OnMarch8,1965,asayounginfantryofficer,IlandedatDanangwithabattalionofthe9thMarineExpeditionaryBrigade,thefirstU.S.combatunit senttoIndochina.
Unlike Ron Kovic, Phillip Caputo was a Marine Officer. As it takes a college degree, more training and more discipline to become a Marine officer, I wonder if this difference in position (infantryman v officer) leads each of them to have a different perspective? Regardless, Kovic's will always be more harsh considering the life changing wound he recieved.
inally, this book ought not to be regarded as aprotest. Protest arises from a belief that one canchange things or influence events. I am not egotisticalenough to belicve I can. Besides, it no longer seemsnecessary to register an objection to the wart, becausethe war is over. We lost it, and no amount of objectingwill resurrect the men who died, without | redeeminganything, on calvaries like Hamburger Hill and theRockpile.
Caputo being so willing to admit that we lost the Vietnam is fascinating considering when this book was published. Caputo released this book in 1977, barely two years after the last Americans left Saigon. I find this aspect fascinating as Caputo is so willing to admit something that America is still trying to accept. Many people today still argue that the Vietnam War was a "draw."
have also attempted to describe the intimacy of lifein infantry battalions, where the communion betweenmen is as profound as any between lovers. Actually, itis more so. It does not demand for its sustenance thereciprocity, the pledges of affection, the endless re-assurances required by the love of men and women. Jtis, unlike marriage, a bond that cannot be broken bya word, by boredom or divorce, or by anything otherthan death. Sometimes even that is not strong enough.Two friends of mine died trying to save the corpses oftheir men from the battlefield. Such devotion, simpleand selfless, the sentiment of belonging to each other,was the one decent thing we found in a conflict other-wise notable for its monstrosities
The viewer sees the inverse of this intimacy on Born on the Fourth. We see how the accidental killing of a friend can lead to trauma from not only inwardly, but from outside, as Kovic's Marines want nothing to do with him following the killing of his fellow Marine in the friendly fire incident.
Stone, Oliver, A. Kitman Ho, Ron Kovic, Tom Cruise, Kyra Sedgwick, Raymond J Barry, Willem Dafoe, et al. Born on the Fourth of July. Special ed. Universal City, CA: Universal Studios, 2004.
Iwasinvolvedintheantiwarmovementatthetimeand struggled,unsuccessfully,toreconcilemyopposi-~tiontothewarwiththisnostalgia, Later,Irealizedareconciliation was impossible;Iwouldneverbeabletohatethewarwithanythingliketheundilutedpassionofmyfriendsinthemovement.BecauseIhadfoughtinit,itwasnotanabstractissue,butadeeplyemo-tionalexperience,themostsignificant thingthathadhappenedtome.Itheldmythoughts,senses,andfeel-ingsinanunbreakable embrace.
This is where Kovic and Caputo seem to differ. Kovic seems to despises the war with a passion, seeing what it has done to him, and his country. While Caputo is unable to detach himself from being in Marines, seemingly feeling like an outsider in Anti-War protests. While not to downplay what either think or feel about the conflict, it seems that Kovic has much stronger animosity for the war.
Writing aboutthiskindofwarfareisnotasimpletask.Repeatedly,Ihave found myself wishingthatIhad beentheveteranofaconventionalwar, with dra-maticcampaignsandhistoric battles forsubject matterinsteadofamonotonoussuccessionofambushesandfire-fights.But therewerenoNormandiesorGettys-burgsfor us,no epic clashes thatdecidedthe fatesofarmiesornations.
This sentiment is heavily implied in Born on the Fourth of July. As Caputo and Kovic both experienced, Vietnam was not a 'grand' war but was rather a hellish experience unlike any American conflict. For instance, in one of the first battle scenes, the viewer sees Kovic and his men shoot up a village, believing it is full of Viet Cong. Instead, they end up shooting a number of women and children.
Stone, Oliver, A. Kitman Ho, Ron Kovic, Tom Cruise, Kyra Sedgwick, Raymond J Barry, Willem Dafoe, et al. Born on the Fourth of July. Special ed. Universal City, CA: Universal Studios, 2004.
