How The Vietnam War Changed America History Essay

How The Vietnam War Changed America History Essay The Vietnam War was debated by many people now and then. If it were not for the Vietnam War and the world to would be a different place. The War itself changed America. The Vietnam War began in 1957 and ended in 1975, it was the longest war in which the United States took part in (The World Book Encyclopedia). Vietnam is a small country in Southeast Asia; it is about the size of the state of California with a population during the 1960s of more than 40 million people (Kent). During 1946, a war started between the French and Vietminh, where on December 19, the French bombed the northern city of Haiphong killing some six thousand Vietnamese soldiers and civilians (Kent). May 8, 1954 the Geneva Conference, Vietnam was divided into the Communist Democratic Republic of Vietnam, also known as North Vietnam, and the non-Communist Republic, called the South. The Vietnam War is also called the Indochina War or Second Indochina War (The Encyclopedia Americana International ed). In 1955 the United States started sending money to South Vietnam. President Eisenhower also agreed to help train the army. The War had several stages. From 1957 to 1963, the North aid ed rebels opposed to the government of the south headed by President Ngo Dinh Diem. On Nov. 1st The South generals overthrew the Diem and he was killed on Nov. 2 1963. From 1694 to 1969 North Vietnam and the United States did much of the fighting. President Lyndon B. Johnson sent in U.S. Marines into Da Nang, they were the first ground troops to arrive. Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand also helped South Vietnam. In 1969 the United States had more than 543,000 troops. From 1966-1969 the United States paid $28.8 billion a year in war related costs. In June of 1969 President Nixon announced that the U.S. troops would begin to withdraw (The World Book Encyclopedia). In January 1973, a cease-fire was arranged and the last of the American ground troops left Vietnam during the next two months (The World Book Encyclopedia). The war did not end here, for two more years the North and South continued to fight until Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam fell to the Communists on April 30, 1975. A total of 57,605 Americans lost their lives in combat. South Vietnamese military lost 220,357 and the North Vietnamese 499,000 people. An additional 303,700 US military personnel were wounded in the battle (The Encyclopedia Americana International ed). Many people were torn about the war. Some felt that the United States needed to be involved and that it was noble of them. Many others called it cruel, unnecessary, and wrong. This debate still goes on today Americans still do not agree on the goals, conduct, and lessons of the U.S. participation in the war. There were many horror stories from the war, many in which the army tried to hide. In the village of My Lai, soldiers searching for Vietcong suspects, ended up dashing from hut to hut murdering everyone they found. As many as four hundred people died in this spree of senseless violence (Kent). The veterans of most American wars returned as heroes. This was not so with this war. The soldiers that were returning home from Vietnam received no heroes welcome. These soldiers were seen as unbalanced or potential criminals. Other saw them as the unfortunate victims of Americas terrible mistake (Kent). One form of art that came from the Vietnam War was the Memorial. The Vietnam veterans Memorial was designed by Maya Ying Lin, and was created to help heal the emotional and spiritual wounds which the war left as its legacy. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial officially opened on November 11, 1982 almost ten years after the end of the war. In the first five years, it received 20 million visitors (Kent). Still today thousands of people visit the V-shaped monument of glossy black granite which stands on the Capitol Mall in Washington, D.C. The wall, covered with the names of the U.S. men and women who died. In 1966 the Artists Protest Committee organized the Peace Tower, which stood at the corner of Sunset and La Cienega Boulevards. Artist covered the sculpture with over 400 small panels submitted by artist from all around the world. Each panel was an artistic antiwar statement, and artists who submitted works include Philip Evergood, Moses and Raphael Soyer, Robert Motherwell, Jim Rosenquis t, Philip Pearlstein, Arnold Meshes, and Judy Chicago. In May of 1970 nearly 2,000 artist gathered at New York University to organize a day long Art Strike. On May 22nd the actual day of the shutdown, the Jewish Museum, the Whitney Museum, and fifty private galleries shut their doors. The Museum of Modern Art stayed open but ran an antiwar film festival free of charge. Frank Stella closed his exhibit for the strike. The Guggenheim Museum remained open- but waved entry fees and removed all paintings from its walls. Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Museum of Art had been targeted for a major demonstration by artists for refusing to participate in the Art Strike. For nearly the entire day, hundreds of artists carrying signs reading Art Strike Against Racism, War, Repression. (Vallen) Music can say a lot about an era. During the 1960s and 1970s the traditional outlets in classical, instrumental, ballads, swing, jazz, country, folk and pop, as well as the new soul, Motown, rock and roll, and many other sounds. Many of the musical artists from this era are still popular or well know today. The 1960 was another great year for Elvis. In 1961 Tossin and Turnin by Bobby Lewis was the number one hit of the year. Dave Brubeck delivered some of the best jazz ever. Then in 1962 came many dance song still played today, Mashed Potato, Twist and Shout, and Loco-motion by Little Eva. In 1963 the world saw new genres of music when pop came out with the Beach Boys with Surfin, Little Stevie Wonder and Peter, Paul, and Mary. The Birth of the Beatles came in 1964. The Fab Four changed the scene of music in America by introducing the Mersey sound and band like Manfred Mann started to be heard as a result. The Supremes and the Four Seasons also started Motown. The number one hit in 1 965 went to The Rolling Stones with (I Cant Get No) Satisfaction, while the Beatles stayed strong with the number two spot. 1965 also saw Bob Dylan and Sonny and Cher. The number one hit in 1966 was Ballad of the Green Berets, sung by Sgt. Barry Sadler. This song was a reflection of Americas growing involvement in Vietnam. The Monkees also hit the charts this year and the power of the media was soon to sweep away the power of patriotism. 1967 was a wild and wooley year in music. There was a huge mix of styles ranging from ballads to rock to Motown to psychedelia. Aretha Franklin wanted to get a little R-e-s-p-e-c-t. We were born to be wild in 1968 with Steppenwolf. We also saw Simon and Garfunkel go from lyrical strength to catchy strength. No one could forget about the Beatles, as every song they seemed to write would rise right to the top. 1969s number one went to The Fifth Dimension with Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In. Sugar, Sugar took the number two spot, while the top ten also i ncluded the Rolling Stones, The Beatles, and The Doors. 1970 was absolutely huge on the pop music scene, and much of its popularity is still strong today with heaps of real classics from Simon Garfunkel, Stevie Wonder, the Beatles, Aretha and B.B. King still on the pop airwaves. (Vietnam era music top ten hits from each year of the war). During the War many soldiers wrote poetry based on their experiences during the war. Here are a few of my favorites. VIETNAMESE MORNING Before war starts In early morning The land is breath taking. The low, blazing, ruby sun Melts the night-shadow pools Creating an ethereal appearance. Each miniature house and tree Sprouts its, long, thin shadow Stretching long on dewy ground. The countryside is panoramic maze, Jungle, hamlets, hills and waterways, Bomb-craters, paddies, broken-backed bridges. Rice fields glow sky-sheens, Flat, calm, mirrored lakes Reflect the morning peace. The patchwork quilted earth, Slashed by snaking tree-lines, Slumbers in dawns blue light. Sharp, rugged mountain peaks Sleep   in a soft rolling blanket Of clinging, slippery, misty fog. Effortlessly, languidly, it flows Shyly spreading wispy tentacles out To embrace the earth with velvet arms. Curt Bennett Copyright Curt Bennett  © 2003 This shows me what it was that the soldiers saw when they first got to Vietnam; the land was beautiful until the bombs came and burned down everything. PROFANITY When hungry bullets Chew into soft airplane bodies Sending dials and gauges Spinning in whirling circlesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ When the little red warning lights Scream in alarm, blink-red, blink-red, blink-red! It is then you discover The beauty of profanity! And the need to know all the words! But in no particular order. Curt Bennett Copyright Curt Bennett  © 2003 This poem takes me to the moment this soldier thinks that he might die. His airplane has been hit with gun fire and he knows that he will go down; he is going to pay with his life for my freedom. BEFORE THE WAR I wonder whats the matter with him. Hes not the way he was before. Hes not the way he used to be. The way he was before the war. He had no way of knowing What horrors were in store. Then communication ceased When he went off to war. He left while only in his teens. Now hes so much older. The warmth of his youth is gone. His spirits so much colder. His eyes look deeply haunted. He has no joy anymore. He doesnt laugh and rarely smiles. He stares down at the floor. He speaks in cryptic code. He talks of blood and gore. Then lapses into silence Since he came back from war. I wonder what he saw there That fills his eyes with fright. All those unknown terrors Keep him awake at night. Certain sounds will startle him And send him out the door. Will he ever have peace again, As he had before the war? He turns away from mirrors. Who he sees must frighten him. Theres no respite in his mind Because all his thoughts are grim. I dont know what to say to him. I cant talk as I did before. Hes not the person that I knew Before he went to war. He doesnt even look the same, So pale and so thin. Its like another person Came back inside his skin. He used to be such fun, So easy to adore. Its like he disappeared When he returned from war. I wonder what became of him. I never see him anymore. Hes not the person he once was. I mean, before the war. Copyright 2003 Penny Rock All Rights Reserved. With this poem I can really see the boy that left to go in to war, he was young and ready to show the world that he was a man. And that he did, but like so many that returned home from the war he change. The fear of death, killing people, seeing friends and fellow American Soldiers die can take a big toll and a person, they will never be the same again. I might not have been alive during the Vietnam War, but though poetry, art and music I can live the experience without leaving my own home. I can get a feel for the way the world was and how it has change as a result of the war.

