Blog 3 - AV It didn't let me put it in the comments because it was too long.

Tim O’Brien’s The Things they Carried, is a collection of stories from fictional characters that fought in the Vietnam War. The book starts off with a description of what the soldiers “carried” with them. This included both material, and immaterial things. Soldiers carried things that we considered “necessities” , such as weapons, water, canned food, and much more. Some more examples of material thing include letters from loved ones, “lucky charms” from loved ones, etc. O’Brien used the list of physical objects that soldiers carry to show the emotional burdens that these soldiers bear. One example is how many of the soldiers are struggling to distinguish between fantasy and reality. The reason why O’Brien decides to do is, so he can show the reader what it felt like in the war. He wants to show us that even when the soldiers weren’t in a fire fight, they were always struggling; some physically, others emotionally.

One example of this is Jimmy Cross. He is holding on to a letter from the love of his life, Martha. The letter is not a love letter, but every night, Jimmy sits there and fantasies about the life Martha, and the life that he plans on having with her after the war is over. He is not certain if Martha loves him, but he tries to make himself think that she does. The reason I believe that soldiers were fantasizing instead of being realistic, is because there was a war going on in the real world. There was nothing good in what they were doing every single day, killing people, and having to think about that every day is ideal for many people. Thus, they had no choice but to try and themselves feel happy, and the best way to do that is to fantasize about the people they left back and the life they were going to have after the war. Not many soldiers saw the negative effects of fantasizing but there are a few. One is that it interferes with the duties of being a soldier. They would get caught up into the idea too much, and lose sight of reality and the war, thus, putting their lives and the lives of fellow soldiers in dangerous.

One interesting concept that O’Brien explores is the idea of what a “hero” is. A “hero” in our society is someone who tries to make the world a better place, and puts other people needs before their own. In chapter 4, On the Rainy River, O’Brien starts talking about what a hero is. He does this through telling us war stories, and giving examples of people he saw as heroes. To O’Brien, a hero is someone who has the courage to stand by their convictions and is able to the hard decisions, and stick by them, which not many people can do. O’Brien shows us that he is not a hero. He failed to stand by his own beliefs, and go into Canada and not enlist in the war. However, he didn’t; shame and embarrassment caused him to return back to the states and enlist in a war he didn’t have any reason to believe in. Thus, a hero is not someone who sacrifices his own life for the greater good, or a life of another to save many more, but someone who is able to stand by his own beliefs and make decisions that no one else can.

Another concept that was very interesting in the book was truth vs. the true. Many people would consider these two words synonymous, and in a sense they are. However, in these stories I believe they’re a bit different. Truth, I think, is what really happened and what can be proven. The true, I believe, is also true, but not the ultimate truth. In one event, many people can perceive something in a different way, and when they tell what happened, they are telling their own perception of what happened, and that’s not necessarily a lie, but there can be many different versions of the story because everyone perceived it differently. So, the true, is what one single person perceives and believes happened, truth, is the ultimate truth.

The last chapter of the book, The Live of the Dead, O’Brien talks about the girl that he loved, Linda. Linda died at a very young age due to brain cancer. Linda’s death symbolizes O’Brien’s “loss of innocence” because with that event he experiences both love and death for the first time. This helped him throughout his time in Vietnam because he had dealt with the death of someone he loved prior to going to Vietnam.

This book was an amazing piece of writing. Although, this book may seem like a non-fiction, it’s actually a fiction. Both the characters and the stories within this book are fictional. However, the ideas behind the story is not made up, soldiers in Vietnam really did go through most of things found within this book. O’Brien does a great job getting the things that happened in Vietnam across to the reader through the use of fictional stories. This book was the kind that tried to show us what soldiers where feeling, and what they were going through. It wasn’t as much about fighting, as most war novels are. This book did a great job explaining to us what soldiers had to deal with in the war, besides the obvious.

Blog 12 JKK

“The Fog of War” is a film created about Robert McNamara, former Secretary of Defense. Robert McNamara was Secretary of Defense during the Vietnam War and discusses his struggles in this film. One of the main reasons McNamara decided to make this film was to try and change the way the world viewed him. McNamara was controversial and often blamed for the Vietnam War. Through the documentary, he tried to clear his name and make people see that politicians are normal people too who make mistakes. He uses the documentary as a way to justify his actions in the Vietnam War and World War II. McNamara also made this movie to give advice to the future leaders of America through his eleven lessons so that others do not make the same mistakes he did.

