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VIETNAM ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
After viewing Vietnam and engaging in the corresponding discussion questions and
activities, students will be able to answer the following:
1. How and why did the United States get involved in Vietnam?
2. Why were the American people divided about the war?
3. What effect did television and the media have on the public perception of the
Vietnam War?
4. What are some lessons learned from the Vietnam War?
5. How does Vietnam shed light on the broad themes of the Cold War?
Segment One
In 1954, the Communists defeat the French, who have held Vietnam as a colony since the
19th Century. An International Peace Conference temporarily divides the country into North
and South at the 17th parallel until elections can be held in 1956. North Vietnam is led by
Moscow-trained Ho Chi Minh. In the South, Americans support the regime of the antiCommunist President Diem. Communists in the South form the National Liberation Front,
also known as Vietcong. A civil war to unite the country is waged between rival factions.
America sends advisers to help the villagers and train the South Vietnamese army in counterinsurgency. Why and how was Korea divided at the 38th parallel after WWII?

What is the significance of the 1954 Vietnamese victory at Diem Bien Phu from the
perspective of the Vietnamese, the United States, the French and the Soviet Union?

According to General Goodpaster, why did America oppose the elections that were
scheduled for 1956? What led many North Vietnamese to flee south?

Who were the Vietcong or NLF and what were their goals? Based on the speeches of
Khrushchev and Kennedy, what were the Soviet and U.S. perspectives on the civil war in
Vietnam?

According to Robert McNamara, why did the United States get involved in Vietnam? Why
does he use dominoes to explain American interests?

Describe the state of affairs in South Vietnam at the time of Kennedy's assassination. At
this time, what is America's commitment to South Vietnam?
Segment Two
President Lyndon Johnson sends Robert McNamara to pledge support for South Vietnam.
General Westmoreland, who had been trained in European land wars, takes charge of the
U.S. military effort. In 1963, President Diem is assassinated, leaving no clear leader in South
Vietnam. In August 1964, the Pentagon reports that a U.S. destroyer patrolling the Tonkin
Gulf off the coast of North Vietnam has come under attack. President Johnson uses this
incident to push the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, allowing him to escalate military efforts in
Vietnam. The Vietcong in the south gain strength. By February 1965, the Soviet Union
pledges substantial military aid to the North Vietnamese. On March 8, 1965, the first U.S.
ground troops land in South Vietnam. According to the video, why did the United States take
the North Korean invasion to the U.N. instead of acting on its own?

What does Robert McNamara pledge to the South Vietnamese?

Based on the information provided in the video, what happened in the Gulf of Tonkin?
What questions does the video suggest but leave unanswered?

The video states that the Tonkin incident enabled Johnson to wage war in Vietnam.
According to the U.S. Constitution, who has the authority to declare war? Was war
declared in the case of Vietnam? Why didn't President Johnson ask Congress to declare
war against Vietnam? [Note: Congress could have barred the use of funds for the war,
but never did.]

What role did the Vietcong play in South Vietnam? According to eyewitnesses, why were
they successful?

Interpret the message of President Johnson's political commercial? Is it effective? What
role might Johnson's election have played in his policy in Vietnam?

How does Igor Ognietov describe the significance of Vietnam to the Soviet Union?
Compare the Soviet relationship with other emerging Communist regimes around this
time. Why is this relationship significant?

Why did Johnson choose to send ground troops to Vietnam?
Segment Three
Three weeks after the Marines land in Da Nang, the Vietcong bombs the American Embassy in
Saigon. North Vietnamese pilots are being trained in the Soviet Union. As Vietcong attacks
increase, Johnson becomes convinced that South Vietnam is doomed without the support of a
massive American army. Vietnam is the first television war. The first major battle between
Americans and North Vietnamese is at Ia Drang.

Who did Johnson blame for the bombing of the U.S. Embassy? What evidence is offered
to refute Johnson's assessment?

