Dumb luck

Vũ Trọng Phụng’s Dumb Luck (originally Số Đỏ, 1936) is a biting satire of 1930s colonial Vietnam that follows the absurd rise of Red-Haired Xuan, a street-smart vagabond who ascends to the heights of high society through sheer coincidence and a series of hilarious misunderstandings. Using a "wickedly funny" tone, Phụng lampoons the superficial Europeanization and hypocrisy of the Hanoi bourgeoisie, who desperately mimic Western fashions and progressive ideals without any true moral or spiritual foundation. The novel remains a cornerstone of Vietnamese literature for its "realistic depiction"…