After the lesson “get the data” the tone of McNamara seems to shift. He was confident in his decisions and the war up until that point. After talking about getting the data and learning about the Vietnamese people, he does not seem confident any longer. After talking about that lesson, he seems reluctant and regretful as he continues discussing the other lessons. He recognizes that he made a mistake and that sometimes rational people make irrational decisions.

Blog 1 JY

The two narratives in the story were about Ho Chi Minh and the killing of a political leader. The first story is a man reflecting on his past relationship with Ho Chi Minh they used to work at a bakery and moved to Paris with each other later. In Paris their ideas began to be different The man became Buddhist while Ho Chi Minh wanted to talk with Wilson to get the Vietnamese people their rights and have a say in parliament. He was not able to get an audience with Wilson or any other leader. When he appears it seems as if he is sad and remembering the past when they worked at the bakery. The second story is of a man that told people that they should try to work with the communist government. Since they were in New Orleans which is in America there was a group called the Annihilation of Communism and for the National Restoration. They shot him behind the car and the main character believed that his children had a part in the killing. These stories relate because both Ho Chi Minh and the people right now were clashing between the different ideas. They both had a different view on how Vietnam should be and how there is a big struggle for their voices to be heard. The main character was seeing both sides of the argument and he talks about both sides. Than he decides that he wants to die so he can go to his village and meet all the people he misses.

Blog 9 CA

"The Deer Hunter" directed by Michael Cimino, is a portrait of the three friends Michael, Steven and Nick and the major influence which the Vietnam War has on their lives. It could be said that " The Deer Hunter" is divided into three different sections. The sections analyze the characters lives before, during and after the Vietnam War. With this special set-up, the audience can easily see a ' before and after' effect and can analyze the effects of the Vietnam War on each individual and on the group of friends as a whole.

The beginning of the movie takes place at a small town where all three friends are from. The audience can evaluate the close and healthy relationships between the three friends and between their family and friends. The second part of the movie deals with the friends encounters at the Vietnam War. It is clearly seen that they encounter traumatic situations which will influence their personalities and will haunt them even after the war. One of these traumatic moments is the Russian Roulette game which they find themselves in, while they are held captive by Vietnamese soldiers. The third part of the movie shows the characters lives after the war has ended. The audience quickly realizes that none of the characters and their relations with their loved ones and each other are the same. It is mesmerizing to see the personal changes in every character. PTSD stands out as the one thing the three friends have left in common. Nick does not want to go back to the United States, Stephen looses his legs and looses all self-respect and joy in life; lastly Michael seems to have problems facing his past and hides from his lost ones.

The movie " The Deer Hunter" succesfully represents the effects of war on individuals and teir relationships. It is an information representation of the trauma soldiers have to go through, and the post-war emotions that they are left with. A true masterpiece.

Blog 8 CA

The short story " Madagascar Plum" by Nguyen Thi Minh Ngoc, is a reflection of an incident which took place during the Vietnam War. The murder of an innocent girl is discussed by the narrator, who is the one making a misstatement and murders the little child. One could evaluate that the narrator tells the story to get rid of the intense pressure of his past. Therefore we could conclude that the narrator is truthfull and reliable.
We can see that throughout the short-story, the narrator discusses how the little girl dissappeared for a while, and how the narrator concluded that she is supporting the enemy, killing her as a result. The narrator constantly criticises his own actions and is straight forward with his drinking problems. It is also obvious that he is intoxicated while telling the story. The fact that the narrator constantly criticisez himself and does not have a subjective view in the matter shows us that he is trustworthy. He is also intoxicated: meaning he will spill his deepest secrets and remain reliable; many, once intoxicated say things that are true, no matter what the consequences are. We can also tell that the narrator tells the story to get rid of a burden, giving him an incentive to tell the story correctly.
Due to all of these factors we can conclude that the narrator is a reliable source of information and is simply a war veteran who is regretting his desicions in the past and is trying to get rid of the burden by sharing it with others.