According to Bui Diem of South Vietnam, how did McNamara evaluate the war effort?

Evaluate the American television report on fighting in Vietnam. What was the goal of the
reporter?

What is the effect of the report on the students? Have students predict the American
reaction when they saw this report on television?

Compare the quotes from General Giap and General Westmoreland regarding military
strategy. What conclusions can you draw from these quotations?
Segment Four
Fighting conditions in Vietnam pose challenges for the U.S. military. American soldiers
encounter rising numbers of Vietcong and fight through a series of underground tunnels built
by the Vietnamese years before. Johnson had halted Operation Rolling Thunder to try to
encourage negotiations with the North; he soon resumes bombing. Arms and men keep
coming south via the Ho Chi Minh Trail supply route that runs through Vietnam, Cambodia
and Laos. According to U.S. government policy, Cambodia and Laos remain off limits to the
American military. What challenges did the American military face when fighting in South
Vietnam? Using eyewitness accounts, describe what it was like to fight in Vietnam. Based on
the information in the video, assess Johnson's negotiations with the North Vietnamese.
Looking at the map of Korea and Southeast Asia, why do you think the Chinese became
concerned about American and U.N. forces in North Korea? Find Pyongyang. How close
were the U.N. troops when Mao sent in his army?

What was the Ho Chi Mihn Trail? How did it support the Communists in the war? What
challenges did it pose for the Americans?

Why did Johnson hesitate to bomb North Vietnam? What lesson from history does he use
to justify his hesitation?

Why do you think Cambodia and Laos were off limits to U.S. troops? What effect did that
have on the U.S. military position?
Segment Five
Tensions grow between China and the Soviet Union over Soviet aid to Vietnam. In January
1967, the United States begins Operation Cedar Falls, a search and destroy mission
intended to end Vietcong raids into Saigon by rooting out Communist guerillas and destroying
hiding places and cover. The costs continue to mount on both sides. To put pressure on
Hanoi, Johnson extends the bombing in North Vietnam to within 10 miles of the Chinese
border. Different groups in the United States begin to actively campaign against the war. Why
did the Soviet government demand complete secrecy about the fact that there were Soviet
pilots participating in the Korean War?

How did the relationship between China and the Soviet Union affect Soviet assistance to
the North Vietnamese?

Describe U.S. domestic support for the war effort. How did protests at home affect the
American soldiers in Vietnam?

What strategies did Johnson use to try to end the war? Based on the information in the
video, evaluate the U.S. government's decision-making process on the Vietnam War.
Segment Six
The North makes massive preparations for attacks throughout the South. The 1968 Tet
Offensive is a terrible shock for Americans even though the Vietcong were the ones who
suffered a major defeat on the battlefield. The American Embassy in Saigon is partly seized
by the Vietcong. With Americans under fire in Vietnam, senior politicians turn on the
President. Robert McNamara, who had been the chief architect of the war and had
repeatedly assured the President and the U.S. public that victory would soon be at hand,
suddenly decides to leave office. McNamara is replaced by Clark Clifford. Clifford convinces
Johnson that the war cannot be won on the battlefield. Peace talks begin in Paris. How does
Ten San Din describe the Soviet and the North Korean assessment of the possibility of
victory?

Describe the Tet Offensive and the Battle of Hue through the lens of the reporter's
camera. Predict how these reports were received in the United States.

Why did Johnson choose negotiation rather than continued bombing?

Compare Nixon's speech with the eyewitness accounts of Bui Diem and Jack Valenti.
What conclusions can you draw regarding Nixon's and Johnson's intentions for ending
the war in Vietnam?
(For more insight into Nixon's secret negotiations with the South, see either Seymour Hersh's
The Price of Power, Robert Dallek's Flawed Giant or George Herring's edited collection of
declassified negotiating records.)
After listening to the White House Tapes, What are your thoughts on Americas involvement in
Vietnam.