Consequences of the Vietnam War

Consequences of the Vietnam War

  • Submitted By: kiks
  • Date Submitted: 11/22/2008 4:21 AM
  • Category: English
  • Words: 717
  • Page: 3
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Consequences of the Vietnam War

Loss Of innocence

In ‘Born on the fourth of July’ we meet Kovic, who before the war, believes in God and the government. He believes the words spoken by President John F. Kennedy: “ Ask Not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country. He believes when the government says that it is Gods will that the US shall fight in Vietnam. That is the reason why Kovic decides to join the marines.
You say that America is the Land of the free, the land of hope.
In ‘ Born on the fourth of July’ God is being used as an alibi to go too war. God is a strong argument, but that does not mean that God should be used as an excuse.
The similarities between ‘ born on fourth of July’ and ‘Speaking of Courage’ are that both characters are affected beyond physical damage. Kovic is damaged not only physically but also mentally. He comes home as a cripple instead of a hero, as he thought he would. The veteran in ‘Speaking of Courage’ is damage perhaps not as physically as Kovic, but his returning home and to reality proves how isolated he had become during the war, and the damages because of that. In both stories the society suffers as well, as the veterans.
Kovic goes through a rough time after his returning, but comes out as a better person, who has learned from his mistakes, and changes his view upon war, but also the government which he is determined to make responsible for the war, and not God.

The Role Of God

Bob Dylan’s song ‘ With God On Our Side’, each stanza ends with God, and
It doesn’t matter what you do in a war, you can kill 6 million people, but you will always have God on your side. “Though they murdered six million, in the ovens they fried, the Germans now too, have God on their side”. [1] Another example on how God is being used is in stanza 7, where God is an exuce for not asking questions about the weapons, the a-bomb in this case. “And you never ask questions, When God’s on your side.” [2]

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