Blog 12 JY

The Fog of War is about the career of Robert McNamara from World War 1 up till the Vietnam War. The documentary is mixed with past footage of McNamara and other key events in his past. I believe he primarily created this documentary with the help of Errol Morris to explain the decision that he made. Like many politician they are always under scrutiny with the decision they make. This documentary allows McNamara to somewhat clear his name and explains what was involved in making his decisions. His lessons show what he has learned from his time in the military, being in the Ford Company and his time in the office.
The lesson one through six are more technical lessons that may deal with the war or with management. After these lessons you can tell that McNamara becomes more emotional and also starts to tear up a little. He starts to talk about life lessons that can be used in any circumstances. This documentary was very interesting to watch because I believe that this allowed us an inside view of the choices that the politicians have to make. As a normal civilian we often believe that these decisions are easy to make and we have a certain side we pick.
An important thing that McNamara said was that no one can be prepared for war. This stood out to me, because I believe that this is true. There are some unprecedented circumstances that arise that no one can really be prepared for and their actions may be scrutinized, but you can’t really blame them because it was a hard choice where no one can really be right.

Blog 11JY

Rambo 2 is about a soldier going back to Vietnam after the war to save prisoners of war or POWs. The point of view is through John Rambo who is an ex-soldier that was betrayed by the American government and sent to a prison camp. The Colonel comes to reassign Rambo into a new mission. The new mission was to take picture of a camp and show evidence whether there are still soldier or it is vacant. Rambo is very skeptical of the army which is evident in the movie when he tells to colonel that he is the only one he trusts. Rambo also really wants to complete the mission, because the government failed to win the war. During the mission the military betrays Rambo and he then single handily saved the POWs and destroyed the camp.
This movie was created for action thrillers and for Americans that wanted to see their country win the war. Even though they lost the Vietnam War this movie may make them feel as they are redeemed. I also believe that it was made to show the government in a bad light. In the movie the government is portrayed as the reason the country lost the war. They are also portrayed as untrustworthy people, because they are not willing to save their own troops and want to look as if they are honorable people. This could be related to Full Metal Jacket where the army press tried to only show the American citizen the good news in the war and were willing to alternate the stories.

Blog 8 JY

“Madagascar Plum” is about an officer of the Sai Gon army who recollects a story that happened during his time in the army. The story is about a young child that had skin like a Madagascar plum. The army notices that she is always gone every night, and some of the army’s food rations disappear as well. The officer believes that the child is feeding the opposing army and he kills the girl with explosives. In the end the army finds out that the girl was taking food to a group of Vietnamese civilians and that she was a mute child.
I believe that the narrator is a reliable source, because there is no advantage of lying about a story after the war. By retelling these stories it may also help the officer relieve his post-traumatic stress. In the story he talks about how the other soldier were unreliable sources such as the American soldier that prevented the reporters to come along with the army, because he didn’t want the reporters to reveal the “naked truth.” The officer also describes the cook’s sector that was famous for telling fairy tales and bypassing the reality. I think that this shows how much the officer despises lies and is a truthful person. He later goes on to tell about the night when two of his soldiers go off into the woods to follow the little child. Before they left the officer was drinking and offered to go, but for his safety the other two soldiers went instead. When they didn’t return the officer believed that the girl took them to the enemy’s army and killed them. When he describes this event he says how if he wanted to rely on excuses then he could have, but he didn’t. I believe that he is traumatized by the event and by truthfully retelling it he could somehow ease his pain and suffering. Evidence of his pain is his alcoholism and how he intentionally injured himself. People may believe that when someone is drunk they will be unreliable, but in reality that is when a person is most truthful. The only part that may make him unreliable is the last sentence “Excuse me, Brother, was that village the one called Thi uc in the Central Highlands…”

