Problems Faced by US Soldiers in Vietnam

731 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Effect of vietnam war on soldiers

Problems Faced by US Soldiers in Vietnam

Source Based

Introduction

In this question I will be trying to answer possibilities and analyse

them about source A. I will decide whether or not I agree with the

interpretation of the situation faced by American soldiers in Vietnam.

The soldiers faced many problems and I will be trying to analyse them

to see if they are true or not. Also I will be trying to find out were

the facts came from and if they provide enough evidence, and are

reliable enough to work from.

In the source it says that an increasing number of new recruits scored

so low on their intelligence tests that if they were to apply to join

the peacetime army they wouldn't have got in. I don't know were this

fact came from and if there is evidence to support this, however it

had a shocking affect and makes the reader think that the Americans

rushed into the war. It shows that the Americans weren't too bothered

about the IQ scores of their recruits they just wanted as many

soldiers as they could get; instead of focusing on the quality of

soldiers they went for quantity. The source mentions about the one

year tour of duty, which after analysing other sources, I know that

this scheme was taking place. The soldiers would have been in Vietnam

for one year only, and after they began to gain experience they were

sent home this reduced the effectiveness of the American army. The

Americans were constantly throwing inexperienced rookies against

highly skilled guerrillas on their home turf! It says the soldiers

were most likely to die in the first moth of being in Vietnam. I'm not

too sure if this point is true because there is no hard evidence to

show it. I can understand when new recruits were thrown in they would

have been eager to fight but they would have also not known how to go

about things. When most of the soldiers had been fighting for six

months in a way, they sat back and let the new recruits do all of the

Show More
Related

  • Christian G. Appy's Working-Class War: American Combat Soldiers and Vietnam

    1769 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Vietnam War, which lasted for two decades (1955-1975), was probably the most problematic of all American wars. US involvement in Vietnam occurred within the larger context of the Cold War between the US and the USSR. It was, and remains, morally ambiguous and controversial. The Vietnam War was slated as both a war against Communism and a war aimed at suppressing dangerous nationalist self-determination. Christian G. Appy's book, Working-Class War: American Combat Soldiers and Vietnam, is a graphic and perceptive portrayal of soldiers' experiences and the lasting effects the Vietnam War has had on the American culture and people. Working-Class War: American Combat Soldiers and Vietnam, is an analytical work that has three major purposes: 1. to show that those who fought in Vietnam were predominantly from the working class 2. to convey the experiences of the soldiers who served in Vietnam and 3. to offer his own scathing commentary of American actions in Vietnam.

    Read More

  • Mark Atwood Lawrence´s The Vietnam War: A Concise International History

    1155 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Vietnam War: A Concise International History is a strong book that portrays a vivid picture of both sides of the war. By getting access to new information and using valid sources, Lawrence’s study deserves credibility. After reading this book, a new light and understanding of the Vietnam war exists.

    Read More

  • Civil War Diary Of Cyrus F. Boyd

    1155 Words  | 3 Pages

    Boyd talks about how everyone was very eager to volunteer to join the military to have fun and to make some money and it seemed to be very easy because the war was expected to be very short. Things started to look a bit different even when, the volunteers got to the first destination to be sworn into duty. They started to wonder why they were being sworn in to service for 3 years when they all thought the war was going to be very short. Boyd and the rest of them figured that the government must know something more than everyone else knows. Even during the beginning of the service the conditions for the service did not look as good as they had expected, and the officer had seen that the volunteers started having second guesses about doing it so they put them into more comfortable quarters to keep them from going home. During the war most of the time the conditions were horrible. There were many problems with the soldiers during the war. Many died from being wounded, being shot, and the worst of all was the disease. The conditions were so horrible that many men couldn't get enough sleep and even when they did get sleep they were sleeping in the rain or in the snow.

    Read More

  • Free Essay: Tim O'Brien's Things They Carried

    775 Words  | 2 Pages

    Vietnam War was one of the hardest wars ever fought.  There are several reasons for this statement.  It was basically impossible to conquer the territory because there were no boundaries.  The soldiers had to put up with the climate, land, diseases and most importantly themselves.  This essay is about yet another reason: the relationship between the soldiers and the officers.

    Read More

  • Stories of the Vietnam War Illustrated in O’Brien’s The Things They Carried

    830 Words  | 2 Pages

    Tim O’Brien’s book, The Things They Carried, portrays stories of the Vietnam War. Though not one hundred percent accurate, the stories portray important historical events. The Things They Carried recovers Vietnam War history and portrays situations the American soldiers faced. The United States government represents a political power effect during the Vietnam War. The U. S. enters the war to prevent a communist takeover of South Vietnam. The U.S. government felt if communism spreads to South Vietnam, then it will spread elsewhere. Many Americans disapproved of their country’s involvement. Men traveled across the border to avoid the draft. The powerful United States government made the decision to enter the war, despite many Americans’ opposition. O’Brien’s The Things They Carried applies New Historicism elements, including Vietnam history recovery and the political power of the United States that affected history.

    Read More

  • Post Traumatic Stress Disorder In U.S. Vietnam War Soldiers

    970 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Vietnam War caused many U.S. soldiers to develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, so when is the war over, is it really over? For soldiers with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD, the war may not ever be over. Doctors are on the peak of finding treatments for the ones affected by PTSD and how to prevent it from occurring or even helping them to recover from PTSD has major affects on Vietnam soldiers, their family members and today’s society.

