The Human Tradition in the Vietnam Era

by David L. Anderson (Editor)

Overview

The Vietnam War was an immense national tragedy that played itself out in the individual experiences of millions of Americans. The conflict tested and tormented the country collectively and individually in ways few historical events have. The Human Tradition in the Vietnam Era provides window into some of those personal journeys through that troubled time.

The poor and the powerful, male and female, hawk and dove, civilian and military, are all here. This rich collection of original biographical essays provides contemporary readers with a sense of what it was like to be an American in the 1960s and early 1970s, while also helping them gain an understanding of some of the broader issues of the era.

The diverse biographies included in this book put a human face on the tensions and travails of the Vietnam Era. Students will gain a better understanding of how individuals looked at and lived through this contro-versial conflict in American history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780842027632
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	04/01/2000
Series:	The Human Tradition in America , #5
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	237
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.54(d)

About the Author

David L. Anderson is professor of history and chair of the Department of History and Political Science, and associate dean of arts and sciences at the University of Indianapolis.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Introduction
Part 2 I. Americans Enter the Vietnam Quagmire
Chapter 3 Francis Cardinal Spellman and 'Spellman's War'
Chapter 4 Ambassador William Cattell Trimble and Cambodia, 1959-1962
Chapter 5 Walt Rostow, Cheerful Hawk
Chapter 6 'The Expert': Bernard Fall and His Critique of America's Involvement in Vietnam
Part 7 II. Americans Become Trapped in the Vietnam Quagmire
Chapter 8 In My Brother's Name: The Life and Death of Spec. 4 Bill Weber
Chapter 9 Seawillow Chambers: Soldier's Wife
Chapter 10 Nancy Randolph, Army Nurse: 'Ten Thousand Patients in Nine Months [and] All Downhill since Then'
Chapter 11 Bill Henry Terry Jr., Killed in Action: An African American's Journey from Alabama to Vietnam and Back
Part 12 III. Americans Struggle Against the Vietnam Quagmire
Chapter 13 David Shoup: Four-Star Troublemaker
Chapter 14 Otto Feinstein, the McCarthy Campaign in Michigan, and Campus Activism during the Cold War
Chapter 15 Daniel Ellsberg: The Man Who Uncovered the War
Chapter 16 Peter Arnett: Reporting America's Wars from Saigon to Baghdad
Chapter 17 Index

Editorial Reviews

David Anderson has compiled a superb collection of a dozen biographies of individuals who supported, opposed, or were affected by the Vietnam War. Lucidly written, The Human Tradition in the Vietnam Era is an excellent choice for classes on that long conflict during those tumultuous years.

Terry Anderson

These fascinating biographies reveal in compelling fashion the way in which individuals influenced and were influenced by the Vietnam War.

George C. Herring

These fascinating biographies reveal in compelling fashion the way in which individuals influenced and were influenced by the Vietnam War.--George C. Herring, University of Kentucky

David Anderson has compiled a superb collection of a dozen biographies of individuals who supported, opposed, or were affected by the Vietnam War. Lucidly written, The Human Tradition in the Vietnam Era is an excellent choice for classes on that long conflict during those tumultuous years.--Terry Anderson, Texas A& M University, author of The Movement and The Sixties

This is a wonderful addition to the literature on the Vietnam-American war, allowing readers to approach the subject through the medium of an impressively varied set of short biographies. The Human Tradition in the Vietnam Era transforms policy and practice from the abstract to the intimate and personal. Through the accounts of those who shaped policy, who resisted it, and who suffered from it, the reader gains an increased understanding of a war that continues to absorb and trouble the nation.--Marilyn B. Young, author of The Vietnam Wars, 1945-1990

From the Publisher

This is a wonderful addition to the literature on the Vietnam-American war, allowing readers to approach the subject through the medium of an impressively varied set of short biographies. The Human Tradition in the Vietnam Era transforms policy and practice from the abstract to the intimate and personal. Through the accounts of those who shaped policy, who resisted it, and who suffered from it, the reader gains an increased understanding of a war that continues to absorb and trouble the nation.

Marilyn B. Young

The Human Tradition in the Vietnam Era goes beyond most Vietnam books to provide a cross-section of opinions and experiences documenting the lasting effects of the war.

The Bookwatch