Blog 7 JY

Allegory is a way of portraying an idea without explicitly showing it. Coppola was able to portray the Vietnam War through Apocalypse Now by using the characters and the events in the movie. Many of the events in the movie tried to show the audience what it was like being in the Vietnam War. Even though these exact events did not occur in real life they were able to show the audiences how it would be like to be in the Vietnam War.
One example of an allegory in the movie was Colonel Kurtz. He was suppose to be a decorated soldier and had a great record and could have been a commander if he wanted to be. Captain Willard is sent to get or kill Kurtz who is now “disillusioned.” When he finds Kurtz the colonel controls all the native Indians in the jungle and they treat him as if he is a God. The colonel seems as if he is not in the right mind set. This is an allegory showing how the Vietnam War changed people and partially made them crazy. This may be a sign of post traumatic stress disorder. Many soldiers from the Vietnam War changed their view on the war because it was very stressful and mentally challenging.
Lance the soldier that was from California and was a surfer is an allegory of what happens to the young soldiers. When the audience is first introduced to this soldier he seems like an enjoyable youthful kid. The further they get into the jungle the more disillusioned he gets as he soon starts to take off his clothes and sets off a flare that lures the enemies to the boat. This is what happened to the young soldiers that were not ready for the war. They entered to war as dreamers that thought they could achieve anything. After they see the reality they become to go crazy. At the end he starts to get accustomed to the native Indians that are with Kurtz.
There was also an allegory as the boat with Captain Willard got deeper in the jungle. The deeper in the jungle the boat went the crazier the events got. At first they ran into a tiger when they were searching for mangoes then at the end they run into a civilization full of native Indians and Kurtz. I believe that this is an allegory of the soldier in the Vietnam War. The longer the soldiers stayed the crazier they got and the worse the war felt to them. This is a central theme in most other books and movies I’ve seen about war. The longer the soldier tended to stay the harder it would  
be on them and the more they wanted to go back. The Chief on the boat was always reluctant to go further, because the more dangerous it would be on them.

Blog 7 RR

The definition of "allegory" is the expression by means of symbolic fictional figures and actions of truths or generalizations about human existence. It is a way of figuratively conveying a literal meaning. Coppola used "Apocalypse Now: Redux" as a way of conveying how awful, destructive, and twisted the Vietnam War really was. There are many symbols throughout the movie that help to convey Coppola's message.

One symbol used was the recurring use of masks and changing of oneself throughout the movie. In wartime, we think of using masks in order to camouflage, and this was what the characters were doing, but it was also showing that the soldiers were camouflaging their own beings, and becoming someone else as the movie progressed. At the beginning of the movie, Willard breaks the mirror when he's looking at his reflection in his hotel room in Saigon. This shows self-destruction of soldiers, especially soldiers that are involved in special-ops, like Willard. We can assume that he is a completely different person than before the war based on his maniacal actions in the first scene, including the breaking of the mirror. The first scene also shows the effects that PTSD has on a soldier. Throughout the film, paint is used to camouflage soldiers' faces. Although this is normal in war, the characters seem to become different people when they are camouflaged. At the end of the movie when Willard finally reaches Kurtz, we never really see Kurtz's face straight on. It is usually partially or fully hidden in shadows. This demonstrates Kurtz's transformation from a green-beret into the crazed leader he had become.

Another symbol of the film is the Nung River. I think the river symbolizes the transformation of soldiers from boys to men. At the beginning of the film, the soldiers travel during the day. Though it was probably dangerous, but it looked rather innocent because the viewer was able to see everything. As they edged closer to Kurtz's location, the movie became darker and darker, and seemingly more dangerous. Another demonstration of this symbol was when the boat reached the base where the Playboy bunnies were modeling for the soldiers. It was almost like the loss of innocence was forced on these young soldiers, forcing them to become the stereotypical macho man. By the time the boat arrived at Kurtz's location, the boys that had stepped foot on the boat months before had turned into ruthless killing machines. The symbol of fog can also be incorporated into the symbol of the river. As the film progressed, fog was used more and more frequently. This depicted the fog that soldiers enter into as they fight a war, and how practical judgement is lost.

The most symbolic part of the film was definitely the assassination of Kurtz with the simultaneous ritual killing of the bull. I think Coppola ended the film this way to show the utter brutality of a war, and to make us think about the killing of a person vs. the killing of an animal. As Willard assassinated Kurtz, we weren't able to see much, but we knew what was going on. In contrast, the killing of the bull was up against a background of fire, making the killing extremely visible. Coppola did this intentionally to depict the loss of regard that the human race has for human life, but how moving and disturbing the killing of an animal can be to viewers.

Blog 6 RR

In "2527th Birthday of the Buddha", Komunyakaa describes the Buddhist monks' protests that took place on Buddha's birthday. The Quang Duc, the first protester, called for all of the press to meet him on a street corner in Saigon. He protested the war and religious laws in Vietnam that prevented Buddhists from carrying the Buddhist flag on Buddha's birthday. He did this by covering himself in gasoline and lighting himself on fire. The language used in this poem of nature and earth are meant to show how important the earth and nature are to Buddhist beliefs and to Vietnamese culture. I think Komunyakaa uses these descriptions to protest the war by showing how much of the nature and culture of the Vietnamese people were literally being burned to the ground, much like Quang Duc. He also shows protest when he says, "the high winds that started in California fanned flames...". I believe that he is talking about the anti-war protest that began in large part in California, and how it has fanned its "flames" across the world to Saigon.