Out of Kansas :: Personal Narrative Papers

Out of Kansas I find it on the high bookshelf—Maus: A Survivor’s Tale. I’ve heard about it. It’s about the Holocaust. Mice play the Jews, and cats play the German Nazis. I understand it already. Cats are predators to mice. That’s easy enough. I start reading. The Polish people are pigs. Wait a minute, I don’t get it. Why are they pigs? I’m getting confused. I want to give up. Instead, I pick it up and start again. We begin as moody troubleshooters: we see a puzzle piece that doesn’t fit—we either chop off a corner or throw the thing away. What is a stereotype besides a way of grouping things in order to understand them in a complete and perfectly organized way? To say that something didn’t fit would be an admission that we are unsure of the world we are living in—a frightening thought. Further, we are often conditioned through art to recognize these stereotypes without thought and to react identically as a community—a means of creating and controlling an ideal society. Theater theorist and playwright Bertolt Brecht says of European theater, â€Å"It is well known that contact between audience and stage is normally made on the basis of empathy† (136). The goal is often to make audiences identify with the characters and the stories so that they will reach a natural state of controlled catharsis at the end. Many audiences have thus learned to expect and enjoy such a style. Audiences seek art that will pick them up and pull them along for the entire ride. Underground comic, illustrator, and magazine editor Art Spiegelman meets that desire in his novel-sized comic Maus. Spiegelman describes his work: â€Å"The goal was to get people moving forward, to get my eye and thought organized enough so that one could relatively, seamlessly, be able to become absorbed in the narrative† (Jun 10). A story that absorbs the audience into its own unslowing whirlwind sounds a lot like Brecht’s description of the cathartic theater of control. However, Spiegelman’s works haven’t always had the same goal. In his early career, the question that motivated his art was, â€Å"How many obstacles could you put in somebody’s path before the reader just caved in and couldn’t handle it anymore?† (Juno, 8). The goal was to stilt catharsis—to kill it in its tracks in order to provoke active thought. I read his 1972 comic strip à ¢â‚¬Å"Skinless Perkins.

