essay questions vietnam war

Vietnam War

Vietnam war essay questions, vietnam to world war ii.

1. Describe the politics, economics, social structures and culture of medieval Vietnam. How did ordinary Vietnamese people live prior to the arrival of Europeans?

2. Discuss Vietnam’s contact and relationship with the West, up to 1850. How did this contact shape or affect Vietnamese society?

3. Explain how the French assumed control of Vietnam in a relatively short space of time. What methods and justifications did they use to increase their power?

4. How did the Nguyen emperors attempt to rid their country of foreign influence, particularly religion, in the 19th century?

5. “French colonialism in Indochina was motivated by a desire to civilise and develop the local population.” To what extent is this statement true?

6. Explain how the French colonial regime maintained its political, economic and social control over Vietnam. What role was played by Francophile Vietnamese?

7. What was life like for Vietnamese peasants and workers during the French colonial period? What problems and conditions did they face?

8. Referring to at least three movements or leaders, explain how some Vietnamese resisted the French colonial regime. How successful was this resistance?

9. Why did Vietnamese nationalists like Ho Chi Minh turn to communism after World War I?

10. Why did the Japanese invade Vietnam in 1940? What methods did they use to assert and expand their control?

The struggle for control: 1945 to 1954

1. Investigate the growth of the Viet Minh in the mid-1940s. How was this group formed? Who provided its leadership and its membership?

2. When the Japanese surrendered in August 1945, what arrangements were made for the transition of power in Vietnam?

3. Explain why Ho Chi Minh declared Vietnamese independence in September 1945. In doing so, why did he refer to the United States Declaration of Independence?

4. During World War II the United States provided material support to Ho Chi Minh and the Viet Minh. Why did the American position change after 1945?

5. Discuss how the communist victory in China in October 1949 affected Western policies and attitudes to south-east Asia.

6. Explain the metaphor of “the elephant and the tiger” and how it shaped the outcomes of the First Indochina War.

7. How did Vo Nguyen Giap and the Viet Minh engineer a victory over French forces at Dien Bien Phu?

8. What were the terms of the Geneva Accords pertaining to Vietnam? What were they intended to achieve?

9. Many historians trace the origins of the Vietnam War to the failure of the Geneva Accords. Did the Accords have any chance or success or were they destined to fail?

10. Discussing similarities and differences, compare the development of Korea and Vietnam in the decade following World War II.

The two Vietnams: 1954 to 1963

1. Describe the political evolution of North Vietnam during the mid-1950s. Who ruled the North and what were their objectives?

2. Evaluate North Vietnam’s policy of land reform during the mid to late 1950s. Did these reforms make life better for the majority of people?

3. Investigate the background and political views of Ngo Dinh Diem. How did he become the leader of South Vietnam in 1954?

4. Western nations described Ngo Dinh Diem as the “Asian Churchill” and “our man in Saigon”. Was Diem a Western puppet, an Asian nationalist or a loose cannon?

5. Discuss the ‘Agroville’ and ‘Strategic Hamlets’ programs, initiated by Ngo Dinh Diem with Western backing. What were these programs intended to achieve and why did they fail?

6. Explain why the government of Ngo Dinh Diem failed to gain popular support in South Vietnam.

7. Investigate the role of Ngo Dinh Nhu and his wife Tran Le Xuan in the Ngo Dinh Diem regime.

8. Evaluate the Kennedy administration’s policy with regard to Vietnam, between January 1961 and November 1963.

9. Why did Ngo Dinh Diem and his followers target South Vietnam’s Buddhists? What effects did this persecution have on Diem’s own regime?

10. Evaluate the origins, structure and ideology of the National Liberation Front (NLF). Why was this group formed and what methods did it employ?

The Vietnam War: 1964-75

1. Why did Lyndon Johnson decide to commit American forces to the conflict in Vietnam? What people, advice and factors influenced Johnson’s decision?

2. Explain why Thailand, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand contributed military forces to the war in Vietnam.

3. The Gulf of Tonkin incident provided a pretext for American military involvement in Vietnam. To what extent was this justified?

4. Evaluate the leadership of General William Westmoreland between 1964 and 1968. What was Westmoreland’s strategy for protecting South Vietnam? How successful was this?

5. Describe the challenges faced by American combat soldiers in Vietnam. What conditions and factors blunted the effectiveness of the American military?

6. Consider the causes and effects of the My Lai massacre of March 1968. What did this incident reveal about America’s military involvement in Vietnam?

7. Explain why the Tet Offensive was a victory and a defeat for both the Americans and the NVA-Viet Cong.

8. Discuss the objectives of Richard Nixon’s policy of Vietnamisation. How successful was this policy in achieving its goals?

9. Investigate American media coverage of the war in Vietnam. How was the war reported between 1964 and 1975 and how did this shape public attitudes and opinions?

10. Referring to data like opinion polls, evaluate American attitudes to the Vietnam War between 1964 and 1975. Which policies, developments or events caused significant shifts in public opinion?

11. What ideas, tactics and methods were used by individuals and groups opposed to Western involvement in Vietnam?

12. Evaluate the role of art, music and literature in the anti-Vietnam War movement.

Effects and aftermath

1. Compare and contrast the policies of presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon with regard to Vietnam. Which of these leaders was most responsible for entangling the United States in the Vietnam War?

2. Evaluate the development of Vietnam in the two years after the fall of Saigon in April 1975. How did the communist victory affect the lives of ordinary Vietnamese?

3. Describe the difficulties faced by Vietnam veterans as they returned to civilian life in the United States or Australia.

4. Evaluate the claim made by some leaders, including General William Westmoreland, that the United States did not lose the Vietnam War.

5. Was the Domino Theory validated or refuted by the progress and outcomes of the Vietnam War?

6. Position the Vietnam conflict in the broader Cold War. How did the Vietnam War shape or affect the relationship between the United States, the Soviet Union and the People’s Republic of China?

7. What effects did the Vietnam War have on American government and society between 1965 and 1975? Consider changes to political, social and cultural attitudes.

8. What effect did American military intervention have on nearby Cambodia between 1969 and 1975?

9. Discuss how events in Vietnam shaped the development of neighbouring Laos from 1957 onwards.

10. Who were the Khmer Rouge and what was their vision for Cambodia? How did they go about implementing this vision?

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80 Vietnam War Essay Topics & Examples

Looking for Vietnam war essay topics? Being the largest conflict in the US history, Vietnam war is definitely worth analyzing.

• 🔝 Top 10 Essay Topics
• 💡 Essay: How to Write
• 🏆 Best Essay Examples & Topic Ideas
• 💣 Most Interesting Topics
• 🔍 Research Topics & Questions

Why did the US lose the Vietnam war? Who won the war and how did that happen? There are many questions about the conflict that wait to be answered. Other options for your Vietnam war essay are to focus on the US involvement or talk about the lessons of the conflict.

Whether you are planning to write an argumentative essay, research paper, or thesis on the Vietnam war, this article will be helpful. Here we’ve collected top Vietnam war research questions, titles. Essay examples are also added to add to your inspiration.

🔝 Top 10 Vietnam War Essay Topics

• Vietnam war: the causes
• US involvement in the Vietnam war
• Vietnam war: the key participants
• The causes of the conflict in Vietnam
• Gulf of Tonkin incident and its role in the Vietnam war
• Why did the US lose the Vietnam war?
• War crimes in the cause of the conflict in Vietnam
• Vietnam war: the role of women
• Weapons and technology in the Vietnam war
• Vietnam war and its influence on popular culture

💡 Vietnam War Essay: How to Write

Chemical warfare, civilian peace protests, and an overwhelming number of casualties are all central circumstances of a Vietnamese-American 19-year conflict that garnered attention all over the world.

Reflecting all these topics in a Vietnam War essay is essential to writing an excellent paper, as well as other structural and informational points. In the prewriting stages:

• Research your issue. Doing so will not only help you choose among various Vietnam War essay topics but also help you start assembling a list of sources that can be of use. Compiling a bibliography early on will allow you to gauge how well covered your subject is and whether you can approach it from different viewpoints. Use various book and journal titles to give your work academic credibility.
• Write a Vietnam War essay outline. This action will help you distribute the weight of your ideas evenly between sub-themes. In turn, doing so will allow you to create a smooth flowing, interconnected narrative of whichever issue you choose.
• Compose a title for your paper. Vietnam War essay titles should be both reflective of their author’s stance and representative of the chosen methodological approach. Since your title is the first thing a potential reader sees, it should grab their attention in the best way.
• Read available sample essays to see which tools and techniques may work in your own paper. While plagiarism is punishable in the academic world, there are no repercussions for getting inspiration or pretending to grade an essay for yourself. Good examples may be just the thing you need to write an excellent paper yourself!

Now you are ready to begin writing. Layering your paper with the appropriate information is only one aspect of essay writing, as you should also:

• Begin your introduction by placing a Vietnam War essay hook in it. This catch can be a remarkable piece of information, a quote from a famous person, or an opposing viewpoint on the subject. Whichever you choose, placing a hook allows you to interest your readers and secure their interest for the duration of your paper.
• Use appropriate terminology. A war-related paper may call for an in-depth understanding of technology, while an ideology related one requires more event-related knowledge. Choose your words according to the specifics of your issue and use them to write a comprehensive and well-rounded essay.
• Understand the cause and effect war environment. Clearly define the links between events and make sure your audience understands all the intricacies of the issue. A timeline, written by you or found online, should help you trace these connections, creating an interflowing essay.
• Recognize the effect of seemingly background events. The recognition of a soldier’s civil rights and the rise of a movement that called for American citizens to return to their home continent is not battlefield-related but greatly impacted politics regarding the issue. Remember that there may be connections between seemingly unrelated problems, and finding them is your goal as an essayist.
• Stick to your Vietnam War essay prompt and the received instructions. Ignoring the specified word count in favor of drafting a more extensive coverage of the problem is not worth losing a grade on a suburb essay.

Always check the rubric that your instructor provided to receive good grades.

Writing an essay giving your trouble? Zero starting ideas? Head over to IvyPanda and get your essay written in no time!

🏆 Best Vietnam War Essay Examples & Topic Ideas

• Similarities and Differences Between Korean and Vietnam Wars There were also several differences such as the way of development of the conflicts where the Korean War was during three years, and the Vietnam War was the prolonged struggle, the participation of the Chinese […]
• Music as a Weapon During the Vietnam War Music to the soldiers in Vietnam acted as a tool to remind all troops of the responsibility that they had taken by being on the battlefield.
• The Use of Agent Orange in the Vietnam War The Association of American Advancement of science prompted the US government to allow investigations into the effects of Agent Orange in Vietnam in 1968.
• “The Killing Zone: My Life in the Vietnam War” by Downs At the very outset, it was clear to the soldiers that the war in Indochina was not being conducted in terms of the glory myths on which they had been raised. The second part of […]
• Why Did the United States Lose the Vietnam War? The Office of the Secretary of Defense had become demoralized due to the events that had taken place; hence, it was unwilling to escalate the war further due to the decline of the army troops […]
• The Vietnam War in the “Child of Two Worlds” Therefore, in the future, he is like to live in the outside world rather than in the inside one. Therefore, Lam wants to start a new life in the US and forgets his roots, which […]
• Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War The Vietnam War caused unintended consequences for the civil rights movements of the 1960s as it awakened the African-Americans’ consciousness on the racism and despotism that they experienced in the United States.
• Vietnam War: History and Facts of War That Began in 1959 The Second Indochina War began in 1959, five years after the division of the country, according to the Geneva Agreement. South Vietnam’s troops failed to substitute American soldiers, and in 1974 the peace agreement was […]
• How the Vietnam War Polarized American Society It galvanized the enemy and opponents of the war in both Vietnam and America and led many to question the ethics of the campaigns.
• The Role of Women in the Vietnam War For example, women in the Navy Nurse Corps and Army Nurse Corp were sent to take part in the Vietnam War and the Korean War.
• Causes and Effects of the Vietnamese War To the U.S.the war was a loss, because the reunion of South and North Vietnamese citizens marked the end of the war, hence U.S.’s undivided support for the southern region yielded nothing, apart from numerous […]
• French Involvement in Vietnam War Even though in the overwhelming majority of cases, the author focuses attention on the history of Vietnam since the Involvement of the French troops in the nineteenth century, he also gives background information as to […]
• Vietnam War in the “Platoon” Movie by Oliver Stone In the context of the war, the confrontation between two non-commissioned officers, the cruel-hearted Barnes and the humane Elias, is depicted.
• The Vietnam War in American History Since early fifties the government of the United States began to pay special attention to Vietnam and political situation in this country, because, it was one of the most important regions in the Southeast Asia.
• Hanoi and Washington: The Vietnam War The Vietnam War was a conflict that was military in nature, occurred between the years 1954 and 1975, and was between the communists and the non-communists.
• Stories From the Vietnam War In the dissonance of opinions on the Vietnam War, it appears reasonable to turn to the first-hand experiences of the veterans and to draw real-life information from their stories.
• Political and Social Forces During and After the Vietnam War The political forces in the aftermath of the Vietnam War centered around balancing between the Cold War and the maintenance of public support.
• Researching and Analysis of the Vietnam War A Chinese leader inspired by the Soviet Union and the Chinese, Ho Chi Minh, formed a union to aid the resistance against the French occupiers in Vietnam and the Japanese.
• The Vietnam War and the Tet Offensive In this presentation, the discussion of the impact of Tet Offensive on the United States and the role of media in military events will be discussed.
• The Artistic Legacy of Maya Lin: A Cultural Response to the Vietnam War Major confrontations as the signs of a shift in cultural perspectives and attitudes have always defined the development of art, the Vietnam War being one of the infamous examples of the phenomenon.
• The Vietnam War: Diplomatic Mechanisms Connected With the USA The onset of the Vietnam War exposed the vagaries in the American political and administrative systems in terms of issues of diplomacy, presidency, and even in cultural and social matters.
• “The Green Berets” Film About the Vietnam War According to the plot, one American journalist named George Beckworth is to cover the topic of the military involvement of the USA in this war.
• Vietnam War: David Halberstam’s “The Making of a Quagmire” In his account, the author of the book The Making of a Quagmire: America and Vietnam during the Kennedy Era, is categorical about the dealings of the Americans in the Vietnamese affair.

💣 Most Interesting Vietnam War Topics

• “A Time of War: The United States and Vietnam” by Robert D. Schulzinger These events relate to the activities and interests of the Americans, the French and Vietnamese which preceded the beginning and the aftermath of the war.
• Interview Report: Memories of the Vietnam War Locker about the way he happened to take part in the Vietnam War, he said that he was drafted but, anyway, at that time he thought that it was his destiny as he wanted to […]
• Ho Chi Minh’s Influence in the Vietnam War He was the leader of the Vietnam independence movement and established the Democratic Republic of Vietnam which was governed by the communists.
• How the Vietnam War Influenced the Iraq War? During the Vietnam era, the neo-conservatism movement expanded due to the political polarization occurring in the country between the anti-war, anti-American sentiments of the counterculture and neo-cons who championed blind patriotism.
• Impact of the Vietnam War and Results of the Cold War It galvanized the enemy and opponents of the war in both Vietnam and America and led many to question the ethics of the campaigns.
• How TV Showed the Vietnam War At the dawn of television media emergence, the coverage of the Vietnam War was subjective as the opinion of the public was manipulated by the government to get the desired reaction from the Americans to […]
• Vietnam War Perceptions of African American Leaders Externally, the country was embroiled in an unpopular war in Vietnam and internally, rejection of the ‘establishment’ typified by the ‘Counter-culture movement’ and the Black Civil rights movement was gaining momentum.
• Vietnamese Culture and Traditions: The Role in Vietnam War It was this division that left America with little understanding of how the rest of the world lives and how the country can effectively help others even in times of war.
• My Lai Massacre During Vietnam War American soldiers of Company assaulted the hamlet of My Lai part of the village of Son My in Quang Ngai province of South Vietnam on 16 March 1968.
• American Government’s Involvement in the Vietnam War According to John Kerry, although the main idea behind the decision made by the U.S.government at the time seemed legitimate given the rise in the threat of communism taking over democracy, the execution of it […]
• American History During the Vietnam War In the quest to figure out the events that took place in the history of America, I had an opportunity to interview a close family friend who was one of the African American soldiers during […]
• The Vietnam War on the Network Nightly News This evidence refuting the use of attrition by the American troops indicate that the strategy was ineffective and as such, it gave their enemies a leeway to capitalize on it and intensify the combat.
• China-Vietnam Opposition or the Third Vietnam War The Korean War, numerous military operations in the Middle East, and the Vietnam War were preconditioned by the clash of ideologies and parties unwillingness to make a compromise.
• Vietnam War vs. War on Terror in the Middle East The starting point for the War on Terror is considered to be the 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and other locations which led to the deaths of thousands.
• The Vietnam War and Its Effects on the Veterans Although numerous books and articles contain memories of those who lived to tell the tale, the best way to learn about the Vietnam War and to understand how war changes people is to talk to […]
• Vietnam War: The Results of Flawed Containment The neo-orthodox perspective on the war in Vietnam consisted of criticism towards United States policies in the sense that civilian and military leaders of the country were unsuccessful in developing achievable and realistic plans with […]
• Vietnam War and American Revolution Comparison Consequently, the presence of these matters explains the linkage of the United States’ war in Vietnam and the American Revolution to Mao’s stages of the insurgency.
• Vietnam War in “A Path to Shine After” by James Post The author uses the contrast between a peaceful life of the veteran and his experience as a soldier to highlight the senselessness and cruelty of war.
• Vietnam War Experiences in David Vancil’s Poems For these reasons, the majority of the works devoted to the given issue tend to demonstrate the horrors of war and factors that impacted people.
• America in Vietnam War: Effects of Involvement However, the involvement of America in the war has made other countries around the world to question its principle of morality.
• African American Soldiers During Vietnam War In the 1960s and 70s, African Americans battled racial discrimination at home in the United States but also faced similar if not the same tension as a member of the Armed Forces while fighting in […]
• Contribution of Women in the Vietnam War Special emphasis will be given to nurses because without their contribution, so many soldiers would have lost their lives or suffered from deteriorating conditions in the War Some of the nurses in the Vietnam War […]
• Photos of Vietnam War The role of the media in the Vietnam War also raises issues of what the media ought to censor and report to the public.