In "Tu Do Street", Komunyakaa talks about the race divide that followed him from the southern US all the way to Vietnam. He states that "only machine gun fire brings us together." He talks about how a mama san in a bar ignores him when he tries to buy a drink, looking around for white men to sell to. He also talks about the bars and brothels that are further away from the main street, down dark alleys, that black men are somewhat accepted in. At the end of the poem, he writes, "There's more than a nation/ inside us, as black & white/ soldiers touch the same lovers/ minutes apart, tasting/ each other's breath,/ without knowing these rooms/ run into each other like tunnels/ leading to the underworld." In this excerpt we learn that Komunyakaa can see beyond the color divide, and finds it ironic that the only place where black and white men are allies are on the battlefield, despite the fact that they sleep with the same women, indirectly swapping each other's spit. We see in this poem how much discrimination there is during the Vietnam war. It is ironic to me that the US discriminated against African Americans, forcing them to eat at different restaurants, use different restrooms and water bubblers, etc, but they had no problem sending them to die for our country. I think that Komunyakaa may feel the same way.

In "Tunnels", Komunyakaa describes the soldiers whose job is to go into the VC tunnels. He describes the darkness and uncertainty, "feeling blessed for each inch of the unknown." Komunyakaa says that he feels like he's down there with the "tunnel rat". This poem describes the feeling that Komunyakaa has about the war. The uncertainty, darkness, unknown, having to forget anything else around you except for the task at hand. At the end of the poem, he writes that the tunnel rat is "loving the weight of the shotgun/ that will someday dig his grave." This shows the pessimism that Komunyakaa carries with him about the war, and how he feels like it is a lost cause.

Blog 12 S.S

The documentary Fog of War is regarding the life of the former Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. McNamara uses the film to justify his actions and his involvement in the Cuban Missile Crisis, World War II, and the Vietnam War. McNamara became the Secretary of Defense leaving his post as the CEO of Ford Motors. McNamara divides this film into eleven lessors and each one tells a significant story about his involvement. McNamara explains the eleven lessons that were rules when making decisions about World War II and the Vietnam War.
Although McNamara uses this film to rationalize and justify some of his actions, he does admit that he did make some wrong decisions. He quotes Wilson and says that Wilson went to war to end all wars. McNamara claims that this cannot happen because war is part of human nature. The first six lessons – empathize with the enemy, rationality will not save us, there is something beyond oneself, maximize efficiency, proportionality should be a guideline in war, and get data – are all rules for life and war.
McNamara states that proportionality should be a guideline in war as the fifth lesson. McNamara uses it to discuss the morality of war saying that he would rather use a bomb and kill innocent people then send in his own soldiers across the sea to fight. McNamara said that proportionality was about hurting the enemy not necessarily killing the most military soldiers and killing civilians was hurting the enemy the most. McNamara states that war is so complex it is beyond the human mind to understand the full complexities; therefore he created this film for people to understand his reasoning behind his decisions.

Blog 12 LW

“Fog of War” is a documentary film in which former Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara attempts to justify his actions while in his position, and to offer the insight that he has gained through his accomplished career. He offers eleven lessons that he gathers to be the most important that he has learned in his life, through experience in war and life in general. McNamara comes off as intelligent, well accomplished, and confident in the first half of the lessons. These lessons are concrete and easily understood.

The lessons become ambiguous and the idea shifts after lesson six. The lessons turn from being life lessons to McNamara’s personal life, applying them to the mistakes he made in regards to the Vietnam War. In a way, it is like an apology and an attempt to justify what he and President Johnson did. He says that everyone makes mistakes, that it is part of human nature, and his tone also shifts. Instead of being confident and outspoken, he starts to avoid questions and says he will not comment on Vietnam anymore, for war is unexplainable.

I have sympathy for McNamara. One can never know what they would have done in his situation, and I think he did what he thought was best. He also butted heads with President Johnson a lot and I think that people overlook that. I do not think either person should be blamed for the war but I do believe that they made costly mistakes. McNamara seems content with his life’s work and I think making this film probably relieved some of the stress he might have had over the years.

