HST195 Midterm Examination
Essay Questions
You may use a single 4" x 8" index card, to jot down important events,
names, dates, places, etc. to use while writing your essay. You must turn this card
in, along with your essay on exam day to receive credit. Bring at least 8 sheets
of paper and a pen to CEN423C on the day of the midterm.
The following questions are actual exam questions. You will write a total of 2
essays, one from Section A and one from Section B. Only two of the three questions
in each section will appear on the day of the exam. You may choose one of the two
from each section. (If you prepare for at least two of the questions from each section,
you will be assured that two of the four you’ve prepared for will be on the exam.)
Your discussion should be detailed and well organized. You should take a moment
to draft a brief outline of your answer. Do NOT write your essays in the first person.
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Section A
- The question of why the United States became involved in Vietnam might be answered
solely by examining American policy. But it can also be approached by looking at
American involvement as part of an historical process that included the French, the
Japanese, and the British. In an essay, examine the experience of France, Japan,
and Great Britain in Vietnam, and attempt to determine if the American experience
was, in fact, just the last act in an historical drama heretofore dominated by other
nations.
- "Had Americans known more about the Vietnamese--about their traditions of
resistance to foreign powers, about the intensity of their nationalism, about what
their Communism really amounted to, they might have been less willing to commit themselves
to a war in Southeast Asia." How accurate do you believe this statement to be?
- "In the 1940s and 1950s, Vietnam's future was settled on the battlefield,
not at the conference table." Assess the validity of the this statement.
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Section B
- In the 1960s, "hawks" and "doves" endlessly debated the question
of whether American policy toward Vietnam in the years before 1964 was a response
to Communist "aggression" against South Vietnam. What light do the facts
and the videos shed on this important problem?
- What concrete interests, if any, did America have in Vietnam? To what extent
was the United States in Vietnam to defend abstractions such as "freedom"
and "democracy" and the "right to self determination"?
- Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, and Lyndon Johnson all had to come to grips
with Vietnam. In doing so, each was faced with a crucial decision. For Eisenhower,
that decision involved Dienbienphu. For Kennedy, it involved Ngo Dinh Diem. For Johnson,
there were many such decisions, but one of great importance involved the Gulf of
Tonkin. Compare and contrast how these presidents handled their challenges. Which
president handled his decision most effectively, and which most ethically? In retrospect,
which made the biggest blunder?