pham Quang Long devoted himself to the assigned work without ever being calculating or calculating. I think, perhaps that is why he was trusted and credited. During his years as manager of the Faculty of Literature, Pham Quang Long was truly “all-in”: he managed, organized, and improved this department, although it was difficult to make a “great breakthrough”, but I think the Faculty of Literature during the years under his management was still considered stable. Around 1992-1995, right before the National University was established, as a unit of the old General University, Literature was still considered a large, “significant” department, no less than the departments of History or Mathematics. Perhaps that is why, despite his young age and having just started managing a large unit like the Faculty of Literature, Associate Professor Pham Quang Long has been able to maintain a position for the faculty that is not “inferior” to other large units within the school and outside. That is already a contribution. That is why he is more trusted and relied upon.

At a higher management level, Vice Principal, Principal, and then up to the level of Vice Director of Hanoi National University, Director of Hanoi Department of Culture, I know that Pham Quang Long still maintains his passion for the teaching profession and the responsibilities assigned to him, dedicating himself to the common work, not being afraid of any work. But, perhaps because of that, he started to have "troubles". I say "troubles", but actually there is no "trouble" at all. It's just like this: many people commented that Pham Quang Long is a straightforward, upright, and sensitive type of person, he can only maintain "safety" in moderate jobs, managing places with few people, with tolerant subordinates, for example, the Faculty of Literature, or even bigger, the School of Social Sciences and Humanities. If he is allowed to show his inherent qualities in places where many people understand his personality, or they are "easy-going", he will do well. In the case of “forcing” a Literature teacher, even in the position of deputy director, all thoughts and actions are straightforward, on specific matters such as the issue of “clearing the land” in the shortest time; or forcing a “big” department director of Hanoi city (after merging with Ha Tay), with many “mouths” (talking a lot but doing little) to “guard” and “supervise” the overhaul of the Hundred-room pagoda in Chuong My, even with “a hundred hands and a hundred eyes”, it is difficult for him to avoid mistakes. In fact, in the position of head of Hanoi National University, or the Hanoi Department of Culture, many people admit that Pham Quang Long is a sincere person. A very small example among many things he did when he was still the Director of Culture, as he himself told when asked by a female reporter of World Security: “Your question reminds me of an exhibition on Hanoi culture that I organized when I was the director… Some seniors in the Advisory Council told me that an exhibition on Hanoi culture must have a cyclo, because the cyclo has been closely associated with Hanoi culture for a long time, and can even be considered a symbol of Hanoi. But I objected, because I thought that the image of a cyclo only evokes hard work and hardship, and is not symbolic of the quintessence of Hanoi culture, and I chose the theme of “culture of poetry and books” for the exhibition.” This is just a small example among many other examples that can be mentioned, to affirm that, although he did not receive in-depth training in culture, when assigned a job, it was actually not unfamiliar with the job he had done (management and teaching in a school). (University), Pham Quang Long can do it, not that he “took a risk”. But I know, for nearly ten years managing culture in Hanoi, as well as the same amount of time working as a manager at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities and the Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Pham Quang Long has done his best, with all his heart. As for how much he actually contributes, it depends on the times, the consensus and help of everyone, and the collective assessment. And there is one thing I know and would like to repeat, because of his frankness, integrity, and even his hot temper, “manager” Pham Quang Long, sometimes is “hated” by this person, “dissatisfied” by that person. Even I, sometimes I am not satisfied with him because of his “extremism”, or because of his “misplaced kindness”; Or because of extremism, it leads to "rigidity" and sometimes it ruins things. But I also think, "people are not perfect", what can we do! Pham Quang Long was not born to be a manager? His main job is to be a teacher. And there is another field of work, which, in my opinion, is his forte: not only teaching and researching, Pham Quang Long is also a creative writer. If only he had followed the forte he had from the beginning of his career? But, having said that, how many people can "program" their own path? Pham Quang Long is also that "rare" type of person. And who knows, thanks to his experience in many management positions over the years, especially his time as a cultural manager in Hanoi, Pham Quang Long has "sharpened" his pen and life experience. Now he has returned to his original forte. It's just a pity that he doesn't have much time left...

But anyway, he has returned to the position of a teacher. In this position, I know Pham Quang Long is a teacher admired by many students. Teaching literary theory is probably also his chosen strength. Because he is sharp and eloquent. Despite the "volume" that is not as abundant and resonant as that of Professor Ha Minh Duc, or some other teachers in the Literature department, I still see that Pham Quang Long's theory lectures are loved by students. There was a time when I was curious and wanted to hide somewhere to "eavesdrop" on his lectures, to verify whether the compliments from the students were true? But before that intention could be carried out, he was promoted to management positions, teaching less. Less, but not completely, because I know that teaching with Pham Quang Long is his favorite job. To say that because of being a manager, he forgot about research work, that is only partly true, but in my opinion, not entirely. Because looking at the list of research works of Associate Professor Dr. Pham Quang Long, we may not find any really thick work (a separate book), but the number of articles published in specialized journals is not small. That is not to mention the hundreds of articles on culture he wrote and regularly published in newspapers during his time as Hanoi's cultural manager. And then there are many more pages written by him in his position as temporary secretary of the Central Theoretical Council's Summary of 30 years of cultural innovation, which are usually not widely published. In particular, I think this is Pham Quang Long's real forte: during his days of participating in cultural management in Hanoi, taking advantage of his strengths as a humanities researcher, Pham Quang Long wrote dozens of plays, many of which were staged and performed on stage, one of which received an A prize at the National Theatre Festival in 2005. Pham Quang Long's plays are truly the "undercurrent" of a teacher who reads a lot, observes widely, and thinks deeply, because they contain many thoughts about human affairs in both historical and current issues. Those are the playsCao Ba Quat, Nguyen Cong Tru, Debt to the Country, Ho Chi Minh Moments, Playing the Role, The Returnee, Human Faced Demon, Inspector…, all “thorny” topics. I once asked, “So you’re not afraid of being “touched” when you write like that?” He didn’t answer, but I knew that the time had come when the free and honest person in him began to “struggle.” When he was himself again, he didn’t have to be “too cautious.” Some people were worried about him, but I thought that with nearly half a century of “training,” Pham Quang Long would never be “foolish” enough to break his “principles.” That’s because, seeing the irony of the times, how could a man as passionate as Pham Quang Long “keep silent.” He revealed to me that he currently has three manuscripts that are about to be published: two novels (which are being read and approved by critic Bui Viet Thang); a research work on realism in Vietnamese literature that he has long cherished and nurtured…

A complete "portrait" of Associate Professor Dr. Pham Quang Long would certainly require a long article. The above is just a few sketches, from the perspective of a person observing from afar. And a sketch from afar can only shed light on a few "issues". I am not sure that I have "drawn" a completely accurate portrait of him. Because I think Pham Quang Long still has many hidden potentials that we have not yet discovered. Because as writer Nguyen Minh Chau, the author that Pham Quang Long once studied, said:Every person contains within their heart beautiful, magical qualities that they may not discover in their entire life.Pham Quang Long is such a person.