Warisalwaysattractivetoyoung men whoknownothing aboutit,butwe hadalsobeenseducedintouniformbyKennedy'schallengeto“askwhatyoucandoforyourcountry”andbythemissionaryidealismhehadawakenedinus.Americascemedomnipotentthen:
This era is shown at the beginning of Born on the Fourth. Through Kovic's childhood, the viewer is shown an idealized version of the 1950's and early 60's. We see Kovic playing war with his friends, and we see him celebrating watching veterans of past conflicts during a Fourth of July Parade. As John so eloquently described in the wiki, "Ron Kovic and his high school friends exemplify this idealistic perception of fighting overseas well during the first portion of the movie, and unfortunately, quite a few of them fail to make it home.
Stone, Oliver, A. Kitman Ho, Ron Kovic, Tom Cruise, Kyra Sedgwick, Raymond J Barry, Willem Dafoe, et al. Born on the Fourth of July. Special ed. Universal City, CA: Universal Studios, 2004.
GeneralWestmoreland’sstrategyofattrition alsohadanimportanteffecton ourbehavior.Our mission(Was nottowinterrainorseizepositions,butsimplyto‘Kill:tokillCommunistsandto killasmanyofthemaspossible.Stack’emlikecordwood.Victorywasahighbody-count,defeatalowkill-ratio,waramatterofarithmetic,
General Westmoreland remains one of the most emblematic figures of the Vietnam War. Many veterans continue to blame him for why the war went the way it did. As Caputo and many other veterans will tell you, the conflict truly came down to who had the biggest body count.
One day as I was watching at the top of a tree in our yard, I saw one of those people come into the yard of our next neighbor but one, to kidnap, there being many stout young people in it. Immediately on this I gave the alarm of the rogue, and he was surrounded by the stoutest of them, who entangled him with cords, so that he could not escape, till some of the grown people came and secured him. But, alas! ere long it was my fate to be thus attacked, and to be carried off, when none of the grown people were nigh.
Equiano's description of how Africans were kidnapped into slavery is reminiscent of the scene in Amistad when Cinquè is abducted into slavery. Like in Equiano's writing, slavers went into villages and took those they wanted as slaves. African Slavers kidnapping people is a darkly interesting part of the Atlantic Slave-trade, as Africans almost worked as middle-men by kidnapping people and selling them to the Europeans.
Spielberg, Steven, Debbie Allen, Colin Wilson, David Franzoni, Morgan Freeman, Nigel Hawthorne, Anthony Hopkins, et al. Amistad. Universal City, CA: DreamWorks Home Entertainment, 1999.
One day, when we had a smooth sea and moderate wind, two of my wearied countrymen who were chained together (I was near them at the time), preferring death to such a fife of misery, somehow made through the nettings and jumped into the sea; immediately, another quite dejected fellow, who, on account of his illness, was suffered to be out of irons, also followed their example; and I believe many more would very soon have done the same, if they had not been prevented by the ship's crew, who were instantly alarmed. Those of us that were the most active, were in a moment put down under the deck; and there was such a noise and confusion amongst the people of the ship as I never heard before, to stop her, and get the boat out to go after the slaves.
Equiano's depiction of slave suicide is much like what is depicted in the film. In the film, we see slaves commit suicide that would rather die than see the conditions that faced them in North America. Amistad takes this a step further when it shows slaves being thrown off the ships when rations began to get low on the ship.
Spielberg, Steven, Debbie Allen, Colin Wilson, David Franzoni, Morgan Freeman, Nigel Hawthorne, Anthony Hopkins, et al. Amistad. Universal City, CA: DreamWorks Home Entertainment, 1999.
At last, when the ship we were in, had got in all her cargo, they made ready with many fearful noises, and we were all put under deck, so that we could not see how they managed the vessel. But this disappointment was the least of my sorrow. The stench of the hold while we were on the coast was so intolerably loathsome, that it was dangerous to remain there for any time, and some of us had been permitted to stay on the deck for the fresh air; but now that the whole ship's cargo were confined together, it became absolutely pestilential. The closeness of the place, and the heat of the climate, added to the number in the ship, which was so crowded that each had scarcely room to turn himself, almost suffocated us. This produced copious perspirations, so that the air soon became unfit for respiration, from a variety of loathsome smells, and brought on a sickness among the slaves, of which many died -- thus falling victims to the improvident avarice, as I may call it, of their purchasers. This wretched situation was again aggravated by the gaffing of the chains, now became insupportable, and the filth of the necessary tubs, into which the clihdren often fell, and were almost suffocated. The shrieks of the women, and the groans of the dying, rendered the whole a scene of horror almost inconceivable.
