Now - We Gotta Get Out Of This Place

High School Unit on Vietnam This one-­‐week unit is suitable for inclusion in college-­‐level American history surveys, high school AP history, or courses focusing on 20th-­‐century America, the 1960s, or popular culture, military history, or the history of the 1960s. Using music as a way of foregrounding the experience of veterans, rather than the political controversies surrounding Vietnam (which can be introduced in connection with their impact on veterans), its primary purpose is to introduce students to the human experience of war and the power of popular culture. Note: Teachers in schools where references to drug use or the exposure of students to realistic military language might present problems, should screen the Veteran Voices segments in advance. Day 1: Introduction and Contexts Objective: The objective of this class it to provide students with the basic concepts they need to understand the Vietnam war. During the unit, students will get a sense of the historical contexts of the war: 1) the Vietnamese struggles for independence from China and France; against Chinese and French domination; and 2) American history of the 1960s and early 1970s (the Cold War; the Civil Rights Movement; changing ideas of gender). A primary goal is to make sure students understand that there is no single Vietnam veteran experience. Rather, an individual's experience depended on the "3 Ws"-­‐-­‐when a soldier was there, where he or she served-­‐-­‐especially the difference between the experience in the field and in the rear-­‐-­‐, and what he or she did. Reading: We Gotta Get Out of This Place, pp. 6-­‐13. Veteran Voices: Doug Bradley (pp. 6-­‐9). Jay Maloney (pp. 221-­‐223). Songs: The Animals, "We Gotta Get Out of This Place"; Barry McGuire, "Eve of Destruction" Suggested web links: Montage of music and Vietnam film footage: wggootp.com Day 2: JFK's War Objective: The objective of this class is to introduce the factors that led to the escalating American involvement in Vietnam. The most important of these is the Cold War and the associated ideas of containment and the "Domino Theory." The unit links those ideas to the ideas of patriotism and masculinity that most of the soldiers, many of whose fathers had served in World War II or Korea, internalized growing up. Finally, the unit traces the origins of the anti-­‐war movement to the Civil Rights and nuclear disarmament movements, which found a voice in folk and protest music. Reading: We Gotta Get Out of This Place, pp. 20-­‐23. Veteran Voices: Jim Kurtz (p. 35); Tom Deits (pp. 40-­‐41). Songs: Staff Sgt. Barry Sadler, "The Ballad of the Green Berets"; Bob Dylan, "Masters of War." Suggested web links: Kennedy inaugural address: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4phB-­‐rRjYQw Conclusion of The Green Berets movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iECZmJPiYdM Day 3: LBJ's War Objective: This class focuses on the factors that led to the full-­‐scale war in Vietnam, and to stress the dizzying pace of change in the years of the Johnson presidency. Students will be introduced to the ways young men entered the service, via the draft or enlistment (sometimes as an alternative to being drafted). A primary goal will be to provide an overview of the nature of service in Vietnam, including the difference between service in the rear and in the field. Students should emerge from the class with a clear understanding of the loneliness most soldiers felt and the importance of home and their connections with families and girlfriends, both of which are central themes in the Vietnam soundtrack. Reading: We Gotta Get Out of This Place, pp. 44-­‐49. Veteran Voices: Gerald McCarthy (pp. 52-­‐56); W.D. Ehrhart (pp. 63-­‐67). Songs: Jimi Hendrix, "All Along the Watchtower," Bobby Bare, "Detroit City," The Temptations, "My Girl." Web links: Walter Cronkite on the state of the war: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nn4w-­‐ud-­‐TyE "Who's in charge?" scene from Apocalypse Now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AeDq_tCCj3o Day 4: Objectives: This class emphasizes the increasing sense of frustration and confusion that characterized the final years of the war. The shift in the focus of the war from ground combat to the air war will be placed in relation to Richard Nixon's election and his commitment to "Vietnamization." In addition, students will consider the impact of the anti-­‐war movement at home and it's relationship to the GI anti-­‐war movement; the increase in racial tensions in the military following the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.; and the impact of the counterculture, especially its anti-­‐
authoritarian stance and the widespread use of drugs. Reading: We Gotta Get Out of This Place, pp. 91-­‐95. Veteran Voices: Loren Webster (pp.70-­‐72); Will Williams (pp. 205-­‐207). Songs: Country Joe and the Fish, "I-­‐Feel-­‐Like-­‐I'm-­‐Fixin'-­‐To-­‐Die Rag"; Creedence Clearwater Revival, "Fortunate Son"; Aretha Franklin, "Chain of Fools." Web links: Country Joe at Woodstock: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-­‐
7Y0ekr-­‐3So Dewey Canyon III (Vietnam vets returning medals): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P1zXcQ3ZGw Day 5: Objectives: The final class focuses on the feelings of alienation experienced by large numbers of Vietnam vets on their return to the U.S., which sometimes led to PTSD, silence, and suicide. A primary goal of the class is to familiarize students with the role of music in helping heal PTSD. The class also presents the opportunity to address issues including the role myths of Vietnam (as "noble cause" or "quagmire") have played in post-­‐Vietnam America; and the comparison between the experience of Vietnam vets and those who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. Reading: We Gotta Get Out of This Place, pp. Veteran Voices: Art Flowers (pp. 192-­‐194); Bobby Muller (pp. 187-­‐190). Songs: Marvin Gaye, "What's Going On"; Bruce Springsteen, "Born in the U.S.A." Web links: Bobby Muller and Bruce Springsteen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OszxgUxrk2c George Jones, "The Wall" with film of the Wall https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJ_1VPK_PeE Supplemental reading: Tim O'Brien, "The Things They Carried" from The Things They Carried Doug Bradley, "Dog Tags" from DEROS: Dispatches from the Air-­Conditioned Jungle