    Read More

  • Essay On Vietnam War Interview

    581 Words  | 2 Pages

    I was against the war over in Vietnam. Part of that reason was because I didn’t think that the fighting over there was all that necessary but the real reason was because my brother Mack was drafted into the war. He was drafted pretty early on when they started the draft so when he was killed that’s where my hatred for the war.. really came from. *She actually got a little quiet here so I did my best to avoid talking too much about her brother (Keeping in mind I didn’t know this happened at the beginning)*

    Read More

  • The USA Should NOT Have Entered the Vietnam War

    945 Words  | 2 Pages

    Only in the Vietnam War was the United States’ participation criticized. This is such a gigantic change from prior wars that it bears study as to why it happened, and better yet, should have it happened. This paper will discuss the United States’ involvement in the Vietnam War, by asking the simple question, Should have the United States’ gotten involved in the first place? This paper will prove that, in fact, America should not have gotten involved in the Vietnam War. The Vietnam War took place between 1947- 1975.

    Read More

  • Vietnam War

    569 Words  | 2 Pages

    It has been known that the Vietnam War affected many American soldiers who were involved in the war physically and psychologically. The Vietnam War was one of the most memorable wars in history. Many Americans’ lives lost for no objective at all. Chapter 10 informed us about how the Vietnam War started and what really happened during that time. It also gave us background information about Vietnam Veterans and nurses who were involved in the war and what they went through during the war. I had the opportunity to interview a Vietnam Veteran also.

    Read More

  • The Purpose of the Vietnam War

    1217 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Vietnam War was the longest and most expensive war in American History. The toll we paid wasn't just financial, it cost the people involved greatly, physically and mentally. This war caused great distress and sadness, as well as national confusion. Everyone had that one burning question being why? Why were we even there? The other question being why did America withdrawal from Vietnam. The purpose of this paper is to answer these two burning questions, and perhaps add some clarity to the confusion American was experiencing.

    Read More

  • Problems Of Reality The Vietnam War

    1554 Words  | 4 Pages

    During the Vietnam War the reality of warfare brought many soldiers back to a home that didn't want them. Their feelings torn by atrocities, the loss of friends, and the condition of loneliness only made the experience worse. Did the issues on the home front affect the issues on the frontline? The novel Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers is a perfect example of the conflict and diversity among other soldiers during the Vietnam War. It shows the reality many soldiers faced and how they dealt with conflicts back home while they were alone and afraid of death creeping up on them. With the reality of war taking its toll, soldiers coming home to a world they didn't know, a world that had changed and left them in Vietnam to fend for themselves. They slept with wives who didn't know even the smallest of their problems. From nightmares to remembering bad memories, Vietnam veterans suffered it all from extreme depression to the worst, suicide. The real world didn't know how to deal with them and just left them alone. The U.S. they left had changed on them. From people to the ways of life everything had changed and they didn't know how to deal with it.

    Read More

  • Vietnam War Dbq

    990 Words  | 2 Pages

    The start of the movements that opposed the Vietnam War were peaceful, but soon more people were joining the movments when the U.S started strategic bombing in Vietnam. Soon a group formed called “Students for a Democratic Society” (SDS) attracted a widening base of support over the next three years. After the success of the Tet offensive by the North Japanese, they proved that they weren't giving up and that they weren't going to lose. Costing many lives of U.S troops.The Vietnam War was a big mistake and many feared of fighting in a war they would not win, which created students to turn to rebel/protest against their government.

    Read More

  • Vietnam War Dbq Essay

    960 Words  | 2 Pages

    i. Difficulties faced by soldiers due to the nature of fighting in the Vietnam War - Personnel had difficulties with transportation supplied with adapted vehicles back seat faced rear to provide additional fire power (Source A) – It appears as if the government didn't worry enough to supply men with safe and capable equipment - Threat of traps led to fear as vehicles had to be parked on street at night (Source A) o Check for traps each morning became a daily ritual particularly in fuel tanks (Source A) o A request for a locking fuel cap was denied because weren’t entitled to one” (Source A) • What circumstances would have needed to arise for them to be entitled to one? The Offensive full guard was set up (24hrs a day), personnel got no sleep and were constantly on alert (Source A) – How significant would this have been in the personnel’s mental frame of mind?

    Read More

  • Negative Effects On The Vietnam War

    1059 Words  | 3 Pages

    - Oral Histories from NJ Vietnam Veterans,” during the Vietnam War, soldiers thought they did a great job but when they came back home it was “coming home to a different country.” They were expecting a warm hug and kisses from their people just like the World War II but instead they were called names like “Baby killers” and protesters threw tomatoes and spit on them. They were even told to go back to the plane. Those veterans were surprised about what was going on because they were not aware of the protests. One of the veterans exemplifies how it was a huge turn off if you mentioned that you were a Vietnam veteran when one approaching girls. Furthermore the Vietnam Veterans were discriminated in many ways. For instance, Dan Edwards shares a story about how a bank teller hurled a check book at him while opening a bank account after he mentioned that he got back from Vietnam. Therefore, those veterans threw their uniforms in the garbage because they did not wanted to be abused by the

    Read More

  • The Vietnam War DBQ

    872 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the early 1960s the U.S. began sending military advisors to South Vietnam beginning the Vietnam War, arguably the most controversial war in United States history. This incident followed Vietnam gaining its independence from the French Empire’s Indochina in 1954. The nation soon split, creating a communist North Vietnam, and a noncommunist South Vietnam. In fear of communism spreading the U.S. supported South Vietnam and sent troops. As the incident dragged on it caused a huge anti-war movement and a lot of political turmoil.The troops were withdrawn in 1973, the whole country fell to communism, and the U.S. failed. How did a superpower such as the U.S. take defeat from a small country like Vietnam? Many have wondered and continue to wonder

    Read More

More about Problems Faced by US Soldiers in Vietnam

Open Document