The color gray that surrounds the country represents
the terrible atmosphere created by the Vietnam War, in and around neighboring
countries. The Country of Vietnam itself was left white. White represents
purity, peace, the end of the war, and the unification that was reached between
both sides.
Ruben S.
Ruben, I really like this visual representation because it captures the novel's theme of lost/stolen innocence. I think it is important to notice that historically, aggressors came from outside the country, not within (ie. China, France, U.S.). Because of this fact, it makes sense that the Vietnam would be portrayed in white vs. the rest of the map that is darker and appears more menacing. This also coincides with Kien's assertion on page 75, "But he knew it wasn't true that young Vietnamese loved war. Not true at all. If war came they would fight, and fight courageously. But that didn't mean they loved fighting."
ReplyDelete--Kathy Mendoza
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ReplyDeleteThe concepts of your visualization of the country embroiled in war are excellent! Kathy brings up an excellent point in emphasizing that Vietnam has been a victim of worldwide interference with its politics and culture. I enjoyed the depiction of the "atmosphere" as grey because Vietnam became an extremely bleak landscape of perpetual conflict during the Vietnam War and I am immediately struck by how evident you make that fact by the way you illustrated the country in contrast to the rest of the world. The blurbs around the map are also well-executed. :-)
ReplyDelete-Tim J.