Remembering and forgetting war: Vietnam memorials and public memory

This study of Vietnam commemoration and public memory asserts that, memorial construction, as an integral component in building public memory, is significant to the study of cultural history. Through attempting to locate and study a number of local Vietnam memorials throughout the period 1965 to 2004, and by examining the process of constructing these memorials, the dissertation uncovers elements of change and continuity that characterize the pattern of Vietnam commemoration. Previous scholars have argued that memorials are often controlled by "official" interests, or alternatively, that pluralistic and democratic influences prevalent in American society prevent government officials and the social and economic community leaders that generally control access to public funding and facilities from dominating the commemorative process. This study acknowledges these assertions as significant factors, however, it also discovers a more complex and dynamic pattern at work in the commemoration of the Vietnamese conflict. Although the early period of Vietnam commemoration, 1965 to 1982, was largely dominated by vernacular, pluralistic, and more democratic influences, official influences increasingly controlled the memorials constructed after 1982. Chronological patterns of commemoration both reflected and in turn influenced the public's perception of the conflict and the image of its veterans. For the most part, however, this struggle was somewhat immaterial, as the pluralistic influences present in the American culture, and the generally ambiguous nature of Vietnam memorials, helped to modify stereotypical interpretations. Americans bring their own experiences, background, and significant personal agency to bear on their impressions of commemorative efforts and the meaning of military conflict, at least while veterans and scholars are willing to offer eyewitness accounts and a variety of perspectives. It remains to be seen, however, if this trend (away from stereotypical interpretations of the war and veterans) will continue after the passing of the generation of individuals that experienced the Vietnamese conflict firsthand.