🔍 Vietnam War Research Topics & Questions

• The American Strategic Culture in Vietnam War Spector further emphasizes that the involvement of the United States in both phases of the Vietnam War was due to Harry Truman, the then president of the United States, who did not support communism, but […]
• America’s Failure in Promoting Its Politic in Vietnam Existing literature purports that, part of America’s agenda in Vietnam was to stop the spread of communism and in other literature excerpts, it is reported that, America was persuading North Vietnam to stop supporting the […]
• Vietnam War in the Book “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien The Irony of being at war is that Peace and conflict are both inevitable; it is the way we handle either of the two that determines our opinion of life in general both in the […]
• Anti-War Movement and American Views on the Vietnam War The fact that people started to take part in demonstrations and openly protest any drafting and involvement of the United States in the war, created even more attention towards the Vietnam Conflict.
• How Did the Media Shape Americans’ Perceptions of the Vietnam War? At the heart of this war, the media is believed to have shaped the Americans perception about the war. Technology in this moment made it possible for television to film some incidents in the war […]
• The Vietnam War: Presidents Eisenhower and Kennedy Leadership Roles On November 1, 1995, Eisenhower’s action to give military training to the government of South Vietnam marked the official start of the U.S.involvement in the Vietnamese conflict.
• The Vietnam War Causes The aftermath of the Second World War had the South Vietnam controlled by the French and the North Vietnam controlled by Viet Minh.
• The Vietnam War: A Clash of Viewpoints With the help of the most realistic descriptions and the vivid pictures of woes that soldiers had to take in the course of the battles, the author makes the people sink into the mind of […]
• China’s Support for North Vietnam in the Vietnam War As of the time of the war, the capital city of South Vietnam was Saigon while that of the North was Hanoi.
• Appy, C. and Bloom, A., Vietnam War Mythology and the Rise of Public Cynicism, 49-73 The first myth is that the intervention of the US in the Vietnam War was devoid of any political interests and colonial based ambition contrary to that of the French.
• Vietnam Women Soldiers in the Vietnam War and Life Change After the War In 1968, the North Vietnamese and the Viet Cong forces attacked all the major cities of South Vietnam and even the US embassy followed where the war could not stop but in the year 1973 […]
• Vietnam War: The Battle Where There Could Be No Winners Inflamed by the ideas of the patriotic behavior and the mission of protecting the interests of the native land, the American soldiers were eager to start the battle.
• The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution of 1964 Is a Turning Point in Vietnam War The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution that occurred in August 7, 1964, was one of the major turning points in the United States military involvement into the flow of the Vietnam War.
• The Vietnam War’s and Student’s Unrest Connection An example of such protests were held by the by the University of Washington during the national strikes that took an approximate one week as a reaction to the Kent University shootings and a culmination […]
• Vietnam War: John Kerry’s Role Kerry’s actions during the Vietnam war that eventually led to his acquisition of the Purple Heart is a as a result of his ability to stop the actions of the enemy as evident in their […]
• Views on Vietnamese War in the Revisionism School Though United States did not involve itself into the war in order to break the dominance of Soviet Union, it wanted to gain politically and economically.
• Concepts of the Vietnam War The fear to go to Vietnam and participate in a war that many believed America will inevitably lose, continued to engulf their life even more.
• Analysis of the Vietnam War Timeline 1961-64 In essence, the analysis of JWPs in this war would entail critical exploration of the jus in bello, with the aim of determining the combatants and non-combatants, and this is important in the sense that […]
• Politics in the 1960s: Vietnam War, Bay of Pigs Invasion, Berlin Wall However, in recent years following the collapse of the Soviet Union between1980 1990 and the opening of Vietnam to the outside world in the same period it is possible to understand the motives of both […]
• Protests and Music of the Vietnam War As the public absorbed the announcement, and the truth behind the war, they were angered by the fact that many American lives had been lost in the war, and the fact that the government was […]
• The Vietnam War Outcomes The Vietnam War was and is still considered the longest deployment of the U. In conclusion, both the U.S.and the Vietnam governments have a lot to ponder regarding the outcome of the Vietnam War.
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Vietnam War - Free Essay Samples And Topic Ideas

The Vietnam War was a protracted and contentious conflict from 1955 to 1975 between North Vietnam, supported by communist allies, and South Vietnam, backed by the United States and other anti-communist countries. Essays could delve into the complex geopolitics of the Cold War era that framed this conflict, examining the differing ideologies and interests that fueled this long and costly war. The discourse might extend to the military strategies, the notable battles, and the human cost endured by both civilians and military personnel. Discussions could also focus on the anti-war movement within the United States, exploring how the Vietnam War significantly impacted American politics, society, and culture. Furthermore, the lasting effects of the war on Vietnam and its relations with the U.S., along with the contemporary narratives surrounding the war and its veterans, could provide a well-rounded exploration of this crucial period in 20th-century history. A vast selection of complimentary essay illustrations pertaining to Vietnam War you can find at Papersowl. You can use our samples for inspiration to write your own essay, research paper, or just to explore a new topic for yourself.

The Civil Rights Era and the Vietnam War for the USA

The Vietnam War was a conflict between North and South Vietnam with regards to the spread of communism. The communist North was supported by other communist countries while the South was supported by anti-communist countries, among them the United States. In South Vietnam the anti-communist forces faced off against the Viet Cong, a communist front. The involvement of the United States in the Vietnam War was ironical by the civil rights movements because despite their fight for democracy abroad and […]

The Sixties Civil Rights Movement Vs. Vietnam War

The 1960s were a very turbulent time for the United States of America. This period saw the expansion of the Vietnam War, the assassination of a beloved president, the civil rights and peace movements and the uprising of many of the world’s most influential leaders; known as Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. Over the years, scholars have discussed the correlation between the Vietnam War and the Civil Rights movement. It has been argued that violence happening overseas directly […]

The Cold War: Severe Tension between the United States and the Soviet Union

The feuding began after World War II, mostly regarding political and economic power. After the destruction that World War II caused, the United States and the Soviet Union were left standing. Gaining control of countries was sought after, even if the countries weren't benefiting them in any way. During this time, it was all about power. From the years of 1957 to 1975, the Cold War was in full effect and the United States and the Soviet Union were in […]

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The Domino Theory and the Vietnam War

This investigation will explore the question: To what extent was the Domino Theory validated by the progress and outcomes of the Vietnam War? The years 1940 to 1980 will be the focus of this investigation, Vietnam War started after World War 2 and ended in 1975. More than 1 million Vietnamese soldiers and over 50,000 Americans were killed in the war. China became a communist country in 1949 and wanted to spread communism throughout Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh ( nationalist […]

American Involvement in Vietnam War

The frustration of Nixon was clearly building with the failure despite all sorts of efforts. A futile invasion of Cambodia, continued but ineffective Vietnamization policy, no cooperation from PRC, and an attempt to cripple the North into negotiations through bombing; nothing seemed to be working. This incapability to find a solution further led the Nixon administration to continue bombing on the North, with a wrong perception that raw control on the battle will gain them advantage. After this series of […]

Modern American Imperialism

By the end of the 18th century, the British Empire was one of the biggest colonial powers in the world. It had colonies in many countries across the world such as India and Australia. There were other colonial powers such as Spain, France, and the Netherlands. One of the latest countries which entered the imperialistic way was the U.S. It saw that other countries, especially Great Britain, were gaining resources, territories and most importantly dominance over the world. The U.S. […]

The Vietnam War in U.S History

The Vietnam War has been known in U.S history as the longest and most controversial war. The United States became involved in Vietnam to avoid having the country fall to a communist form of government. There were numerous fateful battles that claimed countless lives of those on both sides of the war. This war also resulted in many conflicts for the United States on the home front of the war, when the American people no longer supported the war. North […]

Comparison between World War II and Vietnam War

A half century ago the world, and most specifically America, was an extremely different place. As the world moved out of the World War II era, changes came in droves. America and the Soviet Union would move into a Cold War with a space race, while the rest of the world would watch in awe. In 1961, John F. Kennedy was inaugurated as the 35th president of the United States. Segregation was at an all-time high, so was the fight […]

Effects of the Cold War

The Cold War was a time of hostility that went on between the Soviet Union and the US from 1945 to 1990. This rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union lasted decades and created a result in anti communist accusations and international problems that led up to the two superpowers to the brink of nuclear disaster. During World War II, the Soviet Union and United States fought together as allies against the axis powers. However, the two nations […]

The Soldiers in the Vietnam War in the Things they Carrie

In Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried", we are told a story about what the soldiers in the Vietnam War carried with them and in particular what First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross carried with him. The way the story is told gives a glimpse of each soldier's personality based on the items that they carried with them. First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross carries letters from a girl named Martha with whom he is infatuated. Although she did not send them as love […]

The Vietnam War in History

The Vietnam war was a conflict between the north and south vietnam governments and the time span of this war began from 1954 all the way down to the year of 1975 fighting in the locations or North Vietnam, South Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. One important fact was the south of vietnam had an ally who were the United States, but also the north had help from China and the Soviet Union. With the two enemies having their own allies […]

Cold War Effects on America

The Cold War certainly changed and shaped the American economy, society, and politics from 1945 to 1992. The contrasting beliefs between Communism (the Soviet Union) and Democracy (the United States) caused the rift between the worlds top two most prominent superpowers -- Communism had established itself to be an immediate challenge to the importance of the United States of America. To stop these two world powers from becoming an even larger global conflict, a few military interventions were established in […]

The Vietnam War in the World History

Silence is all the soldiers could hear but they knew that they weren't alone. Soldiers from a foreign country attacked them from the shadows. Thousands of young American men were killed in the forests deep in Vietnam. The national interest of America that Americans developed after the Yalta Conference encouraged us to join the Korean War which led to the Vietnam War,the most regretted war in US History, guided America when it comes to foreign policies. At the end of […]

What is Vietnam War Known For?

Vietnam, a nation that had been under French colonial rule since the 19th century. During World War II, Japanese forces invaded Vietnam. To fight off both Japanese occupiers and the French colonial administration, political leader Ho Chi Minh. In 1945 the defeat in World War II, Japan withdrew its forces from Vietnam, leaving the French-educated Emperor Bao Dai in control. This was seen as an opportunity to gain control; Ho's Viet Minh forces immediately rose up to take over the […]

Depictions of the Vietnam War in the Book Things they Carried

In order to convey ideas or meanings to readers throughout their pieces of work, authors use different literary techniques. In The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien employs a multitude of different devices to immerse the reader in his experiences during the Vietnam War. To depict the brutality and barbarity of war, O’Brien evokes images and discloses themes not only through metaphors, repetition, and irony, but also through the use of juxtaposition. By comparing seemingly contradictory and opposite ideas or images, […]

Impact of Vietnam War

The Vietnam War began in 1955 and lasted for 20 years or so. President Truman created a foreign policy that can assist countries that have instability due to communism. Truman then came up with the policy of the Truman doctrine. The causes of the Vietnam War was believed held by America that communism was going to expand all over south-east Asia. Neither of the U.S and Soviet Union could risk a war against each other because of the nuclear military […]

Yearbook of Psychology between 1961 and 1971

Introduction Prisoners go through lots of psychological processes when they are confined within the cells. They sometimes go against the orders or follow them according to the types of prisons they occupy. However, there have been various concerns about the psychological aspects of prisoners or those that serve jail terms. This therefore created the need to conduct studies on the psychological aspects of Zimbardos and Milgram? work. This study discusses the major comparisons and contrast between Zimbardo and Milgrams research […]

The Erosion of American Support for the Vietnam War

To begin, a massive amount of Americans are considered to be nationalistic and resonate with patriot appeals. A well known U.S rhetoric quote claims that America is "the greatest nation in the world". This can be used to U.S military advantage because it encourages or motivates United States citizens to support their country politically and to remain patriotic. As a result, in the 1950s, Americans had almost unconditionally support for their countries military actions and were fully on board with […]

Music and Society in Vietnam War Era

The Vietnam War is arguably the most controversial war in American history. To this day, our role and positioning in the struggle for power remains an enigma. It can be argued that we concerned ourselves in the struggle to deny the spread of communism, but it can be equally contended that we were there to suppress nationalism and independence. The publicized aesthetic showed that the war was between North and South Vietnam, but from '55 to '65 the escalation period […]

The Vietnam War and the U.S. Government

From the 1880s until World War II, France governed Vietnam as part of French Indochina, which also included Cambodia and Laos. The country was under the formal control of an emperor, Bao Dai. From 1946 until 1954, the Vietnamese struggled for their independence from France during the first Indochina War. At the end of this war, the country was temporarily divided into North and South Vietnam. North Vietnam came under the control of the Vietnamese Communists who had opposed France […]

How the Vietnam War Changed Diversity in America

The Vietnam War was a war of great controversy. The Vietnam War has the longest U.S. combat force participation to date, 17.4 years. This is closely followed by efforts in Afghanistan. U.S. combat force participation in Afghanistan is 17 years and continuing. The Vietnam War was a fatal one for U.S. armed forces. There are 58,220 total recorded military deaths from the war as of 2008 from the Defense Casualty Analysis System (U.S. Military Fatal Casualty Statistics, n.d.). Although the […]

Forest Gump as a Source for Studying History

' Life is like a box a chocolate, you never know what you are going to get ' as said in the novel Of Forest Gump I say would be as I would like to think the statement to portray the film from start to finish. In this exposition, I will expound on Forrest's life venture as a tyke to a grown-up and how his life can be contrasted with a container of chocolates. Right off the bat, the film […]

Analysis of the Vietnam War

Last Days in Vietnam shows how powerful this media can be when talented people dig deep into the often-complex history of the Vietnam War. Most convincing in the narrative is its introduction of the ethical bind confronting numerous Americans amid their most recent 24 hours in Saigon, regardless of whether to obey White House requests to clear just U.S. subjects or hazard charges of treachery to spare the lives of the greatest number of South Vietnamese partners as they could. […]

How the Hippie Movement Shaped the Anti-Vietnam War Protests

Rootsie, a young teen hippie coming of age during in the mid-1960s, saw the evils of the Vietnam War, which included the unnecessary deaths of fellow Americans who fought a war that could have been avoided, as many may argue. Hence, she overlooked the superficialities of the Vietnam War that the government imposed upon America to gain a deeper truth about the hippies: "these people were saying that spiritual enlightenment can save the world, bring an end to war and […]

American Troops in the Vietnam War

Lyndon B. Johnson was the 36th President of the United States, coming into the office after the death of President John F. Kennedy in November 1963. At the time of World War II, Johnson earned a Silver Star in the South Pacific serving in the Navy as a lieutenant administrator. Johnson was chosen to the Senate in 1948 after six terms in the White House. Before serving as Kennedy's vice president, Johnson had represented Texas in the United States Senate. […]

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In 1887, France imposed a colonial system over Vietnam, Tonkin, Annam, Cochin China and Cambodia, calling it French Indochina. Laos was added in 1893. Upon the weakening of France during WWII, Japanese troops invaded French Indochina. In 1945, Japanese troops carried out a coup against French authorities and declared Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia as independent states. When Japan was defeated, a power vacuum opened over Indochina. France began to reassert its authority, and met resistance from Ho Chi Minh and […]

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Entangled Histories: Unraveling the Causes of the Vietnam War

The Vietnam War, a tumultuous chapter in history, was born from a tapestry of interconnected causes, each thread weaving a complex narrative of historical, ideological, and geopolitical tensions. Colonialism served as a catalyst. Vietnam, part of French Indochina, endured French colonization, fueling aspirations for independence. Nationalist movements burgeoned, fermenting resistance against foreign rule and planting seeds of self-determination. Post-World War II dynamics set the stage. With the collapse of colonial powers after Japan's occupation, Vietnamese nationalists, spearheaded by Ho Chi […]

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How To Write an Essay About Vietnam War

Writing an essay on the Vietnam War is a task that combines historical research, analysis, and personal reflection. This article will guide you through the process of writing such an essay, with each paragraph focusing on a crucial aspect of the writing journey.

Initial Research and Understanding

The first step is to gain a thorough understanding of the Vietnam War. This includes its historical context, key events, major political figures involved, and the impact it had both globally and domestically in the countries involved. Start by consulting a variety of sources, including history books, scholarly articles, documentaries, and firsthand accounts. This foundational research will give you a broad view of the war and help you narrow down your focus.

