Introduction
The protracted American involvement in Vietnam helped
usher in a host of détente-minded American foreign policymakers,
raised American awareness of the imperial aspects of
American foreign policy, forced every day Americans
to re-examine the fundamental underpinnings of their
way of life, and spurred sharp generational cleavages
in American families. As time passes, and the immediacy
of Vietnam and its lessons continues to fade, it becomes
more important than ever to promote understanding of
the origins, conduct, and impact of what one historian
has dubbed, "America's longest war."
Objectives
To help students understand how the United States
became ensnared in what one historian has aptly called
the "quagmire."
To stress the importance of the Tet Offensive in
turning American public opinion against the war.
To illuminate how the Vietnam War remains a vital
part of American life and culture.
Part I: Context and Origins
The first part of the lecture should aim to firmly
ground the student in the geography and history of Southeast
Asia. Begin with a map
that helps illustrate Vietnam's nearness to China and
Japan, and its distance from the United States. Using
an outline,
describe how geography heavily influenced the course
of early Vietnamese history. A second
outline detail how the French, in the European mania
for empire, came to occupy and colonize Vietnam. End
with the rise of Ho Chi Minh and the French defeat at
Dien Bien Phu (the website Vietnam Passage: Journeys from War to Peace should come in very handy
for this discussion).
Next, take time to review America's grand strategy
in the Cold War. Be sure to remind the students of George
Kennan's policy of containment, and how successive presidential
administrations applied it throughout the world. Illustrate
how America's policy of gradual escalation ultimately
resulted in Johnson's decision to send ground troops.
Part II: Tet and the Counterculture
When the Americans entered the war in earnest, American
public opinion was solidly behind the effort. Despite
a nagging inability to win the war, the American government
still projected a confident and optimistic façade to
the American people. (For a review of major American
battles, use this interactive map from CNN:
The Cold War.) The perceived American defeat at
Tet, however, changed American opinion drastically.
Tet helped convince many Americans that the American
military was losing, and, what was worse, that the American
objectives in Vietnam were misguided or downright imperial.
As a result, Tet helped spur the notion that the war
in Vietnam symbolized all that was wrong with America,
and to that end, Vietnam increasingly became a lightning
rod for a variety of protests. Listen to Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr., as he eloquently illustrates the linkages
between American misadventures in Southeast Asia and
the struggle for equal rights by people of color: http://www.hpol.org/mlk/vietnam-19670416-speech.ram.
Some of the most enduring artifacts of Vietnam protest
are songs from the Sixties. This site http://www.summeroflove.org/sixties.music.html
is just one of many dedicated to sixties music. Have
your students compare popular songs with those written
by American soldiers in Vietnam http://faculty.buffalostate.edu/fishlm/folksongs/americansongs.htm.
The
Sixties Project contains a great deal of primary
documents on groups and individuals who argued against
America's continued involvement in Vietnam. The
soldier's testimony is particularly powerful.
If you are having your student's read a book on Vietnam,
such as Philip Caputo's A Rumour of War, this
page could add to their understanding of the book.
You might ask the following questions: How could
Tet be both a victory and a defeat? How did Martin
Luther King compare the Vietnam War with the civil rights
movement? What were some of the arguments used
by those protesting against the war?
Other methods to encourage active learning could include
an in-class debate between pro- and anti-war views,
or perhaps use a "talk show" format that has
several students play key figures from the conflict
and field questions from the "audience."
You could also have students compare the views of several
key figures in the Vietnam conflict using the CNN:
The Cold War site. Other lesson ideas are
located on the site Vietnam Passage: Journeys from War to Peace.
Part III: The Soldiers and the Legacy
The experience of the many Americans in Vietnam offers
a great way to wrap up your discussion. Vietnam
Veterans of America offers an excellent repository
for links on the experience of American soldiers in
Vietnam. Most fitting for the end of your discussion
would be a brief treatment of the Vietnam War Memorial.
This site would be an excellent place to start: http://thewall-usa.com/.
Ask your students to comment on the design, color, and
shape of the monument. A field trip to the memorial
would be a great idea! You might also have Vietnam
veterans come to your class and discuss their experiences
with the students. |
