The Vietnam War (1964-1973) remains to be among the biggest armed conflicts of the United States. The war has had a significant impact on the American society. It left a mark on all spheres of life in the country, because economic, social, cultural, political, and spiritual domains reacted to it. The conflict began in 1957 in South Vietnam, but over time, the North Vietnam became involved in the war. The Vietnam War left a significant trace in the history of the world; moreover, it remains an important part of the US history and its position in the world. The Vietnam tragedy affected the American communities on the level of mass and individual consciousness. The theme of war and consequences of armed conflict were observed in the mainstream American culture, including cinema, literature, music, and art. The current paper assesses the effects of Vietnam War on the American culture and the difference in perception of armed conflict.

The expressions of Fitzgerald

In her book “Fire in the Lake", Frances Fitzgerald suggests that Americans did not bother to learn about Vietnam and the people. The US citizens seemed to have taken communism as the most important threat in the conflict. As a result, they ignored the long struggle of Vietnamese people for independence and sovereignty, as well as protection from foreign aggressors. The author also claims that the US government totally refused to perceive country with its history, values, culture and traditions. Instead, the troops just tried to impose the American policy, instill democracy, change the culture, and initiate technological progress in Vietnam (Flitzgerald 98). The strategy was knowingly a failure and resulted into the largest collapse in the US history. Fitzgerald remarks that "the American officials in supporting the Saigon government insisted that they were defending 'freedom and democracy' in Asia. They left the GIs to discover that the Vietnamese did not fit into their experience of either 'communist' or 'democrats' (Flitzgerald 121). Therefore, the approaches to war strategy did not change the final outcome. Without learning the specifics of the culture, Americans could not approach the politics of Vietnam.

The Vietnam War had a very significant impact on the outlook of the US population. Some citizens openly disagreed with the American intrusion into a foreign country. There was a new movement of hippies, who were against the war as a mean of political activities. They created an entire culture, contributed to the development of rock and roll and jazz. The culmination of the sub-culture activism was the so-called "Trip to the Pentagon". In October 1967, nearly hundred thousand young people gathered in Washington to protest against the Vietnam War. Moreover, the protests also took place during the US Democratic Party convention in Chicago in August 1968 (Anderegg 75). The American citizens observed the war and its horrors, society had a huge resonance. The conflict stimulated the growing role of public opinion in the process of formation and implementation of the US foreign policy.

During the Vietnam War, the United States became a victim of the monster that they have created by themselves. The media started playing an extremely significant role in the life of average American. By the mid-60s, the influence of television and the press reached its historical peak. Mohammed Ali, who refused conscription, became a national hero. Deserters started being guests of the TV shows; the veterans were awaited by public contempt upon returning. US media pacifists, actors, musicians and journalists have become "the fifth column" that the country has failed to account for (Blood 25). Foreign military correspondents helped US citizens and the international community to understand the nature of the Vietnam War better. Thus, their first-hand articles and pictures of the places of combat operations had a considerable effect on the citizen opinions. The public influenced the decision for the complete withdrawal of the US troops from Vietnam. The media sources have created pressure on the American public, and prompted the US government to stop the war in Vietnam.

Wilson Hubbell’s story

Wilson Hubbell was a flight engineer on a CH47 helicopter in Vietnam and served first as a mechanic and later as a CH-47 helicopter crewmember with the 1st Cavalry Division and the 1st Aviation Brigade in the II Corps area of South Vietnam. He described the war as following. “It is like you got a full time job, and you go out in the morning to war, and if you survive, you come home.” The provided description very accurately explains the life of the soldier during the war. He has to perform his duties without argument, but at the same time, he has no guarantee of returning home safely. The war has always been and will forever remain one of the most frightening things in the history of humanity. In armed conflicts, soldiers and civilians die every day, people lose their families and relatives, the consequences of wars break people physically and mentally. The American society experienced the consequences during Vietnam War. Moreover, they acquired the feeling of sympathy for the Vietnamese. In my opinion, Americans have understood the experiences of American soldiers in Vietnam. The media presented the realistic picture. Thus, the war caused the storm of negative reactions in the American society, especially in the circles of hippies and pacifists. Moreover, the occurrence of Vietnam syndrome resulted in extremely negative preconceived look at armed conflicts of all types. Thus, the Americans understood the terrible mistake of their government and realized the consequences of US invasion in its worst manifestation.

America was shaken by thousands of demonstrations against the Vietnam War. Former Viet Cong soldier Kao Bay said "Yes, we were weaker in material terms, but our fighting spirit and will were stronger than yours “Our war was fair and your was not, your infantry there knew this as well as the American people..." (Bradley, 85). . With the Nixon's victory at the elections in 1969, the United States began the gradual Vietnamization of military actions. Opponents realized the full seriousness of the victims question for Americans. Thus, the Vietnamese were fighting a war to defeat. During the period, moral corruption of soldiers and officers has threatened the success of the operation. Moreover, the American public had access to the shocking news of the brutal crimes of compatriots. Thus, the knowledge about Vietnamese situation created the ground for American citizens to start protesting against the war. The country understood the experiences of soldiers.

Thus, the echoes and implications of the Vietnam War have influenced American culture in many spheres. The Vietnam War appeared to be one of the most unjustified, cruel and terrible armed conflicts in the history of the US. Moreover, the American society understood the effects. Americans showed the war in the air, which caused the protests. The community leaders, media, television, and cinema have invested significant resources in discrediting the image of the country. The US learned a great lesson after the Vietnam War and Vietnam syndrome still haunts the American society.

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