Selecting a Specific Angle

The Vietnam War is a vast topic, so it's crucial to choose a specific angle or aspect to focus your essay on. This could range from political strategies, the experiences of soldiers, the anti-war movement, the role of media, to the aftermath and legacy of the war. Selecting a particular angle will not only give your essay a clear focus but also allow you to explore and present more detailed insights.

Developing a Thesis Statement

Based on your research and chosen angle, formulate a strong thesis statement. This statement should encapsulate your main argument or perspective on the Vietnam War. For instance, your thesis might focus on the impact of media coverage on public perception of the war, or analyze the strategies used by one side and how they contributed to the outcome. Your thesis will guide the structure and argument of your entire essay.

Organizing Your Essay

Structure your essay in a clear, logical manner. Start with an introduction that sets the scene for your topic and presents your thesis statement. The body of your essay should then be divided into paragraphs, each focusing on a specific point or piece of evidence that supports your thesis. This could include analysis of key battles, political decisions, personal stories from veterans, or the war's impact on domestic policies. Ensure each paragraph transitions smoothly to the next, maintaining a cohesive argument throughout.

Writing and Revising

Write your essay with clarity, ensuring your arguments are well-supported by evidence. Use a formal academic tone and cite your sources appropriately. After completing your first draft, revise it to enhance coherence, flow, and argument strength. Check for grammatical errors and ensure all information is accurately presented.

Final Touches

In the final stage, review your essay to ensure it presents a comprehensive and insightful perspective on the Vietnam War. Ensure that your introduction effectively sets the stage for your argument, each paragraph contributes to your thesis, and your conclusion effectively summarizes your findings and restates your thesis.

By following these steps, you will be able to write a compelling and insightful essay on the Vietnam War. This process will not only deepen your understanding of a pivotal historical event but also refine your skills in research, analysis, and academic writing.

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113 Vietnam War Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

Inside This Article

The Vietnam War was a pivotal moment in American history, shaping the country's politics, culture, and society for years to come. With such a complex and controversial conflict, there are endless topics to explore and analyze in essays. From the causes and consequences of the war to its impact on soldiers and civilians, there is no shortage of material to delve into.

To help inspire your writing, here are 113 Vietnam War essay topic ideas and examples:

• The root causes of the Vietnam War
• The role of nationalism in the conflict
• The impact of French colonialism on Vietnam
• The role of the media in shaping public opinion about the war
• The Tet Offensive and its significance in the war
• The role of women in the Vietnam War
• The psychological effects of war on soldiers
• The impact of Agent Orange on Vietnam and its people
• The role of protests in ending the war
• The legacy of the Vietnam War on American society
• The impact of the war on Vietnam's economy
• The role of propaganda in the war
• The role of religion in shaping attitudes towards the war
• The impact of the war on veterans' mental health
• The role of music in protest movements against the war
• The impact of the Vietnam War on Cold War politics
• The role of the draft in shaping public opinion about the war
• The impact of the war on the Vietnamese diaspora
• The role of international aid in rebuilding Vietnam after the war
• The impact of the war on the environment in Vietnam
• The role of diplomacy in ending the war
• The impact of the war on the Vietnamese economy
• The role of race in shaping attitudes towards the war
• The impact of the war on American politics
• The role of the military-industrial complex in perpetuating the war
• The impact of the war on the anti-war movement
• The role of the Geneva Accords in shaping the conflict
• The impact of the war on journalism and reporting
• The role of technology in shaping the outcome of the war
• The impact of the war on US foreign policy
• The role of war crimes in shaping public opinion about the war
• The impact of the war on US veterans' healthcare
• The role of military strategy in the outcome of the war
• The impact of the war on POWs and MIAs
• The role of the Pentagon Papers in shaping public opinion about the war
• The impact of the war on US-Soviet relations
• The role of international law in shaping the conflict
• The impact of the war on the civil rights movement
• The role of the anti-war movement in shaping US politics
• The impact of the war on the US economy
• The role of the My Lai massacre in shaping public opinion about the war
• The impact of the war on US military doctrine
• The role of the Gulf of Tonkin incident in shaping the conflict
• The impact of the war on US veterans' education
• The role of the Paris Peace Accords in ending the war
• The impact of the war on the Vietnamese education system
• The role of the anti-war movement in shaping the outcome of the war
• The impact of the war on US military technology
• The role of the war on drugs in shaping the conflict
• The impact of the war on US immigration policy
• The role of the war on terror in shaping US foreign policy
• The impact of the war on US military spending
• The role of the war on poverty in shaping public opinion about the war
• The impact of the war on US healthcare policy
• The role of the war on terrorism in shaping US politics
• The impact of the war on US intelligence agencies
• The role of the war on drugs in shaping US society
• The impact of the war on US military recruitment
• The role of the war on crime in shaping US law enforcement
• The impact of the war on US national security policy
• The role of the war on drugs in shaping US foreign policy
• The impact of the war on US military strategy
• The role of the war on terrorism in shaping US military doctrine
• The impact of the war on US intelligence gathering
• The role of the war on poverty in shaping US social policy
• The role of the war on drugs in shaping US drug policy
• The role of the war on terrorism in shaping US homeland security policy
• The role of the war on drugs in shaping US criminal justice policy
• The role of the war on crime in shaping US law enforcement policy

With these essay topic ideas and examples, you can explore the complexities of the Vietnam War and its lasting impact on American society. Whether you focus on the political, social, or cultural aspects of the conflict, there is a wealth of material to analyze and discuss. Happy writing!

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The Vietnam War

• The Vietnam War /
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Available to teachers only as part of the teaching the vietnam warteacher pass, teaching the vietnam war teacher pass includes:.

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Sample of Discussion & Essay Questions

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• Following World War I?
• Following World War II?
• Was this a wise strategy?
• What does this reveal about the challenges facing small countries within the 20th century?
• Evaluate this decision from a realistic or pragmatic point of view.
• Evaluate this decision from an ideological point of view.
• What was the difference between the National Liberation Front and North Vietnam?
• What was the connection between the two?
• How did broader Cold War anxieties shape American assessments of the Vietnamese conditions?
• What alternative policies might have been pursued had the US viewed the Vietnamese conflict as a purely local conflict?

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The Student Movement and the Vietnam War

Essay Question:

When your family thinks about people in the 1960s or early 1970s who were your age (18 to 26, say), what seems most significant about those people?

To support your argument, get some family stories about young people in this era. The following questions should elicit family stories that will be useful to you. Composing your own questions might be even more successful, especially if you base those questions on your knowledge of your family chronology and history.

• What did your family think of the war in Vietnam?
• What did you think when you heard about the Kent State shootings?
• In your family's community, in the 1960s or early 1970s, did people see college students? Were there any "town and gown" problems? Were the college students different from the people in your family of the same age?
• Did different generations respond differently to the Kent State shootings or news of the war in Vietnam? Did anyone in your family worry that the government had too much power, or that it was sending soldiers to kill and die for the wrong reasons? Do family members who remember that time feel differently about the government now?
• Who in your family was in college in the 1960s or early 1970s? Why did they decide to go to college? why to the college(s) they chose?
• What did people get out of college in the 1960s or early 1970s?
• What is most memorable about college in the 1960s or early 1970s -- classes? fellow students? professors? parties? sports? politics?
• How was campus life different then than now?
• How are Vietnam veterans different from veterans of other wars?
• Did military service change your life in important ways? How?
• What was the first thing you noticed about Vietnam?
• What duties did you have?
• What was the scariest thing that happened to you?
• What made you and your buddies laugh?
• What was it like to come home?
• Do you like any of the movies made about the Vietnam war?

More general questions for further conversation:

• When you look back on your life, how much do you think the American government has affected it -- the draft? veterans' benefits? social security? taxes? public schools? the defense industry?
• How did you like school? What were your favorite subjects? Least favorite? Why?
• How did students behave at school when you were young?
• Think about your favorite teacher. What do you see him/her doing? wearing? What did his/her classroom look like?
• Did your school have any special celebrations (pep rallies, campus-wide "snow days," special occasions at holidays, etc.)?
• Were you ever part of the PTA (or a similar organization), or did you ever volunteer in your children's school? Did a teacher ever call your house to discuss a problem or to report on a child's achievement?
• If your informant was in college some time other than the 1960s and early 1970s, this might be a good time to ask them about their college years (see questions above).
• What topic do you wish you had studied more? why?
• If you could go to college now (or go back to college), what would you like to study? why?

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Vietnam War Essay | Essay on Vietnam War for Students and Children in English

February 13, 2024 by Prasanna

Vietnam War Essay:  The Vietnam War is considered to be one of the most memorable and long-standing conflicts that involved the U.S., with a major role to play in it. The Vietnam War was primarily the consequences of the U.S. anti-communist foreign policy in the year 1960.

It was the military conflict between communist North Vietnam and their allies, against South Vietnam and other countries including America, Australia, Britain, France and New Zealand. Australia’s alliance with the USA was the main reason for the commencement of the Vietnam War. The USA had been a part of the war since 1959 and needed Australia’s assistance. It was a long, costly and divisive conflict. The conflict was intensified by the ongoing cold war between the United States and the Soviet Union.

You can also find more  Essay Writing  articles on events, persons, sports, technology and many more.

Long and Short Essays on Vietnam War for Students and Kids in English

We are providing essay samples to students on a long essay of 500 words and a short essay of 150 words on the topic Vietnam War Essay for reference.

Long Essay on Vietnam War 500 Words in English

Long Essay on Vietnam War is usually given to classes 7, 8, 9, and 10.

The Vietnam War is also known as the Second Indo-China War and in Vietnam as the Resistance War Against America. It was the second of the Indo-China Wars that was fought between North Vietnam and South Vietnam. North Vietnam was supported by the Soviet Union, China and other communist allies.

On the other hand, South Vietnam was supported by the United States, South Korea, the Philippines, Australia, Thailand, and the other anti-communist allies were also there for support. The war lasted 19 years and was also called the Cold War by many. The war had direct U.S. involvement, and it ended in 1973.

During World War II, Japanese forces had invaded Vietnam. To fight it off, both Japanese occupiers and French Colonial administration, the political leader Ho Chi Minh formed the Viet Minh, being inspired by the Chinese and Soviet Communism. The Viet Minh was also known as the League for the Independence of Vietnam.

Following its 1945 defeat in World War II, Japan withdrew its forces from Vietnam leaving the French-educated Emperor, Bao Dai in total control. Seeing this opportunity to seize control, Ho’s Viet Minh forces immediately rose to take complete control over the Northern city of Hanoi and declaring it as the Democratic Republic of Vietnam with Ho as the president.

After Ho’s communist forces took control over the North, armed conflicts between the northern and the southern armies continued until a decisive victory of Viet Minh took place in the Battle of Dien Bien Phu in May 1954. The French loss at the battle and almost ended the French rule in Indo-China.

Vietnam was split along the latitude known as the 17th parallel based on a treaty signed in July in the year 1954, with Ho in control in the North and Bao in the South. The Vietnam War with active U.S. involvement in 1954 was due to the ongoing conflicts that dated back several decades.

You can now access more Essay Writing on Vietnam War and many more topics.

The Vietnam War led to outcomes like economic downturn and political isolation for Vietnam, which was only supported by the Soviet Union and its allies located in Eastern Europe. It also led to the fall of the South Vietnamese government in 1975 that resulted in a unified communist government in the country. The war also led to the death of almost 2 million Vietnamese civilians, 1.2 million Northern soldiers and many service members. Emigration of Vietnam soldiers took place around the late 1970s from Vietnam.

North Vietnam was communist, whereas South Vietnam was not. North Vietnamese communists and South Vietnamese communist rebels known as the Viet Cong wanted to overthrow the South Vietnamese government together and reunite the country.

South Vietnamese troops waded through the water to flush out communist rebels in 1962. The cost and casualties of the war were too much for America to face; thus, the U.S. combat units were withdrawn by 1973, and in 1975 South Vietnam was fully invaded by the North.

Short Essay on Vietnam War 150 Words in English

Short Essay on Vietnam War is usually given to classes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6.

The Vietnam War (1954-1975) is referred to the period when the United States and other members of the South East Asian Treaty Organization (SEATO) joined forces with the Republic of South Vietnam to contest communist forces that were comprised of South Vietnamese guerrillas and the regular force units called the Viet Cong.

The United States possessed the largest foreign military presence and had directed the war from 1965 to 1968. Thus, for this reason, Vietnam today is known as the American War. It was considered as the direct result of the First Indochina War between France that claimed Vietnam as a colony and the communist forces which were then known as Viet Minh.

The Vietnam War was one of the longest wars in the history of the United States and was extremely divisive U.S., Europe, Australia and elsewhere. The U.S. suffered a casualty of 47000 being killed in action with the addition of 11000 non-combat deaths. Over 150000 were wounded, and 10000 were missing.

10 Lines on Vietnam War Essay in English

1. The Vietnam War was a conflict between the communist and the capitalist countries and was a part of the Cold War. 2. The Vietnam War was a controversial issue in the United States. 3. It was the first war to feature in live television coverage. 4. The war became extremely unpopular in the United States, and President Nixon sent American soldiers home in 1973. 5. Viet Minh waved their flag at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. 6. The French defeat at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu led to the Geneva conference. 7. France began to colonize Vietnam between 1959 and 1962. 8. France also took control over Saigon. 9. Laos was added after the war with Thailand. 10. In 1940 the French Indochina was controlled by Vichy French Government.

FAQ’s on Vietnam War Essay

Question 1. What is the main cause of the Vietnam War?

Answer: Spread of communism during the cold war along with American containment was the main cause of the war.

Question 2. What was the effect of the Vietnam War?

Answer: The most immediate effect was the staggering death toll of almost 3 million people.

Question 3. Why was the Vietnam War fought?

Answer: The USA feared the spread of communism, which led the war to be fought.

Question 4.  When did the military fight occur in the war?

Answer: The fighting occurred between 1957 and 1973.

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Vietnam War

By: History.com Editors

Updated: May 16, 2024 | Original: October 29, 2009

The Vietnam War was a long, costly and divisive conflict that pitted the communist government of North Vietnam against South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States. The conflict was intensified by the ongoing Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. More than 3 million people (including over 58,000 Americans) were killed in the Vietnam War, and more than half of the dead were Vietnamese civilians. 

Opposition to the war in the United States bitterly divided Americans, even after President Richard Nixon signed the Paris Peace Accords and ordered the withdrawal of U.S. forces in 1973. Communist forces ended the war by seizing control of South Vietnam in 1975, and the country was unified as the Socialist Republic of Vietnam the following year.

Roots of the Vietnam War

Vietnam, a nation in Southeast Asia on the eastern edge of the Indochinese peninsula, had been under French colonial rule since the 19th century.

During World War II , Japanese forces invaded Vietnam. To fight off both Japanese occupiers and the French colonial administration, political leader Ho Chi Minh —inspired by Chinese and Soviet communism —formed the Viet Minh, or the League for the Independence of Vietnam.

Following its 1945 defeat in World War II , Japan withdrew its forces from Vietnam, leaving the French-educated Emperor Bao Dai in control. Seeing an opportunity to seize control, Ho’s Viet Minh forces immediately rose up, taking over the northern city of Hanoi and declaring a Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) with Ho as president.

Seeking to regain control of the region, France backed Emperor Bao and set up the state of Vietnam in July 1949, with the city of Saigon as its capital.

Both sides wanted the same thing: a unified Vietnam. But while Ho and his supporters wanted a nation modeled after other communist countries, Bao and many others wanted a Vietnam with close economic and cultural ties to the West.

Did you know? According to a survey by the Veterans Administration, some 500,000 of the 3 million troops who served in Vietnam suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, and rates of divorce, suicide, alcoholism and drug addiction were markedly higher among veterans.

When Did the Vietnam War Start?

The Vietnam War and active U.S. involvement in the war began in 1954, though ongoing conflict in the region had stretched back several decades.

After Ho’s communist forces took power in the north, armed conflict between northern and southern armies continued until the northern Viet Minh’s decisive victory in the Battle of Dien Bien Phu in May 1954. The French loss at the battle ended almost a century of French colonial rule in Indochina.

The subsequent treaty signed in July 1954 at a Geneva conference split Vietnam along the latitude known as the 17th Parallel (17 degrees north latitude), with Ho in control in the North and Bao in the South. The treaty also called for nationwide elections for reunification to be held in 1956.

In 1955, however, the strongly anti-communist politician Ngo Dinh Diem pushed Emperor Bao aside to become president of the Government of the Republic of Vietnam (GVN), often referred to during that era as South Vietnam.

The Viet Cong

With the Cold War intensifying worldwide, the United States hardened its policies against any allies of the Soviet Union , and by 1955 President Dwight D. Eisenhower had pledged his firm support to Diem and South Vietnam.

With training and equipment from American military and the CIA , Diem’s security forces cracked down on Viet Minh sympathizers in the south, whom he derisively called Viet Cong (or Vietnamese Communist), arresting some 100,000 people, many of whom were brutally tortured and executed.

By 1957, the Viet Cong and other opponents of Diem’s repressive regime began fighting back with attacks on government officials and other targets, and by 1959 they had begun engaging the South Vietnamese army in firefights.

In December 1960, Diem’s many opponents within South Vietnam—both communist and non-communist—formed the National Liberation Front (NLF) to organize resistance to the regime. Though the NLF claimed to be autonomous and that most of its members were not communists, many in Washington assumed it was a puppet of Hanoi.

