In Country may be a war novel but it can also be viewed as a book about family, about knowledge, and about discovering who you are. It can be viewed as a book about family since Sam constantly seems to be at odds with her mother who moved to be with her new husband in Lexington and because she is constantly struggling to learn about her father and to help Emmett heal physically and mentally because she cares for him. It is also a book about family since the lives of family members are rarely looked into after a war has occurred. Instead, most writers focus on the soldiers themselves. This book provides insight into how a war can change a family dynamic's entirely through Sam's unusual living arrangement
In Country is also a book about knowledge and discovering your identity because Sam feels that Vietnam has defined her life through the death of her father and through her uncle Emmett that she lives with. Throughout the book Sam is constantly pushing people for more information to help her understand the war and what the veterans went through as a way of defining her own identity. Eventually Sam realizes that Vietnam has greatly affected her life but has not defined it when she reads her fathers journal and speaks to Emmett about his experiences in Vietnam. These instances show her that she will never be able to comprehend the Vietnam War in its entirety.
In Country is set in the middle of Kentucky in the summer of 1984. This setting and time period makes it significant because it allows the novel to depict how the veteran's cope with the war years after they have returned home and how it still affects the lives of the veterans and many others throughout the country. It is also important because it shows a small town that has fallen behind the times and is still very ignorant to the after effects of the Vietnam War. The residents of this town are far enough behind the times that it is difficult for all of them, even those who are related to veterans, to comprehend why the veterans are so different from everyone else.
Popular culture also plays a role in this book because it is one way for Sam and Emmett to form a bond with one another. The two bond over the television show MASH since Emmett can relate to the characters experiences and it allows Sam to grasp an idea of what war may have been like. Popular culture is also important because it shows how patriotism is on the rise through the use of singers like Bruce Springsteen.
Monday, April 12, 2010
Blog 11: DW
The book In Country by Bobbie Ann Mason is certainly a war story involving the Vietnam War and those who fought in it, but it can also be seen as a story about the search for knowledge and discovering who you are. The story is about a girl named Samantha Hughes and shows the effects that the Vietnam War had on not only the people who physically were there and fought, but also the impact it had on their loved ones. Sam becomes very interested in the war and whishes to learn more about it and her father who died in the war. She does many things to learn as much about the war that she can, like reading her father's diary and talking to local veterans. She also does things to try and imagine what it was like for soldiers in the war like camping in the swamp and watching the TV show MASH. There is a lot of pop culture in the book, like MASH and music by the Beatles and Bruce Springsteen. The TV show gave a visual of what war was like, even though it was about the Korean War. The music was used to express emotions and effects that the war had on people during and after the war.
The way that In Country is set up helps draw attention to the aftereffects that the war has on those involved. The first and third sections of the book are set in the present as Sam, her uncle Emmett, and her grandmother Mawmaw are driving from their home in Kentucky to the Vietnam War memorial in Washington D.C. Having the majority of the story take place after the war shows its lasting effects that it has on everyone. Emmett, who actually fought in the war, has a very hard time re-assimilating back into civilian life and cannot hold a job. It also affects Sam directly because she lost her father in the war, but she also wants to learn more about the war for her own knowledge about it and to know what the soldiers went through over there. This aspect of the book shows the perspective of a girl who didn't fight in the war which is a perspective that isn't usually presented in a war story. Rarely are the lives of family members or close friends examined after the war, where this book makes it not only about the changes in the life of a family member, but about a child who has lost her father to the war.
The way that In Country is set up helps draw attention to the aftereffects that the war has on those involved. The first and third sections of the book are set in the present as Sam, her uncle Emmett, and her grandmother Mawmaw are driving from their home in Kentucky to the Vietnam War memorial in Washington D.C. Having the majority of the story take place after the war shows its lasting effects that it has on everyone. Emmett, who actually fought in the war, has a very hard time re-assimilating back into civilian life and cannot hold a job. It also affects Sam directly because she lost her father in the war, but she also wants to learn more about the war for her own knowledge about it and to know what the soldiers went through over there. This aspect of the book shows the perspective of a girl who didn't fight in the war which is a perspective that isn't usually presented in a war story. Rarely are the lives of family members or close friends examined after the war, where this book makes it not only about the changes in the life of a family member, but about a child who has lost her father to the war.