Blog 12 AO

The film "Fog of War" is a documentary film about McNamara looking back into past wars that he had experienced while in high government official jobs. McNamara's creation of this documentary was to attempt to justify himself for the mistakes and his wrong doings. He did not try to justify himself in saying going to war is wrong, but rather he stated eleven lessons that war should be guided off from in order for the war to be morally correct. McNamara used these lessons in order to give advice for the US government to improve actions they take in future conflicts that could lead to war, instead of just blaming past actions that cannot be fixed. For example McNamara's fifth rule that is proportionality where he is not blaming the government's decision to totally destruct cities in Japan during World War II. Instead the government should have rules in place so another incident like this does not happen.
The ideas of the lessons in the documentary shift when the war changes from World War II to the Vietnam War. McNamara appears to be much less sure on his actions in the Vietnam War. For example when discussing about the harmful effects of Agent Orange, McNamara acts very unsure on his decision in saying he could not remember if he supported the dropping of Agent Orange or not. In comparison to the time of World War II he was much more sure of his actions on what was happening.Therefore McNamara's lessons try to cover his uncertainty and mistakes up.

Blog 12 NC

The documentary describes 11 key ideas that McNamara uses to try and teach lessons:

1. Empathize with your enemy
2. Rationality will not save us
3. There's something beyond one's self
4. Maximize efficiency
5. Proportionality should be a guideline in war
6. Get the data
7. Belief and seeing are often both wrong
8. Be prepared to re-examine your reasoning
9. In order to do good, you may have to engage in evil
10. Never say never
11. You can't change human nature

The title of the film The Fog of War emphasizes the uncertainty during the war that McNamara faced. His main reason behind the film seems at first glance to be about the mistakes made by the government during the Vietnam War. On a deeper level, it is about McNamara's personal guilt. Kennedy wanted McNamara to join him in the White House due to his successes in the auto industry, but McNamara was reluctant to accept due to his lack of experience and knowledge in such matters but eventually gave in. This choice made him Secretary of Defense, and he remembers when the war became his top issue he was not qualified to make recommendations and advice. Though the war was not his fault, his participation in mistakes resulted in American deaths, and cries during the film in his reflection.

The ideas about the war shift between rules 5 and 7. Rule 6 is 'get the data,' but after getting the data and realizing what was truly going on, the rules shift into a theme of questioning, revealing a lack of confidence and realization of the inevitability of a loss. Rules 1 - 5 appear to be about planning a confident victory, but the rule in which data is received turns the tables and makes the first rules feel faulty. The doubt in these last rules leaves the impression that the rules are out of order if meant to be set sequentially, as the first rules seem like good ideas before entering the war but the last rules recognize their failures.

Blog 7 NC

Allegory is a way to express meaning about a subject without being explicit, as in sharing the same idea about a topic but not literally. In one way, the entire movie is an allegory for Joseph Conrad's 'Heart of Darkness,' as Coppola tells the same story but through use of the modernness of the Vietnam War. Most importantly, Coppola uses this allegory to tell the brutal nature of the Vietnam War and the savage nature of those that participated in it.

One of the most famous quotes in the film is Kilgore's "I love the smell of napalm in the morning... The smell, you know that gasoline smell... Smells like, victory." His name phonetically sounds like 'kill gore,' and his violent nature is an early moment of the film when viewers really get to see the message that Coppola is trying to convey. Another shocking scene is when the impaled Phillips tries to pull Willard onto the spear he was struck with. The primitive use of spears shows the brutality found in the war, but the attempt at fratricide is not completely understood and as such shows the unbelievable intensity and blood thirst the war caused, even for ones own.

The best known scenes detailing the Vietnam War involve Kurtz, and bring Coppola's message to its fullest meaning. Upon being brought into Kurtz' temple, the rampant cannibalism and insanity in his society bring to light the darkness of the film and the war. The final scene in which Willard kills Kurtz with a machete and his tribesman kill the bull in the same manner show the 'heart of darkness' that Coppola tries to reveal to his viewers, the idea that the Vietnam War brought out the worst in its participants and in a sense allowed the label of evil to be used. War is often described as dark and violent, but the evil that he paints in the film is not shown through killing and death but by the manners in which they occur. Willard could have killed Kurtz with a single quiet cut, but the rage in his face and the darkness that surrounds Kurtz show that the kill is more than war, it is human rage. The sacrificial bull is no different, and though it can be argued that evil does not play into religious sacrifice, the hacking of the bull and the chaos erupting in the scene show the uncivilized nature of the tribe and lack of respect for life.