Domino Theory

A team sent by President John F. Kennedy in 1961 to report on conditions in South Vietnam advised a build-up of American military, economic and technical aid in order to help Diem confront the Viet Cong threat.

Working under the “ domino theory ,” which held that if one Southeast Asian country fell to communism, many other countries would follow, Kennedy increased U.S. aid, though he stopped short of committing to a large-scale military intervention.

By 1962, the U.S. military presence in South Vietnam had reached some 9,000 troops, compared with fewer than 800 during the 1950s.

Gulf of Tonkin

A coup by some of his own generals succeeded in toppling and killing Diem and his brother, Ngo Dinh Nhu, in November 1963, three weeks before Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas.

The ensuing political instability in South Vietnam persuaded Kennedy’s successor, Lyndon B. Johnson , and Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara to further increase U.S. military and economic support.

In August of 1964, after DRV torpedo boats attacked two U.S. destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin, Johnson ordered the retaliatory bombing of military targets in North Vietnam. Congress soon passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution , which gave Johnson broad war-making powers, and U.S. planes began regular bombing raids, codenamed Operation Rolling Thunder , the following year.

The bombing was not limited to Vietnam; from 1964-1973, the United States covertly dropped two million tons of bombs on neighboring, neutral Laos during the CIA-led “Secret War” in Laos . The bombing campaign was meant to disrupt the flow of supplies across the Ho Chi Minh trail into Vietnam and to prevent the rise of the Pathet Lao, or Lao communist forces. The U.S. bombings made Laos the most heavily bombed country per capita in the world.

In March 1965, Johnson made the decision—with solid support from the American public—to send U.S. combat forces into battle in Vietnam. By June, 82,000 combat troops were stationed in Vietnam, and military leaders were calling for 175,000 more by the end of 1965 to shore up the struggling South Vietnamese army.

Despite the concerns of some of his advisers about this escalation, and about the entire war effort amid a growing anti-war movement , Johnson authorized the immediate dispatch of 100,000 troops at the end of July 1965 and another 100,000 in 1966. In addition to the United States, South Korea , Thailand, Australia and New Zealand also committed troops to fight in South Vietnam (albeit on a much smaller scale).

William Westmoreland

In contrast to the air attacks on North Vietnam, the U.S.-South Vietnamese war effort in the south was fought primarily on the ground, largely under the command of General William Westmoreland , in coordination with the government of General Nguyen Van Thieu in Saigon.

Westmoreland pursued a policy of attrition, aiming to kill as many enemy troops as possible rather than trying to secure territory. By 1966, large areas of South Vietnam had been designated as “free-fire zones,” from which all innocent civilians were supposed to have evacuated and only enemy remained. Heavy bombing by B-52 aircraft or shelling made these zones uninhabitable, as refugees poured into camps in designated safe areas near Saigon and other cities.

Even as the enemy body count (at times exaggerated by U.S. and South Vietnamese authorities) mounted steadily, DRV and Viet Cong troops refused to stop fighting, encouraged by the fact that they could easily reoccupy lost territory with manpower and supplies delivered via the Ho Chi Minh Trail through Cambodia and Laos. Additionally, supported by aid from China and the Soviet Union, North Vietnam strengthened its air defenses.

Vietnam War Protests

By November 1967, the number of American troops in Vietnam was approaching 500,000, and U.S. casualties had reached 15,058 killed and 109,527 wounded. As the war stretched on, some soldiers came to mistrust the government’s reasons for keeping them there, as well as Washington’s repeated claims that the war was being won.

The later years of the war saw increased physical and psychological deterioration among American soldiers—both volunteers and draftees—including drug use , post-traumatic stress disorder ( PTSD ), mutinies and attacks by soldiers against officers and noncommissioned officers.

Between July 1966 and December 1973, more than 503,000 U.S. military personnel deserted, and a robust anti-war movement among American forces spawned violent protests, killings and mass incarcerations of personnel stationed in Vietnam as well as within the United States.

Bombarded by horrific images of the war on their televisions, Americans on the home front turned against the war as well: In October 1967, some 35,000 demonstrators staged a massive Vietnam War protest outside the Pentagon . Opponents of the war argued that civilians, not enemy combatants, were the primary victims and that the United States was supporting a corrupt dictatorship in Saigon.

Tet Offensive

By the end of 1967, Hanoi’s communist leadership was growing impatient as well, and sought to strike a decisive blow aimed at forcing the better-supplied United States to give up hopes of success.

On January 31, 1968, some 70,000 DRV forces under General Vo Nguyen Giap launched the Tet Offensive (named for the lunar new year), a coordinated series of fierce attacks on more than 100 cities and towns in South Vietnam.

Taken by surprise, U.S. and South Vietnamese forces nonetheless managed to strike back quickly, and the communists were unable to hold any of the targets for more than a day or two.

Reports of the Tet Offensive stunned the U.S. public, however, especially after news broke that Westmoreland had requested an additional 200,000 troops, despite repeated assurances that victory in the Vietnam War was imminent. With his approval ratings dropping in an election year, Johnson called a halt to bombing in much of North Vietnam (though bombings continued in the south) and promised to dedicate the rest of his term to seeking peace rather than reelection.

Johnson’s new tack, laid out in a March 1968 speech, met with a positive response from Hanoi, and peace talks between the U.S. and North Vietnam opened in Paris that May. Despite the later inclusion of the South Vietnamese and the NLF, the dialogue soon reached an impasse, and after a bitter 1968 election season marred by violence, Republican Richard M. Nixon won the presidency.

Vietnamization

Nixon sought to deflate the anti-war movement by appealing to a “silent majority” of Americans who he believed supported the war effort. In an attempt to limit the volume of American casualties, he announced a program called Vietnamization : withdrawing U.S. troops, increasing aerial and artillery bombardment and giving the South Vietnamese the training and weapons needed to effectively control the ground war.

In addition to this Vietnamization policy, Nixon continued public peace talks in Paris, adding higher-level secret talks conducted by Secretary of State Henry Kissinger beginning in the spring of 1968.

The North Vietnamese continued to insist on complete and unconditional U.S. withdrawal—plus the ouster of U.S.-backed General Nguyen Van Thieu—as conditions of peace, however, and as a result the peace talks stalled.

My Lai Massacre

The next few years would bring even more carnage, including the horrifying revelation that U.S. soldiers had mercilessly slaughtered more than 400 unarmed civilians in the village of My Lai in March 1968.

After the My Lai Massacre , anti-war protests continued to build as the conflict wore on. In 1968 and 1969, there were hundreds of protest marches and gatherings throughout the country.

On November 15, 1969, the largest anti-war demonstration in American history took place in Washington, D.C. , as over 250,000 Americans gathered peacefully, calling for withdrawal of American troops from Vietnam.

The anti-war movement, which was particularly strong on college campuses, divided Americans bitterly. For some young people, the war symbolized a form of unchecked authority they had come to resent. For other Americans, opposing the government was considered unpatriotic and treasonous.

As the first U.S. troops were withdrawn, those who remained became increasingly angry and frustrated, exacerbating problems with morale and leadership. Tens of thousands of soldiers received dishonorable discharges for desertion, and about 500,000 American men from 1965-73 became “draft dodgers,” with many fleeing to Canada to evade conscription . Nixon ended draft calls in 1972, and instituted an all-volunteer army the following year.

Kent State Shooting

In 1970, a joint U.S-South Vietnamese operation invaded Cambodia, hoping to wipe out DRV supply bases there. The South Vietnamese then led their own invasion of Laos, which was pushed back by North Vietnam.

The invasion of these countries, in violation of international law, sparked a new wave of protests on college campuses across America. During one, on May 4, 1970, at Kent State University in Ohio , National Guardsmen shot and killed four students. At another protest 10 days later, two students at Jackson State University in Mississippi were killed by police.

By the end of June 1972, however, after a failed offensive into South Vietnam, Hanoi was finally willing to compromise. Kissinger and North Vietnamese representatives drafted a peace agreement by early fall, but leaders in Saigon rejected it, and in December Nixon authorized a number of bombing raids against targets in Hanoi and Haiphong. Known as the Christmas Bombings, the raids drew international condemnation.

The Pentagon Papers

A top-secret Department of Defense study of U.S. political and military involvement in Vietnam from 1945 to 1967 was published in the New York Times in 1971—shedding light on how the Nixon administration ramped up conflict in Vietnam. The report, leaked to the Times by military analyst Daniel Ellsberg, further eroded support for keeping U.S. forces in Vietnam. 

When Did the Vietnam War End?

In January 1973, the United States and North Vietnam concluded a final peace agreement, ending open hostilities between the two nations. War between North and South Vietnam continued, however, until April 30, 1975, when DRV forces captured Saigon, renaming it Ho Chi Minh City (Ho himself died in 1969).

More than two decades of violent conflict had inflicted a devastating toll on Vietnam’s population: After years of warfare, an estimated 2 million Vietnamese were killed, while 3 million were wounded and another 12 million became refugees. Warfare had demolished the country’s infrastructure and economy, and reconstruction proceeded slowly.

In 1976, Vietnam was unified as the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, though sporadic violence continued over the next 15 years, including conflicts with neighboring China and Cambodia. Under a broad free market policy put in place in 1986, the economy began to improve, boosted by oil export revenues and an influx of foreign capital. Trade and diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the U.S. resumed in the 1990s.

In the United States, the effects of the Vietnam War would linger long after the last troops returned home in 1973. The nation spent more than $120 billion on the conflict in Vietnam from 1965-73; this massive spending led to widespread inflation, exacerbated by a worldwide oil crisis in 1973 and skyrocketing fuel prices.

Psychologically, the effects ran even deeper. The war had pierced the myth of American invincibility and had bitterly divided the nation. Many returning veterans faced negative reactions from both opponents of the war (who viewed them as having killed innocent civilians) and its supporters (who saw them as having lost the war), along with physical damage including the effects of exposure to the toxic herbicide Agent Orange , millions of gallons of which had been dumped by U.S. planes on the dense forests of Vietnam.

In 1982, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was unveiled in Washington, D.C. On it were inscribed the names of 57,939 American men and women killed or missing in the war; later additions brought that total to 58,200.

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Vietnam Essay Grade 12 memo: Questions and Answers PDF Download

Vietnam Essay Grade 12 memo: Questions and Answers PDF Download:

The extension of the cold war: case study – vietnam, question 1:.

The tactics and strategies that the United States of America used between 1963 and 1975 against the Vietcong during the war in Vietnam were a dismal failure.  Do you agree with the statement? Use relevant evidence to support your line of argument. 

SUMMARY Candidates are expected to form an opinion on the statement, providing their agreement or disagreement. Their opinions should be based on arguments regarding whether the US lost the Vietnam War due to unconventional guerrilla warfare strategies and local environmental factors. Candidates should substantiate their viewpoints with relevant historical evidence.

KEY POINTS TO CONSIDER The following aspects should be included in the candidate’s response:

• Introduction: Candidates must state their position on the statement and provide an overview of their supporting arguments.

IN-DEPTH ANALYSIS The response should delve into the strategies used by both the USA and the Vietcong:

• Background: Examination of the division of North and South Vietnam, initial US intervention in South Vietnam due to the Domino Theory, and the significance of the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
• The introduction and failure of the ‘Safe Village’ policy by the USA, aiming to separate guerrillas from villagers.
• The Gulf of Tonkin incident and its impact on escalating the conflict.
• Deployment of 3500 US Marines and ground troops to Vietnam on March 8, 1965.
• Environmental factors: Operation Ranch Hand and the use of chemical defoliants and chemical weapons, leading to significant environmental damage and international condemnation.
• Ineffectiveness of conventional strategies (Operation Rolling Thunder) versus unconventional guerrilla warfare tactics by the Vietcong.
• Impact of the Tet Offensive on USA-controlled cities and increasing number of US soldiers’ casualties.
• The implications of sending young and inexperienced soldiers to Vietnam, Search and Destroy Policy, and the My Lai massacre, leading to increased support for the Vietcong.
• External support to North Vietnam from USSR and China, resulting in access to modern weaponry.
• Effective use of guerrilla warfare and environmental tactics (underground tunnels, booby traps, sabotage) by the Vietcong and Vietminh.
• Vietnamisation: Nixon’s strategic withdrawal policy from Vietnam indicating the failure of USA’s attempt to prevent Vietnam from becoming a communist state.
• The end of USA involvement in the Vietnam war after the signing of the Paris Peace Accords and eventual control of Vietnam under communist rule.
• Other pertinent responses.

Candidates should then draw their arguments to a close with appropriate conclusions.

Example Essay based on the above:

Title: The Failure of American Strategies in the Vietnam War (1963-1975): An Analytical Overview

Introduction

The Vietnam War (1963-1975) is an enduring symbol of the failure of American military might against a largely rural, determined insurgency, the Vietcong. This essay agrees with the assertion that the United States’ tactics and strategies against the Vietcong during this period were a dismal failure, given the historical evidence. The strategic miscalculations and failures will be analyzed, including the Safe Village policy, the introduction of chemical defoliants, and the unsuccessful attempts to separate the guerrillas from villagers.

The Unconventional War

As early as 1962, the United States had identified Vietnam not as a conventional battleground like WWII, but as a theater for countering communist influence, underpinned by the fear of the Domino Theory. This strategy led to the implementation of the ‘Safe Village’ policy, designed to isolate the Vietcong from villagers. However, this policy failed because the Vietcong effectively operated within the villages themselves.

Chemical Warfare and Unintended Consequences

Operation Ranch Hand, initiated in 1962, introduced the use of chemical defoliants like Agent Orange and Agent Blue, aimed at environmental warfare by destroying forests and crops. However, these tactics did not effectively weaken the Vietcong, and instead caused substantial environmental damage and international condemnation, turning global public opinion against the United States.

Moreover, the application of chemical weapons, notably Napalm gas, resulted in widespread civilian casualties and atrocities such as the My Lai massacre in March 1968, which further fueled anti-war sentiment in the United States and abroad. This further strained the United States’ already fragile credibility and exacerbated support for the Vietcong.

Misjudgment of Guerrilla Tactics

The U.S. notably failed to anticipate and effectively respond to the guerrilla warfare tactics employed by the Vietcong. These tactics, which included the use of underground tunnels, booby traps, sabotage, and hit-and-run attacks, were instrumental in the Vietcong’s resilience against the American military.

The Tet Offensive of 1968 was a clear example of the Vietcong’s ability to adapt and respond to the U.S. strategies. The surprise attacks on over 100 U.S.-controlled cities not only challenged the American military but also deeply impacted the U.S. home front, leading to increased anti-war demonstrations. This, coupled with the deployment of young and inexperienced soldiers, further weakened the U.S. efforts.

Failed De-escalation and Withdrawal

Towards the end of the war, the United States tried to employ a strategy of “Vietnamisation” under President Nixon, aimed at strategically withdrawing U.S. troops while bolstering South Vietnam’s ability to combat communism. The policy, dubbed WHAM (Winning the Hearts and Minds of the Vietnamese), was largely seen as an admission of the failure of U.S. strategies and led to the eventual withdrawal of all U.S. troops by 1973, following the Paris Peace Accords.

In conclusion, the American tactics and strategies against the Vietcong during the Vietnam War (1963-1975) were indeed a dismal failure. Not only did they fail to curtail the Vietcong, but they also led to significant civilian casualties, alienated global public opinion, and failed to prevent Vietnam’s unification under communist rule. The inability to adapt to guerrilla warfare, coupled with strategic missteps, such as the Safe Village policy and the application of chemical warfare, resulted in the U.S. failing to achieve its objectives in Vietnam. Thus, this period represents a sobering lesson in the limitations of conventional warfare against determined and adaptable insurgencies.

Question 2:

The USA withdrew from Vietnam in 1975 because the war became more difficult and the public at home was turning against the USA’s participation. Do you agree with the statement? Support your answers with relevant historical evidence.

Introduction: In this response, I will agree with the statement and provide a comprehensive argument showcasing the difficulties faced by America in the Vietnam War and how public sentiment turned against the conflict.

Elaboration:

The Vietnam War presented numerous challenges for the United States, ultimately leading to a shift in public opinion against the war. Several key factors contributed to this shift:

• Geneva agreement and division of Vietnam: The Geneva agreement of 1954 divided Vietnam into North and South, setting the stage for the conflict. South Vietnam, under President Ngo Dinh Diem, refused to hold elections, leading to discontent among the Vietnamese people.
• The rise of the Vietcong: The communist Vietcong emerged in South Vietnam, starting a guerrilla war against the government. Their tactics included booby traps, underground tunnels, surprise attacks, and hit-and-run strategies, making it difficult for the United States to combat them effectively.
• USA’s involvement and rationale: The United States entered the war based on the principles of containment and the domino theory, fearing the spread of communism. They provided weapons and advisors to South Vietnam, while the Vietcong received support from China, Russia, and the Vietminh via the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
• Failures and setbacks: Despite implementing strategies like the safe village policy and Operation Rolling Thunder, the United States struggled to quell the Vietcong’s insurgency. The safe village policy failed as the Vietcong operated within the villages, and Operation Rolling Thunder did not succeed in destroying the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
• Public disillusionment and media exposure: The use of chemical weapons, such as Agent Orange and Agent Blue, by the United States, turned the Vietnamese population against them. Additionally, televised coverage of the war exposed the horrors faced by both soldiers and civilians, leading many Americans to question the justification and morality of their country’s involvement.
• Tet Offensive and its aftermath: The Tet Offensive in 1968, where the Vietcong launched surprise attacks and captured numerous cities, caused heavy casualties among U.S. forces. The offensive and subsequent events, including US atrocities like the My Lai massacre, further fueled anti-war sentiment and intensified protests within the United States.
• Vietnamization and withdrawal: President Nixon implemented the Vietnamization policy, which involved the gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops while South Vietnam continued the fight against the Vietcong. Eventually, all U.S. troops were withdrawn by 1973, and in 1975, North Vietnam took control of Saigon, unifying the country under a communist government.

