Airman Foresees His Death

The Vietnam War that commenced on November 1, 1955, and ended on April 30, 1975, took the soldiers through a devastating experience. Many lost their lives while others maimed as the war unfolded into its full magnitude. The book Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam by Bernard Edelman presents a series of letters written by the soldiers to their loved ones and families narrating the ordeals and experiences in the Warfield. In the book, Edelman presents the narrations of over 200 letters reflecting the soldiers’ experiences on the battlefield. While the letters were written many decades ago, they hold great significance as they can mirror the periods and the contexts within which they were sent. This paper takes into account five letters from different timelines and analyzes them against the events that occurred in those periods vis a vis their significance. The conclusion will also have a personal opinion and observation regarding the book and its impacts.

In this free-verse war poem, the idea of 'journey' extends itself to cover both the physical and emotional aspects of the subject matter of the poem. Repetition and word

This quote embodies the essence of war in Vietnam. In reality, the soldiers in Vietnam were young men and boys who had just graduated high school. They were inexperienced and afraid—after all, the idea of death looming over one’s head was definitely enough to scare most of the men fighting. However, the fear of death was not enough to deter participation in the war. Fearing the loss of one’s reputation or the embarrassment of tarnishing a masculine or patriotic image was enough to enter the

American soldiers who participated in the Vietnam War came into the war as young men experienced deaths of their loved ones and seeked escapism to cope with it. “From deep fear to a lack of trust, the death of loved ones presents the harboring of a constant remembrance of Vietnam and it’s cruelties” many years after the war (Kaplan 1). The Vietnam soldiers faced unique were severely impacted by the death of their fellow soldiers dying. For example, the death of Kiowa still haunts Lieutenant Cross’s mind and it will always replay back when he wonders if he could have saved Kiowa or not. “More than 50 percent of troops engaged in active disobedience”, much politically motivated (Bahr 2). The soldiers experience discontent for the war although many of the soldiers don’t seem particularly political.

One of the great Presidents of the United States and a condemner of war, Abraham Lincoln, once said, “Military glory--that attractive rainbow, that rises in showers of blood--that serpent's eye, that charms to destroy.” Similarly, E.E. Cummings denounces war in his poems, after first hand experiences of battle in World War I. Although American society glamorizes war and the honor of sending a loved one to war, Cummings argues through his depictions of actual life on the battlefield, that this glamorization is not patriotic. People who push their children and friends into battle are not aware of and have no desire to be aware of the traumatizing experiences that the soldiers, whom they so proudly support, are facing. As exemplified through a unique writing style and the false rhetoric used by “patriots” who support war, Cummings suggests that the influence from a soldier’s home-front that pushes him to war is ironically anti-patriotic.

b) I think this poem is protesting about the war and all its horrors, giving an account of the war, and warning against the glorification of

O'Brien emphasize his theme through the use of setting. The Vietnam war started in the 1960s. It was a terrible war that could have been avoided. It "Laid the groundwork for issues he later explored in fiction, including the mind-numbing rituals of battle" (Smith 1). War is the worst way to settle disputes. The quote also means that war plays with your mind so what is seen can never be unseen."YOUR SON BILLY BOY WAS YESTERDAY SCARED TO DEATH IN ACTION IN THE REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM" (O'Brien 1). That shows in

A poem which demonstrates the futility and tragedy of war is “home-coming”. “Home-coming” is written by Bruce Dawe in 1968. It is an anti-war poem protesting against the Australia’s involvement in the Vietnam War in 1960s. In “home-coming”, the continuous loss of lives and the grief of family is clearly the main point of the poem. Bruce Dawe relies on the use of simile, repetition, metaphor and punctuation to allow

