October 29, 2003
Vietnam focus of NMC series
First in five-part lectures series examines history of country
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
A country that still resonates in the minds of many Americans, Vietnam is the focus of a five-part lecture series at Northwestern Michigan College this week.
Sponsored by the college in cooperation with the Michigan Global Alliance Consortium, the series began Monday night with a lecture on the history of Vietnam. John Whitmore, an adjunct professor in the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at the University of Michigan covered 4,000 years of Vietnamese history for an audience of 40 at Scholar's Hall.
"I had an interest in expanding my knowledge of the country, I'm so inexperienced," said Michele Gleeson of Traverse City. "I got a book list for further reading and an interest in learning what the country is all about."
The remaining presentations of the Focus on Vietnam program are:
- Education of Vietnam; Wednesday, October 29, noon-1 p.m., Oleson Center.
- Geography of Vietnam; Monday, November 3, 2:30-3:30, Oleson Center.
- A Heart in Two Worlds (Leaving Vietnam); Wednesday, November 5, 1-2:15, Oleson Center.
- Vietnam in Two Wars: A South Vietnamese Perspective; Wednesday, November 5, 7-8:30 p.m., Oleson Center.
The Michigan Global Alliance Consortium began in 1988 to help eight member community colleges in the state share costs of supplemental programs. Previous topics in the annual lecture series include water and Africa.
Whitmore has traveled to Vietnam twice and has studied the country throughout his 40-year academic career. Specializing in historical Vietnam, he began examining a region that at first was largely ignored. Within a few years, however, it rocketed to primary importance in the United States because of the escalating Vietnam War.
Noting that for more than two millennia, the people of Vietnam have been invaded, at war or fighting among themselves, he said that the Vietnamese concept of war is a protracted war.
Whitmore began his talk by noting that Vietnamese history meant little to policy makers in the United States during the Cold War. He noted that Vietnamese history has always been closely linked to China, who alternately ruled, occupied or were ejected over the centuries.
Another defining factor, one emphasized strongly by the North Vietnamese as they unified the country in the 1970s, is the concept of one Vietnam: one people, one language, and one culture. Whitmore said that the homeland and cultural continuity of the region dates back 4,000 years.
"There was a thriving indigenous civilization there until 2,500 years ago because they ran up against the Chinese," he said.
Around 111 B.C., China came in but kept a relatively low profile for 150 years. Then events in the larger country sent refugees to Vietnam, sparking a revolt by two Vietnamese sisters who remain folk heroes in the country today. The revolt failed and the first transition began, putting the country under Chinese domination.
The second transition occurred nearly 1,000 years later when the country became an Asian style state, throwing off many Chinese ruling traditions. Buddhism took root, trade flourished and a monarchy began, although China retained influence.
By the 1600s, two aristocratic families dominated the country, essentially dividing it into a northern portion and a southern one. The north became more agricultural and the south concentrated on trade and commerce. As European explorers ventured into the area, the two regions fought for dominance for centuries until finally, in 1803, the south won.
Vietnam was a major regional power, fueled by the south's enterprise, until the French forced the next major transition. They conquered the southern part of the country in the 1860s. Rolled into an entity known as Indochina with four neighboring countries, Vietnam remained as a French colony until after World War II.
"Some thought French was what was needed to bring Vietnam into the modern age," said Whitmore. "Others wanted the French out, worrying about answers later."
In the 1950s, the United States became increasingly involved in the country, taking over for the French. The effort began with advisors and spread to tens of thousands of troops by the 1970s and the Vietnam War.
The main goal of US involvement was to contain the spread of Communism and counter the Soviet Union's influence. But ignorance of Vietnamese history and its current factions, coupled with a lack of will and uneven leadership at home, led to a withdrawal of United States by 1975.
"If we'd known then what we know now, would it have been any different?" Whitmore speculated of the United States early involvement in the country during the 1950s and 60s. "I think probably not, given the Cold War circumstances."