Conclusion: The Vietnam War posed significant challenges for the United States, with the public opinion gradually turning against the conflict due to a combination of factors. The unconventional tactics employed by the Vietcong, the disillusionment caused by media exposure, and the inability of the U.S. to achieve decisive victories all contributed to the changing perception of the war. Ultimately, the United States withdrew its troops, and the communist forces emerged victorious. The Vietnam War stands as a stark reminder of the complexities of warfare and the crucial role public opinion plays in shaping the outcomes of such conflicts.

Title: The American Withdrawal from Vietnam in 1975: A Confluence of Military Challenges and Domestic Opposition

I concur with the statement that the USA withdrew from Vietnam in 1975 largely due to the escalating difficulty of the war and the burgeoning opposition at home. This essay will argue this position using relevant historical evidence and will explore the multi-faceted reasons for this turn of events, encompassing both geopolitical considerations and socio-political dynamics.

The Military Quagmire

The Geneva Accords of 1954 divided Vietnam into North and South, setting a stage ripe for conflict. When South Vietnam’s leader Diem refused to hold reunification elections, fearing communist victory, this led to the formation of the communist Viet Cong, backed by North Vietnam, China, and Russia. The USA, driven by Cold War ideologies of containment and the domino theory, provided support to South Vietnam to counter this threat. However, they grossly underestimated the complexity of the war.

The Viet Cong’s successful guerrilla tactics and intimate knowledge of the terrain posed a formidable challenge to the US forces. They were farmers by day and freedom fighters by night, often indistinguishable from the civilian population, and used intricate networks of tunnels and booby traps to launch surprise attacks. This innovative warfare, coupled with the harsh jungle environment, made American military operations – including Operation Rolling Thunder aimed at destroying the Ho Chi Minh Trail – largely ineffective.

The Domino Effect at Home

Meanwhile, at home, the American public sentiment was changing. The Gulf of Tonkin incident, which led to the escalation of US involvement, had initially galvanized support for the war. However, as the war dragged on with mounting casualties – the Tet Offensive alone resulted in 14,000 US casualties – and little progress, public opinion began to sour.

The widespread use of television brought the horrors of the war into American homes. The brutalities of the war, such as the My Lai massacre, and the use of controversial chemical weapons like Agent Orange, sparked public outcry. The war became increasingly unpopular, leading to widespread anti-war protests and a general consensus that the war was unwinnable. The pressure to withdraw was further intensified by revelations about the government’s deceit in managing public perceptions of the war, notably exposed in the Pentagon Papers.

The Path to Withdrawal

By 1969, with domestic opposition escalating and the war showing no signs of a decisive victory, President Nixon initiated the policy of Vietnamization. This policy aimed at training South Vietnamese forces to take over the fight while gradually withdrawing US troops. This marked a significant shift in US strategy, effectively signaling the impending end of direct US involvement.

In 1973, the Paris Peace Accords were signed, leading to the complete withdrawal of US troops. However, without American support, South Vietnam fell to the communist forces, and Saigon was captured in 1975, marking the end of the Vietnam War.

In conclusion, the US withdrawal from Vietnam in 1975 was indeed the result of a combination of the war’s growing difficulty and escalating domestic opposition. The military challenges were underscored by the Viet Cong’s effective guerrilla tactics and the unfavorable environmental conditions, while domestic opposition was fueled by a disillusioned and protesting public. This historic event illustrates the profound impact of both military realities on the ground and public sentiment at home in shaping the course of foreign policy and military involvement.

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108 Vietnam War Essay Topics

🏆 best essay topics on vietnam war, 🎓 interesting vietnam war essay topics, 👍 good vietnam war research topics & essay examples, 💡 simple vietnam war essay ideas, ❓ vietnam war essay questions.

• Vietnam War in Political Cartoons
• The Vietnam War and American Music
• Effects of the Vietnam War
• The Vietnam War and the Cold War
• “The Vietnam War: An Intimate History”: Book Review
• Music During the Vietnam War: An Intangible Weapon
• Central Intelligence Agency in Vietnam War
• Why Vietnam War Was Unpopular: Media Coverage and Antiwar Movement This essay will examine the reasons media coverage and the antiwar movement made the Vietnam War unpopular and argue the opposite opinion.
• The Vietnam War From 1955 to 1975 The current essay discusses why President Johnson got the United States so profoundly into Vietnam and suggests what could have he done to avoid the escalation.
• Vietnam War – American Experience Since 1945 The Vietnam War was the longest and most unpopular war that the United States ever took part in. there was great loss of life and major financial repercussions.
• Veterans After the Vietnam War The Vietnam War was one of the most important events in the 20th century, which made a considerable impact on the United States and its society.
• The United States’ Loss in the Vietnam War The Vietnamese War escalated in 1969 after Kissinger and Nixon agreed on a strategic decision. The essay will look into the reasons why the United States lost the Vietnam War.
• America’s Vietnam War and Its French Connection The Vietnam war is probably one of the most infamous military conflicts that the United States took part in in the second half of the 20th century.
• Oliver Stone’s Interpretation of the Vietnam War The paper discusses whether the use of a film could be studied as an effective medium for detailing the facts of historical events.
• Ideology Warfare Before and After Vietnam War The Vietnam War from 1955 to 1975 can be classified as ideology warfare, with communist forces supporting North Vietnam and anti-communist coalitions supporting South Vietnam.
• The Vietnam War Reasons from Primary Sources Some of the infamous takeaways from the Vietnam War were the guerilla tactics employed by the Vietnamese fighters, the Truman Doctrine, and the rise of the US pacifist movement.
• The Trauma of the Vietnam War Le Thi Diem Thuy shows that the repression of this trauma separates family members from each other as they try to conceal their feelings from the others.
• The Chicanos in the Vietnam War This paper analyzes the Vietnam War which caused the draft of hundreds of thousands of men (García). There were dissatisfaction among people with the draft process not being fair.
• The Political, Economic and Social Effects of the GI Bill and the Vietnam War The paper discusses the GI Bill of Rights and the war in Vietnam greatly influenced the standards of living during the post-war period.
• The Vietnam War and the United States Involvement Shortly after World War II ended, the United States of America was involved in a divisive conflict, the Vietnam War, which lasted for two decades.
• American Experience of the Vietnam War The Vietnam War is one of the most confusing and complicated wars in the history of humanity. It is significant for the United States as it has influenced its population.
• Chain of Command in Vietnam War The 6 levels of the chain of command in connection to the limited war ideology in Vietnam will be examined including soldiers, division commanders, and up to the President.
• Vietnam War and Iraq War: US Involvement in the War Vietnam and Iraq were both wars of choice and involved deceit and misrepresentation by the U.S. government. There are many similarities between Iraq and the Vietnam War.
• Student’s Unrest and Socio-Political Outcomes of the Vietnam War in America The paper examines the thesis that student unrest catalyzed the larger American public’s rise against the US’s involvement in the Vietnam War.
• Peace & Global Security: Vietnam War & Israel-Palestine Conflict Military conflicts are difficult to approach from an objective standpoint. Often being emotionally dueled in addition to the political agenda by which they are supported.
• National Security and Press Media in Vietnam War This paper explains how national security collided with Press Media on societal issues. It reflects on events that took place during the Vietnam War.
• Vietnam War History: A Cold War Triggered by Vietnam’s Decision of Resisting Colonial Powers Vietnam War was a cold war era military conflict which had started in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia from 1st November 1954 to 30th April 1975.
• Asian Studies: The Vietnam War’s Key Points There were several key points in the Vietnam War that have decided its course and the way people thought about the events taking place.
• Advancing the Peace Movement: Music During the Vietnam War
• S. Involvement in the Vietnam War and the Creation of Myths
• American Leaders and the Vietnam War: Lessons We Should Learn
• Post-traumatic Stress Disorder in U.S. Vietnam War Soldiers
• Bombs Away: Different Reactions to the Vietnam War in “Across the Universe”
• African Americans During the Vietnam War
• Difficulties Associated With Fighting the Vietnam War
• Technological Differences Between Vietnam War and the Gulf War
• Censorship Policies During the Vietnam War
• Agent Orange and Napalm in the Vietnam War
• Facts About Vietnam War as One of the Most Unique Wars Ever Fought by the United States
• Chemical Weapons During the Vietnam War
• Reasons for the Rise of the Anti-Vietnam War Movement in the USA
• The Working Class’s Loss of Faith in the American Government During the Vietnam War
• Paternity Deferments and the Timing of Births: U.S. Natality During the Vietnam War
• Martin Luther King’s Voice Against the Vietnam War
• Cultural and Political Views of the Vietnam War
• Recruitment and the Draft During the Vietnam War
• Aviation’s Impact Upon the U.S. Military and Economy During the Vietnam War
• Ethical Journalism During the Vietnam War
• Conditions That Influenced Sino-Soviet Involvement in the Vietnam War
• Secret Economics: The Economic Impact of the Vietnam War
• American Foreign Policy After the Vietnam War
• How the Vietnam War Changed the Nature of Conflict in the World
• Anti-war Movement During the Vietnam War
• Factors That Make the Vietnam War Unique
• American Politics During the Vietnam War
• Lyndon Baines Johnson’s Presidency and the Vietnam War
• Before, During, and After the Vietnam War
• Endurance and Change: The Vietnam War
• Vietnam War and Its Effects on Society During the 1960s
• America’s Strengths and Weaknesses Highlighted During the Vietnam War
• Police Brutality During the Vietnam War
• Cambodia: Vietnam War and Indochinese War
• Shattered Youth: How the Vietnam War Changed a Generation
• Freeze Frame: Photographer Philip Jones Griffiths’ Depiction of the Vietnam War
• Analyzing the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War
• Executive Power: The Role of Lyndon B. Johnson in the Vietnam War
• Diplomatic Presidential and Cultural Lessons of the Vietnam War
• President Nixon: Vietnam War and the Watergate Scandal
• Changing Attitudes Towards the Vietnam War in Australia
• Racial Segregation and the Military During the Vietnam War
• Anti-Communism and the Vietnam War in Australia
• General William Westmoreland’s Attrition Strategy During the Vietnam War
• Drug Testing During the Vietnam War
• Comparing the Iraq War and the Vietnam War
• Geneva Convention Violations Represented by the Vietnam War
• Emotional Effects During Vietnam War
• Argument Opposing the American Involvement in the Vietnam War
• Cultural Revolution During the Vietnam War
• In What Three Countries Was the Vietnam War Fought?
• Why Was the Vietnam War Was Called a Dirty War?
• What Effect Did the Vietnam War Have on the Power of the President?
• What Role Did Religion Play in the Vietnam War?
• What Caused the Vietnam War?
• What Was the Outcome of the Vietnam War?
• What Were the Vietnam War Protesters in the US Called?
• How Did the Cold War Lead to the Vietnam War?
• How Was Napalm Used in the Vietnam War?
• How Were the Korean Conflict and the Vietnam War Alike?
• Why Is the Vietnam War an Example of Decolonization?
• How Long Was the Vietnam War?
• What Position Did America’s Hawks Take During the Vietnam War?
• How Did the Vietnam War Affect the Society?
• What Was Ho Chi Minh’s Role in the Vietnam War?
• Who Was the Leader of Vietnam During the Vietnam War?
• Why Did Civil Rights Leaders Oppose the Vietnam War?
• How Many Vietcong Died During the Vietnam War?
• How Did the Vietnam War Change Journalism?
• What Countries Were Involved in the Vietnam War?
• What Effects Did the Vietnam War Have on American Popular Culture?
• How Did Physical Geography Affect the Vietnam War?
• Did Richard Nixon End the Vietnam War?
• What Impact Did the Vietnam War Have on the American People?
• Did a Peace Movement End the Vietnam War?
• Who Served as the Secretary of Defense During the Vietnam War?
• What Year Did the US Enter the Vietnam War?
• What Did the Nixon Administration Do About the Vietnam War?
• How Did Imperialism Cause the Vietnam War?
• How Did the Vietnam War Influence the Foreign Policy of Richard Nixon?

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These essay examples and topics on Vietnam War were carefully selected by the StudyCorgi editorial team. They meet our highest standards in terms of grammar, punctuation, style, and fact accuracy. Please ensure you properly reference the materials if you’re using them to write your assignment.

This essay topic collection was updated on December 27, 2023 .

Vietnam War Topics for History Papers

On January 27, 1973, after four years of negotiations in Paris, an agreement was signed for the termination of the war and the restoration of peace in Vietnam. According to the document, the American troops, who lost 58,000 people since 1965, acknowledged the victory of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam and left the country.

This military conflict still remains a popular theme to discuss in history classes, and students are often assigned to write papers on it. Before starting to write your essay, we recommend you to check out our Vietnam War topics, prepared by our history essay writer . While reading them through, you can come up with your own idea for writing, or you can select one of the listed topics to write your paper on.

Discussion Vietnam War topics

• Discuss how the civil rights movement affected the Vietnam War.
• Discuss Australia’s involvement in the Vietnam War.
• Discuss the relation between the Vietnam War and the Revolutionary War.
• Discuss if Operation Frequent Wind at the end of the Vietnam War was a successful outcome of the war as a whole.
• Discuss Laotian Hmong’s involvement in the Vietnam War.
• Discuss protest songs during the Vietnam War.
• Discuss the influence of Nixon and Kerry on the Vietnam War.
• Discuss the impact of the media on the Vietnam War and how it negatively affected the US.
• Discuss the effects of the Vietnam War on American society.
• Discuss the protests against the Vietnam War.

Argumentative Vietnam War essay topics

• How did the Vietnam War influence art, clothing, and music for or against the war?
• The impact of the Vietnam War on American religion and culture.
• Did America win the Vietnam War?
• How did the Vietnam War affect domestic politics and policies? How did it help weaken the dominant political philosophy of the 1960s?
• Reasons for US military involvement in Vietnam, the nature of the Vietnam War, and the impact of the conflict on American domestic society and foreign policy.
• What caused the Vietnam War, and what were the key events in the war?
• The significance of the Vietnam War in American culture.
• The movie “Hearts and Minds” and the Vietnam War.
• From its beginning, the Vietnam War was one of the most unpopular wars in American history. Why do you think this is true?
• What were the causes of the Vietnam War?
• How were the civil rights movement and the Vietnam War connected to one another?

Persuasive Vietnam War research topics

• What went wrong with the Vietnam War?
• The role of the antiwar movements in the US during the Vietnam War.
• What were America’s goals in Vietnam? Do you believe they were achieved?
• How did America’s experience during the Vietnam War affect the nation’s attitudes toward the military in the decades after the end of the war?
• To what extent was the Vietnam War a pointless costly failure?
• Focusing on the time period of 1964-1975, analyze the ways in which the Vietnam War magnified economic, social, and political tensions in the US.
• The significance of the Vietnam War.
• John F. Kennedy and his stance on the Vietnam War: What influenced his decisions? Would he have sent in troops if he wasn’t assassinated? Did the Korean War and Cuban Missile Crisis change anything?
• Why did the USA get involved in the Vietnam War?
• Why did America lose the Vietnam War?
• How did the Vietnam War affect the US economy?
• How did the Vietnam War change the way our government works?
• Analyze the ways in which the Vietnam War heightened social, political, and economic tensions in the United States. Focus your answer on the period of 1964-1975.
• The domino theory effect between the Korean War and the Vietnam War.
• Technology and violence in the Vietnam War.
• The negative effect of propaganda on the Vietnam War.

Vietnam War thesis topics

• The treatment of African Americans during the Vietnam War.
• The media’s impact on the Vietnam War.
• History of the Vietnam War.
• American involvement in the Vietnam War.
• Causes of the Vietnam War.
• The Vietnam War and Vietnamese refugees.
• The Vietnam War as portrayed in “Forrest Gump.”
• Post traumatic stress disorder in the Vietnam War.
• Politics and military during the Vietnam War.
• Protesting in the 1960s during the Vietnam War through a historical lens.
• Military strategies based on the Vietnam War.
• Propaganda during the Vietnam War.

Vietnam War paper writing help from the experts

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• Modern History

Vietnam War Lesson

Learning objectives

In this lesson, students will learn about the complex historical, political, and social dimensions of the Vietnam War, including its origins, major battles, and the profound impact it had on both Vietnamese and American societies. They will also explore the war's lasting effects on international relations, the anti-war movement, and how it shaped contemporary views on military engagement and foreign policy. Students will have the opportunity to achieve this through choosing their own method of learning, from reading, research, and watching options, as well as the chance to engage in extension activities. This lesson includes a self-marking quiz for students to demonstrate their learning.

How would you like to learn?

Option 1: reading.