There is no lack of interpretations or assumptions of what Americans believe about the war; stating their opinions about politics or the military is not something they are afraid of doing. Whichever way a person wants to perceive the war is entirely up to them, but the viewpoints of the soldiers’ who are fighting in said war, show perspectives that are often entirely opposite of the views of those Americans. Tim O’Brien’s The Thing They Carried offers insight on the Vietnam War as told by soldiers during that time. O’Brien blurs distinction of what the truth is and what is false when it involves the storytelling of war and how everyone else perceives it; the connection of the ‘normal’ Americans, or the average American opinion on war,

Tim O’Brien’s individual response to war and the optics around it have raised a serious controversial debate on the whole issue. Tim O’Brien is particularly concerned with the frenzy and excitement about war and how patriotism and courage are deliberately misconceived in an irrational bid to reinforce this notion of spilling blood. O’Brien has articulated his regrets and despise to the Vietnam War which he strongly believes it was pointless if not an act of cowardice. Having reluctantly joined the war after being drafted by the US government, O’Brien expresses his shame and treats his involvement as a betrayal rather than heroic, as most would have perceived at the time. O’Brien makes a valid argument and therefore, his claims regarding the

Bob Dylan was known for writing, recording, and releasing inspiring music in which the themes would serve as anthems to whomever it reached. Dylan’s “Blowing in the Wind”, released in 1963, would serve to be no different. The themes in this song suggest violence in general to be a terrible option in the face of adversity. Whether it is in another country or the home front is in the United States, Dylan’s song shows his disinterest and the vast majority’s disinterest in the Vietnam War and treatment upon minorities at the time. In his song, he states, “How many times must cannonballs fly, before they’re ever banned?” He also states, “How many ears must one man have, before he can hear people cry?” These two verses referring to the Vietnam War are questioning the effectiveness of war. He is asking how

Throughout war literature, fiction or nonfiction, almost every character comes face to face with death. There is no easy way around it, death will always happen. In Tim O’Brien’s, The Things They Carried, death is woven within various stories narrated by the main character, O’Brien himself. Of all the death that O’Brien is surrounded by, the one that may appear to some as “just another kill”, surprisingly leaves the biggest impact. It can be seen as ironic, but after O’Brien had thrown the grenade that killed this enemy soldier, he finally received the reality check of the Vietnam War. Not only was there a reality check, but O’Brien’s storytelling about this soldier gave a whole new meaning to death itself.

When Americans are involved, there is no lack on interpretations of war; stating their opinions about politics or military is not something they are afraid of doing. Whichever way a person wants to perceive the war is entirely up to them, but the viewpoints of the soldiers’ who are fighting in said war, show perspectives that are often entirely opposite of the views of those Americans. Tim O’Brien’s The Thing They Carried offers insight on the Vietnam War as told by soldiers during that time. O’Brien blurs distinction of what the truth is and what is false when it involves the storytelling of war and how everyone else perceives it; the connection of the ‘normal’ Americans, or the average American opinion on war, versus the soldiers seems

In the poem Veterans Day by Dick Allen, there were many vivid observations made by the reader. The poem discusses two different people, who have taken different routes during the Vietnam War. The tone of the poem makes the reader assume the narrator has a grudge over the veterans, specifically veterans who were in the Vietnam War. Throughout the poem, the narrator is somewhat lashing out at this person, and the person is no one in particular; he could be a stranger, but a stranger who took part in the Vietnam War. The narrator gains the reader’s attention by making distinct comparisons between him and the veteran: “You were the soldier shouting at the rain. I was the marcher with a cause to claim.” The detail of the soldier shouting in the

War is hell; there is no other way to put it. No matter how many times bards romanticize war and battle, there is that ultimate, inherent ugliness involved in the business of killing. There is no honor or heroism in dying for your country, you just die, it is a great tragedy and there is nothing you can do about it. Mortality is always present on both sides fighting the battle; there will continuously be casualties. Suffering, misery and destitution are constant whether on the march, sitting in the trench or charging across no man's land. The pain is felt on both warring sides, everyone suffers, war brings nothing but anguish, joy and happiness are non-existent. No one rejoices war, unless they are zealous