Blog 6 NC

In Yusef Komunyakaa's Dien Cai Dau, the poem 'Somewhere Near Phu Bai' illustrates the everyday nightlife of being in a warzone in Vietnam through the use of setting and heavy detail. In this particular poem, Komunyakaa is saying that being in the war has accustomed him, as with other soldiers, to the excessive violence that occurs often. Although he is not actually in a conflict in this particular poem, he describes the serene beauty of nature in depicting the moon as wondrous yet applying words to make it seem dangerous, as he says "The moon cuts through night trees like a circular saw" and "The moon grazes treetops." He also describes the stars in the same manner: "Hundred of blue steel stars cut a path." In discussing race, he uses the same method and subtly uses the color white to indicate danger: "...circular saw white hot," The white painted backs of the Claymore mines," "kneaded in the plastic C4 of the brain (C4 is white)." These associations in the poem with the color white tie in with the ideas of nature and violence, being the most pure way of describing 'how things are' and referencing a white-dominated society.

'The Dead at Quang Tri' reflects upon the dead as the title describes. The dead in this poem, a young Buddhist monk, a religious figure, is Komunyakaa's way of telling readers about the innocent that die and the lingering pain of their deaths upon the survivors, possibly the killers as the author writes "Captain, we won't talk about that." Komunyakaa again references the color white in describing "a white moon" as before. His continual descriptions of white moons realizes the fact that those at night do not look to the black of the sky but of the white of the moon; the night sky is often neglected in his poems.

'A Greenness Taller than Gods' does not reference white culture so much as it references black culture. The author says that they "move like a platoon of silhouettes...unaware [their] shadows have untied from [them], wandered off and gotten lost." This description reminds the reader of the growing distance from the dominating white culture and the loss of recognition of black culture; the 'shadows' have become lost. The chaos and crudity of war is again described using nature, specifically animals, naming a snake, monkeys, spiders, and birds. The next group named is the VC, giving the reader the impression that US soldiers grouped the Viet Cong with animals; an opinion making them seem less than human.

Blog 12 BJR

The Fog of War is a documentary film on the life of Robert McNamara, a former United States Secretary of defense, among other things. This film shows McNamara’s eleven lessons of war, along with an additional 10 lessons about life and war. I believe that the point of making this film was for a chance to show the public what it was like for McNamara, and hopefully to show the viewers a different side of him. He wants to show the world that he did what he thought was the best thing to do at the time, and he stood by his decisions, whether they were popular or unpopular. I think that another reason for this film to be made was to try and reach out to the future leaders, as well as the normal person, and show them what he thinks can help them. He reviews his 11 lessons of war, which he says relate to war in general, not a specific war. I believe that these lessons are also applicable to everyday life, and dealing with others, whether it is in conflict or not. I think that the ideas of McNamara shift once he starts talking about the Vietnam War. It was during this time that McNamara was the United States Secretary of Defense, and is a major point in his career. Before Vietnam came around, McNamara was secured and strong willed in the defense of his actions. After Vietnam, it seems as if he slowly becomes unsure about himself and his actions. In the movie In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam, there is a new set of eleven lessons, but these are from the Vietnam War specifically. In these 11 lessons, the war, and its demise are broken down, and the views can see and understand why this war turned out to be such an experience that is now known as.

Blog 12 - AV

The film “Fog of War” is a documentary created about Secretary of Defense during the Vietnam, Robert McNamara. McNamara uses this documentary to look back at his responsibilities and decisions during the war. He also uses the documentary as a way to express the lessons he learned during the Vietnam War. One of the reasons why this documentary was created is so McNamara can show the American people that he made the necessary decisions at the time. He didn’t directly say that he had made mistakes during the war, rather tried saying that people sometimes make mistakes because we’re all just human.

Throughout the film he presents us with eleven lessons that he learned during the war. These lessons are supposed to provide a morally correct way to how war should be fought. One lesson that I found to be very interesting was, “in order to do good, you must engage in evil.” I found this to be interesting because many military leaders believe this and to some extent, I do as well. My concern, with this lesson, is that how is a government supposed to know where the line is, where the evil needs to stop. Most wars have a goal, but do not have a specific enemy. Not having a specific enemy causes the military to not notice when they cross the line, and evil is not needed anymore.