Step 1: Download a copy of the reading questions worksheet below:

Step 2: Answer the set questions by reading the following webpage:

Option 2: Internet research

Download a copy of the research worksheet below and use the internet to complete the tables.

Option 3: Watch video

Step 1: Download a copy of the viewing questions worksheet below:

Step 2: Answer the set questions by watching the following video:

The Life Guide.  The Vietnam War Explained In 25 Minutes .

Watch on YouTube

Test your learning

Extension activities, resources for subscribers.

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Lessons from the Vietnam War

John Marciano is professor emeritus of education at the State University of New York, Cortland, and a longtime activist, teacher, and trade unionist.

This article is adapted from The American War in Vietnam: Crime or Commemoration? (Monthly Review Press, 2016).

The Vietnam War was an example of imperial aggression. According to historian Michael Parenti: “Imperialism is what empires are all about. Imperialism is what empires do,” as “one country brings to bear…economic and military power upon another country in order to expropriate [its] land, labor, natural resources, capital and markets.” Imperialism ultimately enriches the home country’s dominant class. The process involves “unspeakable repression and state terror,” and must rely repeatedly “upon armed coercion and repression.” The ultimate aim of modern U.S. imperialism is “to make the world safe” for multinational corporations. When discussing imperialism, “the prime unit of analysis should be the economic class rather than the nation-state.” 1

U.S. imperial actions in Vietnam and elsewhere are often described as reflecting “national interests,” “national security,” or “national defense.” Endless U.S. wars and regime changes, however, actually represent the class interests of the powerful who own and govern the country. Noam Chomsky argues that if one wishes to understand imperial wars, therefore, “it is a good idea to begin by investigating the domestic social structure. Who sets foreign policy? What interest do these people represent? What is the domestic source of their power?” 2

The United States Committed War Crimes, Including Torture

The war was waged “against the entire Vietnamese population,” designed to terrorize them into submission. The United States “made South Vietnam a sea of fire as a matter of policy, turning an entire nation into a target. This is not accidental but intentional and intrinsic to the U.S.’s strategic and political premises.” In such an attack “against an entire people…barbarism can be the only consequence of [U.S.] tactics,” conceived and organized by “the true architects of terror,” the “respected men of manners and conventional views who calculate and act behind desks and computers rather than in villages in the field.” 3 The U.S. abuse of Vietnamese civilians and prisoners of war was strictly prohibited by the Geneva Convention, which the United States signed. U.S. officials and media pundits continue to assert that torture is a violation of “our values.” This is not true. Torture is as American as apple pie, widely practiced in wars and prisons.

Washington Lied

The war depended on government lies. Daniel Ellsberg exposed one such lie that had a profound impact on the eventual course of the conflict: the official story of the Tonkin Gulf crisis of August 1964. President Johnson and Defense Secretary Robert McNamara told the public that the North Vietnamese, for the second time in two days, had attacked U.S. warships on “routine patrol in international waters”; that this was clearly a “deliberate” pattern of “naked aggression”; that the evidence for the second attack, like the first, was “unequivocal”; that the attack had been “unprovoked”; and that the United States, by responding in order to deter any repetition, intended no wider war. All of these assurances were untrue. 4

The War Was a Crime, Not Just a Mistake

Since the end of the war in 1975, there has been a concerted effort by U.S. officials, the corporate media, and influential intellectuals to portray U.S. actions as a “noble cause” that went astray. American military scholar and historian Christian Appy profoundly disagrees, arguing that the findings of the Pentagon Papers and other documents provide “ample evidence to contradict this interpretation…. The United States did not inadvertently slip into the morass of war; it produced the war quite deliberately.” 5

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Condemned the War—and Was Vilified For It

In a historic speech at Riverside Church in Manhattan in April 1967, Dr. King courageously confronted bitter and uncomfortable truths about the war and U.S. society: “I knew that I could never again raise my voice against the violence of the oppressed in the ghettos without having first spoken clearly to the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today—my own government.” 6

King’s magnificent speech, relatively unknown in the United States today, provoked an immediate backlash from the political and corporate media establishment and from civil rights leaders. Life magazine denounced it as “demagogic slander that sounded like a script for Radio Hanoi.” A Harris poll taken in May 1967 revealed that 73 percent of Americans opposed his antiwar position, including 50 percent of African Americans. 7 The New York Times strongly condemned King, calling his effort to link civil rights and opposition to the war a “disservice to both. The moral issues in Vietnam are less clear-cut than he suggests.” The Washington Post claimed that some of his assertions were “sheer inventions of unsupported fantasy,” and that King had “diminished his usefulness to his cause, to his country and to his people.” 8

The Media Did Not Oppose the War, Only How It Was Fought

The assertion that the mainstream media opposed and undermined the war effort is one of the great myths of the Vietnam conflict. They endorsed U.S. support of French colonialism and only emerged as tactical critics of the war after the Tet Offensive in early 1968. The corporate media never challenged the fundamental premises of this imperial war.

The First Antiwar Protests Came from the Merchant Marine Services

Opposition to U.S. intervention in Vietnam did not begin with student protests in the mid-1960s, but with American merchant mariners in the fall of 1945. They had been diverted from bringing U.S. troops home from Europe to transport French troops to Vietnam to reclaim that colony. Some of these merchant mariners vigorously condemned the transport “to further the imperialist policies of foreign governments,” and a group from among the crews of four ships condemned the U.S. government for helping to “subjugate the native population of Vietnam.” 9

Some two decades later, the most important opposition to the American War would come within the military itself—including criticism by Generals Matthew Ridgeway, David Shoup, James Gavin, and Hugh Hester. The latter called the war “immoral and unjust,” an act of U.S. aggression. In 1966, Shoup stated that if the United States “had and would keep our dirty, bloody, dollar-crooked fingers out of the business of these nations so full of depressed exploited people, they will arrive at a solution of their own.” The generals all signed a New York Times antiwar advertisement in 1967, and Shoup and Hester supported and spoke at rallies sponsored by the Vietnam Veterans against the War (VVAW). Because of their efforts, the FBI investigated them under Presidents Johnson and Nixon. 10

Marine combat veteran, poet, and activist W. D. Ehrhart spoke for thousands of vets who fought in the war and came home to challenge it:

I’d learned that the eighty-eight years of French colonial rule had been harsh and cruel; that the Americans had supported Ho Chi Minh and his Vietminh guerillas with arms and equipment and training during World War Two, and in return, Ho’s forces had provided the Americans with intelligence and had helped to rescue downed American pilots; that Ho had spent years trying to gain American support for Vietnamese independence; that at the end of World War Two, the United States had supported the French claim to Indochina; that North and South Vietnam were nothing more than an artificial construction of the Western powers, created at Geneva in 1954. I’d had to learn it all on my own, most of it years after I’d left Vietnam. 11

The War Provoked Strong Working-Class Opposition

Labor studies scholar Penny Lewis counters a number of misconceptions about the anti-war movement in her Hardhats, Hippies, and Hawks , particularly the false view that working-class Americans were “largely supportive of the war and largely hostile to the numerous movements for social change taking place at the time.” In fact, “Working-class opposition to the war was significantly more widespread than is remembered and parts of the movement found roots in working-class communities and politics. By and large, the greatest support for the war came from the privileged elite, despite the visible dissention of a minority of its leaders and youth.” 12

As the war deepened, so did an antiwar movement within the working class. It included the rank-and-file union members, working-class veterans who joined and helped “to lead the movement when they returned stateside; [and] working-class GIs who refused to fight; and the deserters who walked away.” Especially after the Tet Offensive in early 1968, the antiwar movement “formed deeper roots among people of color, religious communities,” and students who attended non-elite campuses. 13

The domestic antiwar movement was the largest in U.S. history, and the October 1969 Moratorium Against the War alone was the greatest single antiwar protest ever recorded in this country. The movement was deepened and strengthened by the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), that in January 1966 issued a public statement against the war—a courageous dissent that nearly bankrupted it financially. SNCC called U.S. involvement “racist and imperialist.” The murder of SNCC activist and Navy veteran Sammy Younge showed that the organization’s role was not to fight in Vietnam, but to struggle within the United States for freedoms denied to African Americans. SNCC accordingly affirmed its support for draft resisters. Reflecting the national view at the time, most African Americans strongly disagreed with SNCC’s stand on the war and draft resistance. 14

Though miniscule when compared to the astronomical level of violence in Vietnam, antiwar violence by college youth received more attention from the media and the public. In fact, however, it was an extremely small part of an activist antiwar movement that “numbered more than 9,400 protest incidents recorded during the Vietnam era, as well as thousands of demonstrations, vigils, letter writing [campaigns], teach-ins, mass media presentations, articles and books [and petitioning] congressional representatives.” 15 Added to these activities was an explosion of antiwar news sources across the country, beyond college campuses. There were countless antiwar papers published by active-duty soldiers and veterans who opposed the war, such as Vietnam GI , the VVAW paper.

Appeals to Support the Troops Should Be Critically Examined

President Obama and the 2015 official commemoration have urged citizens to support and honor those who served in Vietnam—an appeal that certainly does not extend to the antiwar activists of the VVAW. This charge to support the military in Vietnam—and all wars since—implicitly asks citizens to support uncritically any U.S. conflict. As the war continued, the VVAW rejected such a view, in the face of condemnation from prominent public officials, the American Legion, and Veterans of Foreign Wars.

For example, although President Ronald Reagan called on Americans to honor the troops, he showed his true colors when it came to programs to aid those scarred by the Vietnam conflict. His “first act in office was to freeze hiring in the [Veterans] Readjustment Counseling Program. He soon moved to eliminate all Vietnam veteran outreach programs, including an employment-training program for disabled veterans.” 16

The My Lai massacre offers a concrete case to test the official charge that citizens should support the military in times of war. Kenneth Hodge, one of the U.S. soldiers who participated in the massacre, insisted years later that “there was no crime committed”:

As a professional soldier I had been taught and instructed to carry out the orders that were issued by the superiors. At no time did it ever cross my mind to disobey or to refuse to carry out an order that was issued by my superiors. I felt that they (Charlie Company) were able to carry out the assigned task, the orders, that meant killing small kids, killing women…. I feel we carried out the orders in a moral fashion, the orders of destroying the village, …killing people in the village, and I feel we did not violate any moral standards. 17

There is no bridge that can span the chasm between Hodge and those soldiers who refused orders to kill people at My Lai; and between Hodge and pilot Hugh Thompson Jr., who landed his helicopter in the midst of the massacre and saved Vietnamese who certainly would have been killed. Hodge’s defense should also be compared with journalist Jonathan Schell’s comment about My Lai: “With the report of the…massacre, we face a new situation. It is no longer possible for us to say that we did not know…. For if we learn to accept this, there is nothing we will not accept.” 18

Real support for the troops should not consist of cheap flyovers at sporting events; corporate campaigns to raise funds for veterans that are pennies on the dollar alongside vast profits from military contracts; performing empty flag-waving gestures while supporting political efforts in Washington to cut funds for wounded and disabled veterans and other needed programs; or assuring veterans that the war was a noble cause when it was not.

My Lai Was a Massacre, Not an “Incident”

The most publicized U.S. atrocity of the war, the slaughter of unarmed residents of the hamlet of My Lai in the village of Son My on March 16, 1968, was a massacre—not an “incident,” as it is called in the official Vietnam War Commemoration sponsored by the Department of Defense. It lists the death toll “at ‘more than 200,'” and singles out only Lieutenant Calley, “as if the deaths of all those Vietnamese civilians, carried out by dozens of men at the behest of higher command, could be the fault of just one junior officer.” 19

For historian Gabriel Kolko, My Lai “is simply the foot soldier’s direct expression of the…fire and terror that his superiors in Washington devise and command from behind desks…. The real war criminals in history never fire guns [and] never suffer discomfort. What is illegitimate and immoral, is the entire war and its intrinsic character.” Regarding the home front reception to the My Lai massacre, he reminds us that the “rather triumphant welcome various political and veterans organizations gave Lieutenant Calley reveals that terror and barbarism have their followers and admirers at home as well as in Vietnam.” 20

Regarding My Lai, the war, and the United States, historian Kendrick Oliver concludes: “This is not a society which really wanted to know about the violence of the war that its armed forces were waging in Vietnam.” Many Americans “perceived they had more in common with…Calley than with any of his victims…. It was the lieutenant…who became the object of public sympathy, not the inhabitants of My Lai whom he had hastened to death, and the orphans and widows he made of many of the rest.” 21

Ecocide Is an Essential Legacy of the War

The horrific and illegal chemical warfare against the Vietnamese was defined powerfully and precisely by biologist Arthur Galston: “It seems to me that the willful and permanent destruction of environment…ought…to be considered as a crime against humanity, to be designated by the term ecocide .” 22 The devastating environmental health effects of the war continue for Vietnamese and U.S. veterans. Arthur Westing, the leading U.S. authority on ecological damage during the war, addressed these effects at an Agent Orange symposium in 2002. The “Second Indochina War of 1961–1975 (the ‘Vietnam Conflict’; the ‘American War’) stands out today as the [model] of war-related environmental abuse.” 23

The U.S. Government Does Not “Hate War”—It Loves It

President Obama’s claim in his Vietnam commemoration speech—that Americans “hate war” and “only fight to protect ourselves because it’s necessary”—is the latest in a long line of fantastical pronouncements by U.S. officials. Even an elementary knowledge of U.S. wars since the founding of the nation would dispel this delusion. These include the genocidal Indian Wars that lasted more than a century until 1890; wars of aggression against Cuban, Philippine, and Puerto Rican independence struggles in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries; and the overthrow of forty-one governments in Latin America between 1898 and 1994. 24 There is also Korea, Vietnam, Panama, Iraq (twice, in 1991 and 2003, in addition to genocidal economic sanctions in between), and Afghanistan, with the latter two both still underway, and many more documented in the Congressional Research Service’s important study, released in September 2014, that tallied hundreds of U.S. military interventions. As Veterans for Peace note on their website: “America has been at war 222 out of 239 years since 1776. Let that sink in for a moment.” Since the end of the shooting war in Vietnam in April 1975, virtually every calendar year has seen the presence of U.S. military forces abroad, in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Central Asia, and Eastern Europe. A number of these nations have seen multiple U.S. military interventions under various presidents over the past forty years since the end of the Vietnam War. 25 The historical record, therefore, reveals a nation that is wedded to war.

Vietnamese Resistance to U.S. Aggression was Justified

Nguyen Thi Binh, head of the Vietnamese delegation to the 1968 Paris Peace Conference, declared that the war of resistance against America was “the fiercest struggle in the history of Vietnam,” forced upon a people who did not provoke or threaten the United States. During the Second World War, Vietnam “was on the side of the Allies and embedded the spirit of democracy and freedom of the Declaration of Independence of America in the Vietnamese Declaration of Independence and constitution.” Despite this fact, the United States “attempted to replace France and impose its rule over Vietnam.” The Vietnamese understood their country “was one,” and their “sacred aspiration was independence, freedom, and unification.” They always believed that they “have the right to choose the political regime for their country without foreign intervention.” 26

The History of the War Is a Struggle for Memory

A practical lesson of the war is offered by Vietnam veteran and sociologist Jerry Lembcke, author of the important book Spitting Image: Myth, Memory, and the Legacy of Vietnam , who writes that the “vast majority of Vietnam War veterans would know more about the war today if they had spent their months of deployment stateside in a classroom with Howard Zinn.” And what should be the lesson for young people who wish to understand the American war? “That the veteran…might today be a better source…had he stayed home from Vietnam and read some history books; [and] the student, whose education might be better served by reading a good history book about the war than interviewing the veteran.” 27

After every war that the United States has fought, a new chapter is added to history textbooks, one that interprets the conflict for succeeding generations. The new narratives stress the necessity of its involvement and America’s role and conduct during the war. Some describe the excesses and even the criminal behavior of the U.S. military, but never define these as such or acknowledge their central place in the conduct of the war. U.S. history textbooks essentially portray U.S. aggression against Vietnam as a failed defense of democracy and freedom; it was a “mistake” and a “tragedy,” with noble goals. The thesis that the conflict was an illegal act of state aggression is considered unworthy of critical examination. The parameters established by these texts do not allow students to consider the possibility that the Vietnamese resistance was a justifiable liberation struggle against foreign aggression and a brutally authoritarian regime.

Noam Chomsky’s conclusion on the nature of the war and its relationship to the educational system captures the essence of the past and present textbook studies. Simply replace Southeast Asia with Afghanistan or Iraq, and his thoughts in 1966 on schools and society remain accurate and relevant:

At this moment of national disgrace, as American technology is running amuck in Southeast Asia, a discussion of American schools can hardly avoid noting the fact that these schools are the first training ground for the troops that will enforce the muted, unending terror of the status quo of a projected American century; for the technicians who will be developing the means for extension of American power; for the intellectuals who can be counted on, in significant measure, to provide the intellectual justification for this particular form of barbarism and to decry the irresponsibility and lack of sophistication of those who will find all of this intolerable and revolting. 1

Forty years after the American war in Vietnam ended in 1975, the central and most critical issue is the “struggle for memory,” an ideological war over the most accurate and truthful story of the conflict. Whose ideas about the war will prevail? This struggle will help determine how we, the people, will respond to present and future U.S. international conflicts. If citizens are to understand the role of U.S. governmental and corporate elites in initiating the current endless wars, they must develop an accurate and comprehensive understanding of the history of the war in Vietnam. Such an analysis will provide the critical tools with which to counter the hyper-patriotism of the official Vietnam commemoration, whose lessons are based on the dominant and false story of U.S. beneficence: a nation forever faithful in its quest for justice that always follows a righteous path in its wartime conduct. Another story must be told: that of a decades-long reign of terror against the people of Vietnam, a shameful war that no government-sanctioned lesson or eloquent rhetoric can hide.

