The Vietnam War The Vietnam War 1959 1975

The Vietnam War

The Vietnam War (1959 - 1975) • 1954: End of French colonial rule • 1954: Vietnam divided in Geneva accords • 1959: Start of Viet Cong guerilla attacks on South • 1964: Tonkin Incident / Americanization of the war • 1968: Tet-Offensive • 1969: My Lai Massacre • 1969: Vietnamization of the war • 1974: Withdrawal of American troops • 1975: Surrender of South Vietnam, end of war

They carried all they could bear, and then some, including a silent awe for the terrible power of the things they carried. The Things They Carried Tim O’Brien

"The Things They Carried" "The things they carried were determined by necessity" "[…] plus the unweighed fear" Ø physical objects Ø "emotional baggage" Ø Ø letters can openers knives ‘dog tags’ canteens Ø weapons Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø fears / anxieties grief terror love shameful memories common secrets

Group Task § Choose a character from the story and list the things he carries. Then discuss what each of the items on your list tells us about… § § … the character … the war Jimmy Cross Rat Kiley Norman Bowker Kiowa Henry Dobbins Mitchell Sanders Dave Jensen Ted Lavender Lee Strunk

Writing Task § Write a 3 oo word essay about a special thing you carry/carried. Describe the object in detail, the mood it evokes and the reasons for its importance.

Foxhole After a day’s march he would dig his foxhole, wash his hands under a canteen, unwrap the letters […] and spend the last hour of light pretending.

US draft He was just a kid at war, in love. He was twenty-four years old. He couldn’t help it.

‘Tunnel rats’ Will your flashlight go dead? Do rats carry rabies? If you screamed, how far would the sound carry? Would your buddies hear it?

VC snipers Like cement, Kiowa whispered in the dark. I swear to God – boom – down. Not a word.