Hamlet Insanity Essay

During the chamber scene, Hamlet shows an insane side to not only his mother, but everyone else in the play. Hamlet clearly demonstrates how insane he is after killing Polonius and showing no remorse for his death. Another example of Hamlets insanity is during the chamber scene, when Hamlet’s talking to his mother, the ghost appears talking to Hamlet, but the queen couldn’t see the ghost, only Hamlet could see his fathers ghost. These examples show how crazy, and insane Hamlet is not only in the chamber scene, but throughout the play. Hamlet clearly demonstrates how insane he is after killing Polonius and showing no remorse for his death. Right before Hamlet entered the chamber to talk to his mother, Polonius explains to the queen that he will be hiding and ease dropping on their conversation, to find out the real reason for Hamlet erratic behavior. Hamlet enters the chamber, on a rampage after finding Claudius guilty of killing his father and also seeing him trying to pray. Hamlet goes off on his mother when she says, â€Å"Hamlet, thou hast thy father much offended† (l. 10). That also triggered his anger to the point where the queen feared for her life and as told to do so, she yelled for help. Polonius tries to come out from behind the curtain and before you know it, he was stabbed by Hamlet. At this point, after he stabbed Polonius, killing him, Hamlet first thought it was Claudius that was hiding behind the curtain. Later finding out it was Claudius, Hamlet says, â€Å"A bloody dead– almost as bad, good mother, as killing a king, and marry with his brother† (l. 27-28). You would think that Hamlet would be scared for his life after realizing he killed someone. Not Hamlet, he just continues on with his conversation with the queen about how crazy it is that she remarried so soon. Hamlet showing no remorse for killing someone shows that he is not mental stable and doesn’t realize what just happened. When Hamlet’s talking to his mother, the ghost appears talking to Hamlet, but the queen couldn’t see the ghost, only Hamlet could see his fathers ghost. After the queen finding out that her â€Å"new† husband is a murderer, the ghost reappears in the chamber, reminding Hamlet to not harm his mother because she had nothing to do with anything. Hamlet is trying to explain to his mother by saying, â€Å"To whom do you speak this? Do you see nothing there? Nothing at all, yet all that is I see. Nor did you nothing hear? No, nothing but ourselves† (l. 135- 139). To the queen, she thinks Hamlet’s gone mad, but Hamlet tries to explain himself to her by saying he saw the ghost and that its his father talking to him. Hamlet’s mother doesn’t know what to believe at this point. She doesn’t want Hamlet killing her, so she agrees with whatever Hamlet says. The queen fears for her own life, and that is why the readers think that this is why she agrees with Hamlet. Hamlet insanity takes over his life and he soon finds himself struggling to find what makes sense and what doesn’t. The chamber scene is one of the most important scenes that prove to the readers that Hamlet is crazy. Even though Hamlet tries to prove himself to not be crazy, he just can’t convince his mother, or Ophelia, or anyone else in the play that he isn’t crazy. In the beginning of the play, he shows little signs of being insane, but as you progress throughout the play, you realize that Hamlet is not mentally stable by his actions and words.

Cache Level 3 Diary Task 8.1 - 1526 Words

Unit 8 Task 1- Write a relative account of how the practitioner should respond to parents. P8.1 In a setting it is very often that practitioners will receive enquiries from parents and carers. It is therefore important to respond in the appropriate way. It is very important to follow up any enquiries from parents as this will show them that you care about their concerns or questions. Every practitioner should show and reassure the parents that their opinions and circumstances matter and will always be addressed to. As a student practitioner with children, it is most likely necessary to refer parents to supervisors who they may be more acquainted with and who may be able to help them more in order to ensure best practice. As a†¦show more content†¦Therefore an effective way to ensure confidentiality is by making appointments to see practitioners or parents face to face in a private area so only the necessary adults are involved and there is less danger brought for the child. In order to maintain confidentiality in the setting, practitioners should provide a use pas swords on computers and files so that important and personal information will not be shared with people who are not involved with the family, or who could become a danger to a child and their family. To ensure and maintain confidentiality it is important to not speak about the children in a public place where there are other parents that may know the child or who may be offended by teachers gossiping. It is also important for practitioners to make sure they dont speak about children or their families with other practitioners for example students, or practitioners from other agencies and organisations. Whilst in my setting I showed ways to maintain confidentiality while carrying out observations on children; By not stating the child’s name for protection purposes or the settings details so that no traces can be brought back to the child because if it got into the wrong hands there could be serious problematic outcomes. Information that gets out could include medical issues and I would not want to cause any embarrassment to either the parents or theShow MoreRelatedCashe Level 2 Essay example18123 Words   |  73 PagesCACHE Qualification Specification CACHE Level 2 Certificate for the Children and Young People’s Workforce (QCF) CACHE Level 2 Certificate for the Children and Young People’s Workforce (QCF)  © CACHE 2011 Except as allowed by law, or where specified in the text, no part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior permission from the Council for Awards in Care, Health and Education. CACHE has provided this Qualification Specification in Microsoft