About halfway through his lessons, the ideas shift. I felt that from lesson 6 to 11, McNamara, was trying to justify the actions that he instructed the military to take. At this point of the film, he starts saying that everyone makes mistakes that is part of human nature. I also noticed a change in his tone; he goes from being confident and very outspoken to avoiding questions and not talking about the Vietnam War.

Blog 12 CA

" The Fog of War" is a documentary film about the life of former United States Secretary of Defense, Robert S. McNamara. This documentary was directed by Errol Morris and assured it's place as one of the most succesfull war documentaries. The use of archives and interviews makes the documentary informative and intereseting.
I believe that this documentary is a true artwork in documenting McNamara's struggles as United States Secretary of Defense. It is astonishing to realize that all important desicions are ultimately taken by regular human beings, nobody else. It is very intereseting to follow the war, from the desicion makers point of view and it makes the audience realize the intensity of the desicions that where made.
I believe that it is a documentary which truly represents and informs about the Vietnam War and the cold war in general. It is valuable information which helpsus to analyze our history. I believe that Mcnamara's interview is a guide for the future and a way to learn from our past.

Blog 12 EP

The Fog of War is a documentary film that recounts the experiences of Robert. S. McNamara as a public figure in American history. McNamara has long been a controversial figure and many regard him negatively. The reason that McNamra made this film is in order to change public sentimnet about himself. McNamara wanted to show people that he was a human being and that he fought to take the actions that he strongly believed were correct. Another reason that McNamara made this film is to teach future military leaders the lessons neceassary to fight wars in the futuure. McNamara takes all of his experieinces and packages them into his eleven themes that allow for war to be fought under the best strategy.
There is a point in the film where some of what McNamara says begins to change. Up untill and including his lesson "Get the Data" McNamara is very sure that all of his actions were correct. He was very strong in his convictionsa and believed that mathematical sciences and data analysis can provide strong backing for any tactical decision. The tone changes when McNamara begins talking about Vietnam. It is clear that the once sure of his actions McNamaranow had many doubts. The viewer can tell that McNamara is not as positive of his actions during the vietnam war as he was previously. McNamara goes as far as to say that the U.S. ivolvement in Vietnam was created under the wrong pretenses. It is clear that McNamara is not as confident about Vietnam as he was about World War II.

Blog 12 CT

In the documentary “Fog of War” Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara reveals how his actions affected life for him and the country and his justification behind these actions. The eleven lessons that he tells us about are particularly helpful. They include empathize with your enemy, rationality will not save us, there’s something beyond one’s self, maximize efficiency, proportionality should be a guideline in war, get the data, belief and seeing are both often wrong, be prepared to reexamine your reasoning, in order to do good, you may have to engage in evil, never say never, you can’t change human nature. Through these eleven lessons he proves his justification through what he did. I found this documentary not only to seem like an apology for his actions during the Vietnam War, but also as an insight to his life.

I feel that in many instances McNamara gets criticized for the actions he and President Johnson took in the Vietnam War, but in a situation as such no one knows what actions they themselves would take. Many say that the war was McNamara and Johnsons fault, but I don’t agree with that, although they did make decisions that should’ve been avoided. There is a large shift throughout the documentary and at one point we see the topic reach McNamara’s limit. He no longer wanted to talk about the war, but I feel that he was relieved to tell the public what he thought about the topic. Instead of pointing fingers at whose fault the war was, we should be realizing how we can avoid situations like these happening again.

Blog 12 JV

The Fog of War is a documentary with reference to the story of Robert S. McNamara. The documentary is made in order to get several insights into the American war history from a first person source through a one on one interview. Along with this objective, is McNamara’s attempt to defend himself from the criticism he has received throughout his career as United States Secretary of Defense. Many claim that McNamara was not the right man for the job. Some of the words used to describe McNamara by the media included, “totalitarian” and “egotistical”. This is a point of view from the American population who felt McNamara was acting on his own agenda instead of the good of the entire country. Many believed that he was at fault for involving America in things they should not have. Several times in the film it seems that McNamara tries to put the blame on others in order to clear his name. He also reemphasizes how certain situations he had to do what was best at the time regardless of the public.

Along with defending himself in the documentary, he also provides steps that serve as guidelines for future involvements. The steps are just a basis from what to go by from a person with lots of military experience and knowledge on the subject. After going through everything he has, McNamara at the time 85, is able to look back and pluck what was right and what should be done differently.