The character Bá Kiến, famous in the work “Chí Phèo,” was created by the writer Nam Cao based on a real-life figure. Currently, in Đại Hoàng village, Hòa Hậu commune, Lý Nhân district, Hà Nam province, the house of this character still exists.
The house of Bá Kiến (real name Bá Bính) is situated on a plot of land approximately 900m2 in size within Đại Hoàng village (Hòa Hậu commune, Lý Nhân district, Hà Nam), which is also known as Vũ Đại village. It is known that this house has stood for hundreds of years and has passed through seven generations of owners.
Entrance to Bá Kiến’s house.
The village elders recount that the first owner of the house was Mr. Trần Duy Hanh – a wealthy merchant. Around the year 1910, Mr. Hanh hired nearly 20 famous carpenters from Cao Đà, Phủ Lý Nhân to build the house, garnering admiration from the entire village. The house was inherited by the third generation of Mr. Hanh’s descendants, who had to transfer it to Bá Bính – the real-life inspiration for the character Bá Kiến in Nam Cao’s “Chí Phèo.”
Exterior of the over a hundred-year-old house.
The house is built in a traditional three-room style, featuring four rows of columns, with a total of 16 lim wood columns, the bases of which are elegantly set on carved stone blocks. At the beginning of the 19th century, when cement was not yet available, builders mixed molasses and soot with lime and other additives to create a binding material. The bricks used for the walls and flooring were baked with straw, so even after many years, the walls have not peeled off.
The house has become a famous tourist spot in Lý Nhân, Hà Nam.
After Bá Bính, the house passed through three other owners until November 2007, when it was purchased by the Hà Nam Department of Culture and Information for 700 million dong and entrusted to the Lý Nhân District Culture and Information Department for management.
Currently, Bá Kiến’s house has become a well-known tourist attraction in Lý Nhân district, alongside the memorial site of the writer and martyr Nam Cao.
Sign directing to Bá Kiến’s house.
The descendant of writer Nam Cao, Mr. Trần Hữu Vịnh, mentioned that the memorial site was built on the land of Mr. Trùm Ruyện – the inspiration for the character Lão Hạc.
The house is made of lim wood, intricately carved, and has not been affected by termites after hundreds of years.
Vũ Đại village, known from Nam Cao’s works, is famous not only for characters like Chí Phèo, Thị Nở, Lão Hạc, and Bá Kiến, but also for its royal bananas and export-quality braised fish.
Porch of Bá Kiến’s house.
Mr. Trần Luận (a third cousin of the writer Nam Cao) is currently the owner of a braised fish business and shared: “This is a low-lying area where every household used to have a fish pond, both to store water and to enhance meals. Fish is a staple food for the locals, and they even eat fish instead of rice. During the Tet holiday, the best braised fish is always placed on the ancestor altar as an offering, as a way of expressing gratitude to the gods for the blessings given to the people. Over time, as many distant visitors were able to taste and recognize it, the braised fish from Vũ Đại gradually became a specialty, selling far and wide, even being exported abroad.”
Braised fish from Vũ Đại sells from 400 thousand to 2 million dong per pot.
The royal bananas from Đại Hoàng are a famous specialty offered to the court for a long time.
Mr. Trần Hữu Vịnh stated: “Royal bananas from Đại Hoàng come in three types: white royal bananas, buffalo royal bananas, and jackfruit royal bananas, with jackfruit royal bananas being the most precious – the fruit is slightly larger than a thumb, and when ripe, the skin is thin and has a deep yellow color, with slightly pinkish golden flesh and a fragrant aroma.”