• ↩ Michael Parenti’s argument here is a synthesis of “ What Do Empires Do? ” 2010, http://michaelparenti.org, and Against Empire (San Francisco: City Lights, 1995), 23. Parenti documents this history in great detail in a number of other books, including The Face of Imperialism , Profit Pathology and Other Indecencies , and The Sword and the Dollar . In a note to the author, Noam Chomsky cautioned about reading the general argument about imperialism too narrowly; it was sufficient as “a general statement on imperialism, but…misleading about Vietnam. It will be read as though the US wanted to exploit Vietnam’s resources…. The concern was the usual one (Guatemala, Cuba, Nicaragua, others) that successful independent development in Vietnam might inspire others to follow the same course.”
• ↩ Noam Chomsky, Towards a New Cold War (New York: New Press, 2003), 6, 93, 98. It is a testament to the strength of the dominant view of American foreign policy that Chomsky, an internationally renowned scholar and intellectual, was virtually unknown to nearly all of the more than six thousand students I taught over the course of thirty-one years at the State University of New York, Cortland. Some had heard of him, but it was rare to find a student who had read any of his writings. In addition to Chomsky’s many books, readers should examine William Blum, Rogue State (Monroe, ME: Common Courage, 2000) and G. William Domhoff, Who Rules America? (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2013).
• ↩ Gabriel Kolko, “War Crimes and The Nature of the Vietnam War,” in Richard Falk, Gabriel Kolko, and Robert Jay Lifton, eds., Crimes of War (New York: Vintage, 1971), 412–13; Kolko, “On the Avoidance of Reality,” Crimes of War , 15.
• ↩ Daniel Ellsberg, Secrets (New York: Penguin, 2002), 12.
• ↩ Christian Appy, Working Class War (Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 1993), 253.
• ↩ Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “ Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence ,” April 4, 1967, Riverside Church, New York City, available at http://commondreams.org.
• ↩ Edward Morgan, What Really Happened to the 1960s (Lawrence, KS: University of Kansas Press, 2010), 76; Daniel S. Lucks, Selma to Saigon (Lexington, KY: University Press of Kentucky Press, 2014), 203.
• ↩ New York Times , April 7, 1967; Washington Post , April 6, 1967.
• ↩ Michael Gillen, “Roots of Opposition: The Critical Response to U.S. Indochina Policy, 1945–1954,” Ph.D. dissertation, New York University, 1991, 122.
• ↩ Robert Buzzanco, “The American Military’s Rationale against the Vietnam War,” Political Science Quarterly 101, no. 4 (1986): 571.
• ↩ W. D. Ehrhart, Passing Time (Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 1989), 161–62.
• ↩ Penny Lewis, Hardhats, Hippies, and Hawks (Ithaca, NY: ILR, 2013), 4, 7.
• ↩ Lewis, Hardhats, Hippies, and Hawks , 45.
• ↩ Lewis, Hardhats, Hippies, and Hawks , 92; Lucks, Selma to Saigon , 3.
• ↩ Kirkpatrick Sale, SDS (New York: Random House, 1973), 514, 48.
• ↩ D. Michael Shafer, “The Vietnam Combat Experience: The Human Legacy,” in The Legacy: The Vietnam War in the American Imagination (Boston: Beacon, 1992), 97.
• ↩ Quoted in Michael Bolton and Kevin Sim, Four Hours in My Lai (New York: Viking, 1992), 371.
• ↩ Jonathan Schell, “Comment,” New Yorker , December 20, 1969, 27.
• ↩ Nick Turse, “ Misremembering America’s Wars, 2003–2054 ,” TomDispatch, February 18, 2014, http://tomdispatch.com.
• ↩ Kolko, “War Crimes,” 414; “Avoidance,” 12.
• ↩ Kendrick Oliver, The My Lai Massacre in American History and Memory (Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 2006), 8–9.
• ↩ Quoted in Erwin Knoll and Judith Nies McFadden, War Crimes and the American Conscience (New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1970), 71.
• ↩ Arthur Westing, “Return to Vietnam: The Legacy of Agent Orange,” lecture at Yale University, April 26, 2002; Westing, Ecological Consequences of the Second Indochina War (Stockholm: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, 1974), 22.
• ↩ Greg Grandin, “ The War to Start All Wars: The 25th Anniversary of the Forgotten Invasion of Panama ,” TomDispatch, December 23, 2014. See also Grandin’s excellent Empire’s Workshop (New York: Metropolitan), 2006.
• ↩ Barbara Salazar Torreon, Instances of Use of United States Armed Forces Abroad, 1798–2014 (Washington, D.C.: Congressional Research Office, 2014).
• ↩ Nguyen Thi Binh, “The Vietnam War and Its Lessons,” in Christopher Goscha and Maurice Vaisse, eds., The Vietnam War and Europe 1963–1973 (Brussels: Bruylant, 2003), 455–56.
• ↩ Jerry Lembcke, “ Why Students Should Stop Interviewing Vietnam Veterans ,” History News Network, May 27, 2013, http://historynewsnetwork.org.
• ↩ Noam Chomsky, “Thoughts on Intellectuals and the Schools,” Harvard Educational Review 36, no. 4 (1966): 485.

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Gr. 12 HISTORY Revision: The Vietnam War

Revision: The Vietnam War

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9 Questions About the Vietnam War Answered

The Vietnam War was a protracted conflict that pitted the communist government of North Vietnam and its allies in South Vietnam, known as the Viet Cong, against the government of South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States. It lasted from 1954 to 1975. The questions and answers in this list are taken from the Top Questions sections of the articles on the Vietnam War , Ho Chi Minh , Ngo Dinh Diem , William Westmoreland , Richard Nixon , and Agent Orange .

Why did the Vietnam War start?

The United States had provided funding, armaments, and training to South Vietnam’s government and military since Vietnam’s partition into the communist North and the democratic South in 1954. Tensions escalated into armed conflict between the two sides, and in 1961 U.S. President John F. Kennedy chose to expand the military aid program. The terms of this expansion included yet more funding and arms, but a key alteration was the commitment of U.S. soldiers to the region. Kennedy’s expansion stemmed in part from Cold War -era fears about the “ domino theory ”: if communism took hold in Vietnam, it would topple democracies throughout the whole of Southeast Asia , it was thought.

Kennedy was assassinated in 1963, but his successor, Lyndon B. Johnson , continued the work that Kennedy had started. Johnson raised the number of South Vietnam deployments to 23,000 U.S. soldiers by the end of his first year in office. Political turbulence there and two alleged North Vietnamese attacks on U.S. naval vessels spurred Johnson to demand the passage of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution in 1964. It granted him broad latitude in handling the struggle against communism in Southeast Asia.

Was the Vietnam War technically a war?

By nearly every metric, the Vietnam War was, in the common sense of the word, a war . The United States committed some 550,000 troops to the Vietnam front at the height of the conflict, suffered more than 58,000 casualties, and engaged in battle after battle with communist forces in the region until its withdrawal in 1973. However, from a constitutional perspective, this conflict did not technically count as a war. The U.S. Constitution grants Congress sole authority to issue declarations of war. Since 1941 Congress has declared war only six times, all during World War II. Congress authorized troop deployment in Vietnam, but, because it did not issue a declaration of war on North Vietnam or the Viet Cong , the Vietnam War is, technically speaking, not considered a war in the United States.

What did Ho Chi Minh accomplish?

Ho Chi Minh led a long and ultimately successful campaign to make Vietnam independent. He was president of North Vietnam from 1945 to 1969, and he was one of the most influential communist leaders of the 20th century. His seminal role is reflected in the fact that Vietnam’s largest city is named for him.

What did Ngo Dinh Diem do?

As president of South Vietnam (1955–63), Ngo Dinh Diem assumed dictatorial powers. Diem’s heavy-handed tactics against the Viet Cong insurgency deepened his government’s unpopularity, and his brutal treatment of the opposition to his regime alienated the South Vietnamese populace, notably Buddhists . In 1963 he was murdered during a coup d’état by some of his generals.

How did William Westmoreland influence the outcome of the Vietnam War?

As head of U.S. forces in Vietnam, William Westmoreland pursued a war of attrition: the number of dead enemy fighters was the key measure of merit. In response to Westmoreland’s requests for more forces, the American presence in Vietnam grew to well over 500,000 troops. Domestic support for the war plunged as U.S. deaths rose.

Did Richard Nixon support the Vietnam War?

Richard Nixon , arguably , tried to prolong the Vietnam War during the 1968 presidential campaign in an effort to win the presidency. Once he became president, he sought to establish enough stability in the region for the South Vietnamese government to take over. The result was an expanded U.S. military presence and increased military activity in neutral Cambodia. After hasty attempts of “ Vietnamization ”—the process of training and arming South Vietnamese troops for fighting alone after U.S. forces would pull out—all U.S. troops were evacuated by March 29, 1973.

What is Agent Orange?

Agent Orange is a mixture of herbicides used during the Vietnam War by the U.S. military to defoliate forests and clear other vegetation. This herbicide mix was deployed in urban, agricultural, and forested areas in Vietnam to expose the enemy and destroy crops. Agent Orange was used along with several other herbicides, code-named Agents White, Purple, Blue, Pink, and Green.

Who won the Vietnam War?

The question of who won the Vietnam War has been a subject of debate, and the answer depends on the definition of victory. Those who argue that the United States won the war point to the fact that the U.S. defeated communist forces during most of Vietnam’s major battles. They also assert that the U.S. overall suffered fewer casualties than its opponents. The U.S. military reported 58,220 American casualties. Although North Vietnamese and Viet Cong casualty counts vary wildly, it is generally understood that they suffered several times the number of American casualties.

Those who argue that the United States’ opponents won the war cite the United States’ overall objectives and outcomes. The United States entered Vietnam with the principal purpose of preventing a communist takeover of the region. In that respect, it failed: the two Vietnams were united under a communist banner in July 1976. Neighbouring Laos and Cambodia similarly fell to communists. Furthermore, domestic unrest and the financial cost of war made peace—and troop withdrawals—a necessity, not a choice.

How many people died during the Vietnam War?

In 1995 Vietnam released its official estimate of the number of people killed during the Vietnam War: as many as 2,000,000 civilians on both sides and some 1,100,000 North Vietnamese and Viet Cong fighters. The U.S. military has estimated that between 200,000 and 250,000 South Vietnamese soldiers died. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., lists more than 58,300 names of members of the U.S. armed forces who were killed or went missing in action. Among other countries that fought for South Vietnam, South Korea had more than 4,000 dead, Thailand about 350, Australia more than 500, and New Zealand some three dozen.

"Vietnam is more than just a war": How Kieu Chinh helped evolve the Hollywood war machine propaganda

From "hamburger hill" to "the sympathizer," the veteran actor discusses how her career shaped vietnam war memories, by teresa tran.

There’s a turning-point scene in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1979 Vietnam War film “Apocalypse Now” where Martin Sheen’s character Captain Benjamin L. Willard and his band of American soldiers massacre an innocent Vietnamese family of civilians aboard a sampan his crew has raided. The sound of guns firing and men shouting drowns out the screams of the dying Vietnamese people.

Soon after, Willard kills the lone survivor of the sampan: a Vietnamese woman. Even in death, her facial expression is barely registered on camera. We see her body twist from the impact, but any pain she might’ve felt goes unheard. We find out she has been protecting a puppy before being killed, and we see the soldiers hold and regard the puppy with more gentleness and respect than they had the Vietnamese lives they just slaughtered. The scene rounds out with Willard reflecting via voiceover on his actions with an air of resignation as the men continue upriver. At the same time, presumably, Vietnamese bodies lie in the water all around them. We can’t know for sure because the camera doesn’t show them. 

"They're not characters with a story . . . they’re either a prostitute, a peasant or get killed in the mud."

Such scenes where Vietnamese people are portrayed as collateral damage and brutally killed with nary a line uttered on screen are common throughout the American cinematic canon. Vietnamese American actress Kieu Chinh, 86, understands the consequences of these depictions better than anyone. Boasting a 67-year acting career across 65 and counting Asian and U.S. television shows and films, Kieu Chinh has starred in over 20 Hollywood stories about the Vietnam War. These include “A Yank in Viet-Nam” (1964), “ Operation C.I.A. ” (1965) and “Hamburger Hill” (1987), among others. At one point, she was even nearly cast in “Apocalypse Now.” Most recently, she starred in HBO’s Vietnam War espionage limited series “The Sympathizer.”

Having witnessed how Hollywood’s depiction of the Vietnam War has evolved over the years, Kieu Chinh observes how many of these have historically only focused on the American soldiers, the spectacle of the explosions and the bloody aftermath from the U.S. perspective. In short, these Hollywood Vietnam War stories would conveniently leave out the Vietnamese perspective and rarely feature Vietnamese characters with actual names. Of the roles credited to a Vietnamese actor, the characters would either lack depth, be horribly killed or raped, or be reduced to serve the main white characters’ storylines, reinforcing the American idea that Vietnamese lives were disposable and belonged in the margins. 

“They’re not characters with a story,” Kieu Chinh tells me in a Zoom interview. “If there are female characters mentioned, they’re either a prostitute, a peasant or get killed in the mud.”

While fictional, these kinds of depictions are more than just entertainment. “Apocalypse Now” was released after the U.S. withdrew from Vietnam in 1975, but it joined movies like  “A Yank in Viet-Nam,” “Operation C.I.A” and “Hamburger Hill” as part of a long line of Hollywood war movies that would serve as propaganda films for America’s pro-war agenda in Vietnam. These types of films effectively make up what American professors of social sciences and authors Carl Boggs and Thomas Pollard defined as the “Hollywood war machine.” 

The Hollywood war machine, explained

The Hollywood war machine starts with the media, from which many well-known cinematic depictions of the Vietnam War can be traced. The Vietnam War was one of the first widely televised wars in American history. Any U.S.-inflicted violence that Americans would see on the news, such as the Tet Offensive , would then be referenced in films. “Apocalypse Now” is a famous example, having been inspired by the My Lai massacre . Newsreels and images of Vietnamese people being shot desensitized Americans from the violence and made them view Vietnamese people not as humans with stories and lives of their own worthy of dignity, but as numbers and digits among enemies and casualties. 

A prominent example where this dehumanization of Vietnamese people is in full effect is Oliver Stone's “Platoon” (1986), which depicted Vietnamese people, particularly Northern Vietnamese and Viet Cong soldiers, as vicious and aggressive. Kieu Chinh wishes that more American movies would instead depict those in the South, giving the conflict more nuance and the South Vietnamese more agency as those actively opposing the North as well. These were the same people who felt they had no other choice but to escape the country after the North won.

“Hollywood only sees Americans fighting with the communists,” the actress says. “You see, the war is not just Americans fighting with the North Vietnamese. There was South Vietnamese [fighting the North], but they’re not well-presented.”

“It's a terrible phrase that became a racist/sexist way for people to provoke Asian/Asian-American women,” novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen, whose Pulitzer Prize-winning novel on which the “The Sympathizer” is based, denounced the phrase back in 2021 to Esquire . 

“These simplified representations have come to frame Asian women as whores . . . and impact the racist desire of Asian women broadly,” adds  Linh Thuy Nguyen , an associate professor at the University of Washington who specializes in Asian American and Southeast Asian American refugee studies, U.S. militarism, and race. “The quote further erases the conditions of militarized imperial violence that shaped the realities of life under war and made coerced sexual labor one of the only viable forms of economic opportunity.” 

"Hollywood only sees Americans fighting with the communists."

As a byproduct of the Hollywood war machine, these portrayals of Vietnamese people, particularly Vietnamese women, erased the humanity in the countries where  Americans were committing war crimes . We can also arguably see the consequence of these portrayals in the form of anti-Asian hate crimes , such as the Atlanta spa killings, today.

By valorizing the U.S. presence abroad – whether it was invading other countries or supposedly aiding them to ensure national security, combat communism or protect democracy – the U.S. would weaponize support at home through these films. This would then allow the U.S. military to minimize their role in the deaths of millions of innocent Vietnamese civilians killed during the war, as well as result in Americans directing their antagonistic views towards hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese diaspora who were displaced and had no choice but to become refugees at the mercy of the Americans’ goodwill and sponsorship.

The evolution of Vietnamese American portrayals in Hollywood

Despite her prolific resume, Kieu Chinh struggled to secure roles of meaningful Vietnamese characters with any depth. Of the few Hollywood roles that were available to her, she’d be given roles such as “Asian woman,” “Chinese woman,” or a character whose name is a clear riff off of her own such as “Kim Chinh” in “Operation C.I.A.,” where it was clear the scriptwriter barely put any thought into her character’s backstory.

“I had to accept whatever came, even the very tiny parts – one line here, one line there, one scene here, another there,” Kieu Chinh says in an interview with Vanity Fair. “I took everything. I had to work.” 

"The underlying problem is that filmmakers . . . are simply not committed to representing Vietnam and Vietnamese people in a complex and realistic way."

