The 11 essays in this volume examine the cultural and social impacts of the Vietnam War, as well as current knowledge about the war and its outcomes, focusing on effects on the lives of ordinary people. Scholars working in anthropology, cultural studies, and literary and film criticism in the US, UK, Australia, and Canada consider how the Vietnamese diaspora engage with and shape the legacies of the war, such as using the internet as a site for memorialization, and the experiences of disabled South Vietnamese veterans, Hong Kong's boat people, and veterans of the war and Vietnamese resettlers in Australia; how Vietnamese American writers and artists portray the war, in the films Land of Sorrows and Journey from the Fall, the comic The 'Nam, and the works of writer Le Ly Hayslip; and underexamined stories of the war in Vietnam and the US, such as mourning rites in Vietnam and survivors of Agent Orange. Annotation ©2016 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)
Looking Back on the Vietnam War embarks on an interdisciplinary and international investigation to discover what we remember about the war, how we remember it, and why. Each essay examines a different facet of the Vietnam War, offering fresh insights on the wars long-term psychological, social, artistic, political, and environmental impacts. By putting these diverse pieces together, the contributors assemble an expansive yet nuanced composite portrait of the war and its global legacies.
More than forty years have passed since the official end of the Vietnam War, yet the wars legacies endure. Its history and iconography still provide fodder for film and fiction, communities of war refugees have spawned a wide Vietnamese diaspora, and the United States military remains embroiled in unwinnable wars with eerie echoes of Vietnam.
Looking Back on the Vietnam War brings together scholars from a broad variety of disciplines, who offer fresh insights on the wars psychological, economic, artistic, political, and environmental impacts. Each essay examines a different facet of the war, from its representation in Marvel comic books to the experiences of Vietnamese soldiers exposed to Agent Orange. By putting these pieces together, the contributors assemble an expansive yet nuanced composite portrait of the war and its global legacies.
Though they come from diverse scholarly backgrounds, ranging from anthropology to film studies, the contributors are united in their commitment to original research. Whether exploring rare archives or engaging in extensive interviews, they voice perspectives that have been excluded from standard historical accounts. Looking Back on the Vietnam War thus embarks on an interdisciplinary and international investigation to discover what we remember about the war, how we remember it, and why.