This description of the slave ships is much like how the film depicts the conditions experienced on the Amistad. What makes Equiano's work compliment the film well is how he fills in the blanks the viewer doesn't see in the film. In this, Equiano describes the smells, the noises, the screams of death. By giving a personal account of these conditions, it makes what the viewer witnesses in Amistad much harder to watch. As John M. said in our weekly discussion, "not only is it important for depictions of the Middle Passage to be spread by films like Amistad, it is crucial that they actually be ACCURATE."
Spielberg, Steven, Debbie Allen, Colin Wilson, David Franzoni, Morgan Freeman, Nigel Hawthorne, Anthony Hopkins, et al. Amistad. Universal City, CA: DreamWorks Home Entertainment, 1999.
they talked to me in order to cheer me, but all in vain. I asked them if we were not to be eaten by those white men with horrible looks, red faces, and long hair. They told me I was not, and one of the crew brought me a small portion of spirituous liquor in a wine glass; but being afraid of him, I would not take it out of his hand
Equiano writes about the feelings of terror and fear felt at seeing white slavers for the first time, while Amistad illustrates how these feelings turned into anger that led Cinqué to lead a revolt killing the crew of the Amistad.
Spielberg, Steven, Debbie Allen, Colin Wilson, David Franzoni, Morgan Freeman, Nigel Hawthorne, Anthony Hopkins, et al. Amistad. Universal City, CA: DreamWorks Home Entertainment, 1999.
The first object which saluted my eyes when I arrived on the coast, was the sea, and a slave ship, which was then riding at anchor, and waiting for its cargo. These filled me with astonishment, which was soon converted into terror, when I was carried on board. I was immediately handled, and tossed up to see if I were sound, by some of the crew; and I was now persuaded that I had gotten into a world of bad spirits, and that they were going to kill me
This point really struck me as something that must've been universally felt by all Africans before they traveled to North America. As Equiano described, the feeling of being awestruck at the scale of European ships (which many Africans probably had never seen.) and how that feeling of awestruck turned into terror at what came next.
Most of them supposed I had fled towards home; but the distance was so great, and the way so intricate, that they thought I could never reach it, and that I should be lost in the woods. When I heard this I was seized with a violent panic, and abandoned myself to despair. Night, too, began to approach, and aggravated all my fears. I had before entertained hopes of getting home, and had determined when it should be dark to make the attempt; but I was now convinced it was fruitless, and began to consider that, if possibly I could escape all other animals, I could not those of the human kind; and that, not knowing the way, I must perish in the woods. Thus was I like the hunted deer
The unrealistic belief that African slaves could return home is visible in both Equiano's writings, and the movie. However, Equiano realized quite early on that he would never be able to make it home. Conversely, the Amistad slaves hoped that they would be able to steer their ship home. Interestingly, Equiano and Cinqué have two vastly different "endings." Upon his freedom, Equiano stayed in England, where he eventually died seemingly making no attempt to return to Africa, while Cinqué returned back to Africa following his freedom, where he died.
McClurken, Jeff. "Lecture on Amistad." at University of Mary Washington, September 24,2024.
The next day proved a day of greater sorrow than I had yet experienced; for my sister and I were then separated, while we lay clasped in each other's arms. It was in vain that we besought them not to part us; she was tom from me, and immediately carried away, while I was left in a state of distraction not to be described. I cried and grieved continually;
Being ripped from one's family was all too common when Africans were taken as slaves. Like Equiano's work suggests, those that were taken together were even separated from their loved-ones. What's more, Equiano is later briefly reunited with his sisters, albeit for a short time. This was incredibly uncommon as families were usually torn apart permanetly.
I remember, in the vessel in which I was brought over, in the men's apartment, there were several brothers, who, in the sale, were sold in different lots; and it was very moving on this occasion, to see and hear their cries at parting. O, ye nominal Christians! might not an African ask you -- Learned you this from your God, who says unto you, Do unto all men as you would men should do unto you? Is it not enough that we are torn from our country and friends, to toil for your luxury and lust of gain? Must every tender feeling be likewise sacrificed to your avarice?
Like Equiano wrote about earlier he writes about how slaves that came together on the ships were still torn from their families and sold. Unlike Equiano, Cinqué was taken from his family that remained in Africa while he was taken to North America.