One of the first roles she’d been offered, but eventually had to turn down, had been the Vietnamese female love interest Phuong in American director Joseph L. Mankiewicz’s 1958 Saigon film “The Quiet American” (1958) based on author Graham Greene’s anti-war novel of the same name. Despite the source material originally condemning American involvement in Vietnam, the film adaptation was one of Hollywood’s earliest propaganda films advocating for pro-American meddling in Vietnam during the First Indochina War between France and Vietnam and it left little room for Vietnamese voices to weigh in. Kieu Chinh rejected the role due to her family’s objections, which resulted in Saigon news headlines declaring, “Vietnamese unknown girl rejects Hollywood’s famous director” with her picture splashed on the front page. 

Unfortunately, that role would end up being played by Italian actress Giorgia Moll as a clear example of yellowface in film. Despite her European background, Moll is supposed to portray the Vietnamese woman Phuong, wearing Vietnam’s traditional dress, the ao dai, and embracing the stereotype of the sexually submissive Asian woman. In many of her scenes with the two lead white men, she has no lines yet is seen smiling, seemingly uncomplaining, while they talk about which man she should choose as if she’s not there. 

Besides playing a passive sex object, her presence also serves to represent all Vietnamese people, as the men talk about how they believe they know what’s best for her, extending a metaphor in the film about America believing they know what’s best for Vietnam. This exceptionalist view is further evident when one of the male characters speak condescendingly to a group of Vietnamese police officers in supposedly fluent Vietnamese in another scene.

“These actors generally spoke in intentionally broken English to signal that their characters were foreign, and in scenes in which they were supposed to speak Vietnamese, they mangled the pronunciation so badly that only about 5% of what they said was comprehensible,” says  Nu-Anh Tran , a University of Connecticut history and Asian and Asian American studies associate professor who has specialized in South Vietnam and Vietnamese history. 

Kieu Chinh would go on to star in “A Yank in Viet-Nam” opposite Marshall Thompson, and “Operation C.I.A.” opposite Burt Reynolds, playing similar roles as either a female guerrilla fighter or a female love interest, both of which ultimately served the white American male characters’ story.  

After fleeing Vietnam and gaining American citizenship, Kieu Chinh started her career over and landed roles in productions such as the television series “M.A.S.H” (1977) where she played South Korean love interest Kyung Soon in an episode centered on the Korean War, and the film “The Joy Luck Club” (1993) where she played Chinese mother Suyuan Woo in the first Hollywood movie with an all-Asian cast. Again, while these iconic roles were perhaps progressive for their time, there were so few roles specifically for Vietnamese people in Hollywood that Kieu Chinh had no choice but to play other Asian ethnicities. 

In addition to acting in projects, Kieu Chinh would lend her expertise on Vietnam as a cultural consultant for many Hollywood stories, including John Irvin’s 1987 film “Hamburger Hill.” Set during the controversial May 1969 Battle of Hamburger Hill assault during the Vietnam War, the film became critically acclaimed by critics for its brutal and raw depiction of the time 600 American soldiers of the American 3rd Batallion, 187th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division met North Vietnamese soldiers on a heavily fortified hill. However, the film was also criticized for never showing the faces of the North Vietnamese army and leaving out the South Vietnamese army who were attacking the same hill from the other side.

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When reflecting on the many times she’s had to retell her refugee story for work such as “Hamburger Hill,” Kieu Chinh acknowledges it can be tiring having to talk about it and in a way, relive the trauma of it, repeatedly. “Yes, it is painful, but it is good because you have the opportunity to tell your experiences about the history,” she says. “If there's no past, then there's no future.” The actress considers herself a living witness of the Vietnam War, and as such, has a responsibility to do what she can in front of and behind the camera.

Kieu Chinh’s career and experiences resulted in a documentary based on her life called “Kieu Chinh: A Journey Home” (1996), which led her to win an Emmy Award. She’d also write a memoir called “Kieu Chinh: An Artist in Exile” detailing many of her experiences in Hollywood. 

In one story, Kieu Chinh talks about the time she missed out on being cast in a minor role as Marlon Brando’s character’s unnamed wife in “Apocalypse Now." Through a series of connections with Hollywood directors she had befriended during her time as an actress in Vietnam, she met with director Coppola, who suggested she could also be a cultural consultant for his movie. Desiring more acting work again after becoming a refugee, Kieu Chinh saw the role as her way to break into Hollywood again. However, due to passport issues, she couldn’t be present in the Philippines to film the movie. Ultimately the role was cut entirely from the film.

If she had been able to be a part of “Apocalypse Now,” it likely wouldn’t have been a progressive role, considering that Vietnamese characters in the film were depicted as savage natives who worshipped Brando’s character. Coppola famously commented on his film at the 1979 Cannes Film Festival saying, “My film is not about Vietnam. It is Vietnam.” While the film doesn’t exactly valorize the Americans’ involvement in the war, its portrayal of Vietnamese people is reductive and violent in its inaccuracy and stereotyping.

“The underlying problem is that filmmakers, despite the very real differences in their politics, are simply not committed to representing Vietnam and Vietnamese people in a complex and realistic way,” Tran says. 

Even when Hollywood stories don’t paint U.S. involvement in Vietnam as benevolent, it still centers Americans as the main drivers of the story, effectively erasing the multi-layered stories and experiences of the Vietnamese people who were most impacted.

“These movies still have a way of recuperating American militarism, national identity, and masculinity precisely through racialized depictions of the Vietnam War,” says Marguerite Nguyen , a Wesleyan University associate professor and author of “America's Vietnam: The Longue Durée of U.S. Literature and Empire.” 

The ultimate danger of these cinematic depictions is the historical revisionism of the Vietnam War, told primarily from the Americans’ side.

“The Sympathizer” addresses Hollywood’s Vietnam War stories

In one episode, Kieu Chinh appears in a scene that is meant to satirize Hollywood’s depictions of the Vietnam War. The series protagonist Captain (Hoa Xuande) lands a cultural consultant role for a Vietnam War movie called “The Hamlet” by American film director Nicos Damianos (Robert Downey Jr.), a role inspired by Hollywood auteurs and more specifically, the experiences of Coppola making "Apocalypse Now." In Damianos’ film, the Vietnamese characters are nameless background characters with little to no lines, and they die on screen and end up with nameless prop tombstones. Sound similar to a certain sampan massacre scene?

"I packed few belongings. I had my little handbag with my passport, my lipstick and a few dollars left to my name."

Captain points out the inaccuracy of the way “The Hamlet” depicts Vietnamese villages and tries to fight for the Vietnamese characters to have some significant lines. In a particularly comedic scene meant to poke fun at Hollywood’s treatment of Vietnamese actors, “The Hamlet” filming is disrupted when Damianos realizes one of the Vietnamese extras is speaking her dialogue in Cantonese in response to American soldiers (John Cho, David Duchovny) raiding her village. When requested to speak in Vietnamese, the extra can’t because she is in fact Chinese. Captain brings in Kieu Chinh’s character to play the Vietnamese extra instead. But instead of translating the line Damianos wrote, “Don’t shoot me. I’m a peasant. I’m only a peasant,” Captain has Kieu Chinh's character sneak in the line, “We’re not afraid. Our hands will close around the throat of American imperialism!” in Vietnamese, with Damianos and the American crew none the wiser. 

Viet Thanh Nguyen wrote the Hollywood arc in the story as a deliberate nod to Vietnam War films like “Apocalypse Now," although he doesn't believe directors like Coppola deliberately decided to erase Vietnamese voices. “I think the power of racism is such that [Coppolla] didn’t have to do it on purpose,” Nguyen says in a 2019 interview with PBS . “The assumption could simply be that Vietnamese people had no speaking role whatsoever in this American imagination. Americans don’t think of that as racist, but it is racist.”

“The Sympathizer” not only calls out Hollywood’s lack of interest in depicting the Vietnamese experience, it also subverts Americans’ stereotypical narratives of the Vietnamese people and the Vietnam War by centering the narrative on the refugees that escaped during the fall of Saigon and how they acclimate to a new life in America. The arc of Kieu Chinh’s character, the Major’s mother, over the course of the show, spotlights this subversion particularly well. In a heartbreaking scene early in the series, her character gets chosen over her son’s daughter to board one of the last planes out of Vietnam, mirroring many of the real-life stories of Vietnamese refugees who had to make difficult last-minute decisions about which of their family members they had to leave behind. 

Kieu Chinh empathizes with her character’s plight deeply, having also experienced separation from her father and brother at a young age following the end of World War II and the split of Vietnam into two regimes after the Geneva Conference. She would later be separated again from her adopted family and her friends during the fall of Saigon in 1975, when she hopped on a plane in a mad dash to Singapore. 

“Much like the scene in 'The Sympathizer,' I packed few belongings,” Kieu Chinh says. “I had my little handbag with my passport, my lipstick and a few dollars left to my name. And the military attacked the Tan Son Nhat international airport and there was so much chaos. Air Vietnam couldn’t take off. No other flight could take off. I hid in the VIP room at the airport and we waited until the next day. Via a connection with a friend, I was able to board a Pan American airline taking American personnel only.”

Similar to Kieu Chinh’s reality, the show would further show her character struggling to assimilate to the new cultural norms of America, all the while balancing her relationship with her son and the other characters in the show who all have their own dilemmas and traumas to endure. In a refreshing flipping of the Hollywood war machine script, “The Sympathizer” depicts Vietnamese and Vietnamese Americans in all of their complexity and multidimensionality as agents of their own story, capable of both great good and great evil. 

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Not unlike many Vietnamese American refugees who Americans may have helped to come to America, Kieu Chinh feels lucky to have gotten consistent work throughout her career. “As an actress, I always respect the writer, the script and the director,” Kieu Chinh says. “I try to take the direction from the director to fulfill my duty as an actor. And off set, of course, I talk about the script with the director, but how much they take up my advice is up to them.”

After the success of “The Sympathizer,” some Vietnamese American viewers have expressed a desire for even more diverse and nuanced portrayals of the Vietnamese diaspora like the show. Kieu Chinh plans to keep working and hopes that Hollywood will produce more stories with more characters for Vietnamese actors that allow for a full breadth of experience to be shown on screen.

“Next year is already the 50-year anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War,” she says. “But there are still so many stories that have not been told. So I hope that after 'The Sympathizer,' Hollywood will continue to pick up more stories about our lives, not only ones about war. Vietnam is more than just a war.”

about this topic

• "This happened with Vietnam too": "The Sympathizer" star Alan Trong on the power of anti-war protest
• Actor "Sympathizer" Soldier Spy: How Australia's Hoa Xuande became the ultimate double agent
• "Sometimes I would push away our audience": "The Sympathizer" director Park Chan-wook feels for us

Teresa Tran is a writer, critic, and filmmaker based in Atlanta, Georgia

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Exiled Montagnard Activist in Thailand at Risk of Deportation to Vietnam, Rights Groups Say

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Y Quynh Bdap was arrested in Thailand earlier this week in connection with last year’s attack on government offices in Vietnam’s Central Highlands.

A forested hillside in the Central Highlands of Vietnam.

Human rights groups have expressed their fears for a Montagnard refugee and political activist who was arrested in Thailand earlier this week and is at risk of being deported to his home country, where he faces a 10-year prison sentence on terrorism charges.

According to the advocacy group Human Rights Watch (HRW), Y Quynh Bdap was arrested by Thai immigration police on June 11, and is currently being detained at the Bangkok Remand Prison pending an extradition trial.

The 32-year-old has been living in Thailand since 2018 and has been recognized as a refugee by the United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR. He is the co-founder of Montagnards Stand for Justice , which campaigns for political and religious freedom for the Montagnards. The French term includes the various indigenous minority groups living in Vietnam’s Central Highlands, many of whom are Protestant Christians.

The Vietnamese government has requested his extradition in connection with last year’s attacks on two government offices in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak. The attacks, which occurred in the early hours of June 11 in Cu Kuin district, left nine people dead , including four police officers, two commune officials, and three civilians.

Despite being outside the country, Y Quynh Bdap was accused of helping foment the attack and was sentenced to 10 years prison in absentia.

He was one of 100 individuals arrested in connection with the attacks, who were tried en masse over four days in January. At the conclusion of the trial, 10 were sentenced to life in prison on terrorism charges, with the remainder handed prison sentences ranging from three-and-a-half years to 20 years.

The motivation and goal of the Dak Lak attackers remain unclear, but the Central Highlands has seen periodic protests and clashes between indigenous minority groups and the central state, particularly over land disputes, economic difficulties, and crackdowns on unregistered evangelical churches. There are also deeper currents of mistrust dating back to the Vietnam War, when many Montagnards fought alongside U.S. and South Vietnamese forces. (Many were subsequently resettled in the U.S., especially in North Carolina in the vicinity of Fort Bragg, the home of the U.S. 5th Special Forces Group that helped train Montagnard forces.)

The Vietnamese government’s pursuit of Y Quynh Bdap reflects its belief that the attacks were part of an insurrectionary plot directed by Montagnard diaspora groups operating abroad, particularly in the United States, where many fled after the communist victory in 1975. In March, it listed two overseas-based political groups , including Y Quynh Bdap’s Montagnards Stand for Justice, as “terrorist organizations.”

Over the past few days, human rights advocates including HRW and Mary Lawlor, the U.N. special rapporteur for human rights defenders, have called on the Thai authorities to ensure that he is not deported.

“Returning the Vietnamese activist Y Quynh Bdap to Vietnam would place him in grave danger,” Elaine Pearson, HRW’s Asia director, said in a statement yesterday. “Thai authorities should recognize Y Quynh Bdap’s refugee status, release him, and ensure he’s not put in harm’s way.”

Unfortunately, while Thailand has long served as a sanctuary for political exiles from across Southeast Asia, particularly Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos, Bangkok has showed an increasing willingness to detain and deport dissidents from foreign countries. Conversely, these countries’ governments have agreed to do the same for the growing number of Thai dissidents who fled the country after the 2014 coup.

In a report published earlier this year, HRW described this quid pro quo arrangement as a “swap mart” of refugees and dissidents. The report noted that a growing number of exiles “have faced surveillance, violence, abductions, enforced disappearances, and forced returns facilitated by the government of Thailand.” At the same time, “Thai authorities have engaged in acts of transnational repression against exiled Thai activists in Southeast Asia.”

Most of these cases involved dissidents from Cambodia who fled to Thailand due to the country’s intensifying political crackdown over the past decade. Most recently, in February of this year, Thai authorities arrested three exiled Cambodian political activists in Thailand, ahead of state visit by Prime Minister Hun Manet, earning praise from the Cambodian leader.

As HRW notes, Thailand’s recently passed Act on Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearances prohibits the deportation or extradition of any person who could face “torture, cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment, or enforced disappearance.” But the law has never been more than a weak constraint on Thai governments’ power, and Y Quynh Bdap’s case will provide a test of whether this particular legislation has any bearing on Bangkok’s behavior.

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Donald J. Trump, the Man, the Flag

In a visual age, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee is making himself into the 51st star.

By Vanessa Friedman

Vanessa Friedman has been tracking presidential image-making since the Bush vs. Gore campaign.

When Donald J. Trump held his post-conviction news conference at Trump Tower after his hush-money trial in May, he did so in his signature red (tie), white (shirt) and blue (suit), standing before so many flags he looked like a head bobbing in an ocean of patriotic hues.

It was a bit of star-spangled scenography for the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, who, more than any of his predecessors, has embraced the flag as his official fashion inspiration, using imagery to make it a synonym for himself. (One of his favorite personal factoids is that today, June 14, happens to be both his birthday and Flag Day, the date designated by Woodrow Wilson in 1916 to commemorate the official adoption of the American flag.)

In almost every major appearance, Mr. Trump stands planted in a forest of flags — 54 of them on the last night of the 2020 Republican convention alone. Descending from Trump Air, he passes beneath an imposing flag waving proudly on the tail, the colors echoed in his clothing as if he alighted from a flying flag himself.

“Most presidents have one flag behind them when they speak, maybe two,” said Lindsay M. Chervinsky, a senior fellow at the Center for Presidential History at Southern Methodist University and the author of the coming book “Making the Presidency.”

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Home — Essay Samples — Literature — The Things They Carried — Theme of Symbolism in “The Things They Carried”

Theme of Symbolism in "The Things They Carried"

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The weight of physical objects, the burden of memory and trauma.

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Related Essays on The Things They Carried

In the short story "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien, the author effectively captures the predicaments faced by soldiers during the Vietnam War. Each soldier carries both literal and symbolic objects that serve as a link [...]

The Vietnam War was not only a physical battle but also a psychological one for the soldiers who fought in it. Tim O'Brien's novel, "The Things They Carried," explores the emotional toll of war through the experiences of various [...]

Jimmy Cross, the platoon leader in Tim O'Brien's novel "The Things They Carried," is a complex character whose physical description holds symbolic significance throughout the text. O'Brien uses Cross's physical traits to convey [...]

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The question of whether or not Tim O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried” conforms to the conventions of the memoir genre is a complex matter quite simply because it is a novel that deliberately blurs the lines of fact and fiction. [...]

In Tim O’Brien’s novel, The Things They Carried, the setting plays a pivotal role in shaping the characters and the narrative. The war-torn landscapes of Vietnam become more than just a backdrop; they become a character in [...]

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