He'll be faced with the difficult decision as to which one of his brothers and sisters will go on to higher education and which ones will be tasked to help provide for the family. The same sacrifice is often made by the younger brother who, having finished his studies, devotes his time and earnings to the well-being of his relatives. Like his eldest benefactor, the favored youngster would not infrequently remain unmarried since, the concerns of wedded bliss might interfere with the duties to his family. Today, however many of the traditional values that used to appoint the roles of each member of the family, are being steadily eroded. The war is one of the causes, breaking up families whose sons march to battle fields and whose other members often became refugees widely separated from one another.
Social changes are another reason.
The spread of Western technology has introduced a whole new concept of life. The bonds of kinship are easily broken. But customs that have persisted through for thousands of years cannot be wiped out overnight. The role of the eldest son is still a sacred concept, and much of family life in Viet Nam still revolves around the traditional values that to this day are the fibre of the Vietnamese nation.