Blog Eleven- LdT
In Country is clearly a novel on the Vietnam War and the soldiers after they came home, but it can also be seen as a novel about a teenage girl growing up. In the novel, Samantha Hughes who is trying to figure out what happened to her father, who died in Vietnam and what happened to other Veterans of the Vietnam War. Throughout the novel, Emmett, Sam’s uncle, is shown as a typical Veteran who cannot go on through life normally as many other soldiers faced this same reality. Emmett clearly has a form of posttraumatic stress disorder because he has trouble holding a steady job and going about life “normally”. Most of what Emmett does during his day is activities that will distract him from thinking about memories of the war. The character of Sam brings the innocent point of view on the Vietnam War, not understand the horridness that could exist such as things from Agent Orange or shell shock. Sam does cannot fathom why her father is dead and cannot understand why Emmet will never have a normal life or even a normal relationship with her. In Country looks at what happened to America years after the Vietnam War.
In Country takes place in 1984 when Sam, Emmett and Mamaw are on a road trip from their home in Kentucky to Washington D.C. to visit the Vietnam Memorial. The Vietnam Memorial was established in 1982 in attempts to make up for the injustices the country served upon the Veterans after they returned home.
M*A*S*H* was a popular TV show that was series that ran from September 1972 to February of 1983. The TV show was seen as an allegory for the Vietnam War even though it was about the Korean War. Through the novel, Sam realizes that what her knowledge of War is based off a romanticized version, which she learned from watching the show M*A*S*H*. Pop culture can typically be used to generalize what is popular within certain generations. In this novel, there are many times when there is a pop culture reference. There is the Michael Jackson and Bruce Springsteen tours going on, Sam enjoys listening to music by the Beatles and Bob Dylan. The Beatles, Bob Dylan, and Bruce Springsteen all sung about the hard times. Michael Jackson brought on a new wave of music that did not seem to have as much of a connection to something as strong as the Vietnam War. Although there are still those who are touched by the music of such revolutionists, by the time the 1980’s were coming around, the youth could not understand the war, even though it was still so obviously present.
In Country takes place in 1984 when Sam, Emmett and Mamaw are on a road trip from their home in Kentucky to Washington D.C. to visit the Vietnam Memorial. The Vietnam Memorial was established in 1982 in attempts to make up for the injustices the country served upon the Veterans after they returned home.
M*A*S*H* was a popular TV show that was series that ran from September 1972 to February of 1983. The TV show was seen as an allegory for the Vietnam War even though it was about the Korean War. Through the novel, Sam realizes that what her knowledge of War is based off a romanticized version, which she learned from watching the show M*A*S*H*. Pop culture can typically be used to generalize what is popular within certain generations. In this novel, there are many times when there is a pop culture reference. There is the Michael Jackson and Bruce Springsteen tours going on, Sam enjoys listening to music by the Beatles and Bob Dylan. The Beatles, Bob Dylan, and Bruce Springsteen all sung about the hard times. Michael Jackson brought on a new wave of music that did not seem to have as much of a connection to something as strong as the Vietnam War. Although there are still those who are touched by the music of such revolutionists, by the time the 1980’s were coming around, the youth could not understand the war, even though it was still so obviously present.
Blog 11 JCP
The novel In Country is obviously a war story, but also the story of growing up. The main character is Samantha Hughes, a girl who lost her father in Vietnam. From the war story aspect the film shows how the war not only affected those who were there physically fighting, but also their loved ones. Sam develops a great curiosity in the war because she is curious about who her father was. She sees Emmet, her uncle, suffering from post traumatic stress disorder attempting to live a normal life. Sam can look to him for an idea of who her father was, but he is different from the war, and more importantly no one can truly represent a parent. Sam even watches MASH trying to understand the war. When at Vietnam War Memorial when the narrator says "And she will never really know what happened to all these men in the war" (240). Sam is lost trying to find herself as represented by her search to understand the war and her father.
This novel is set in 1984, on a road trip from Kentucky to DC. The fact that it is told from an after war perspective from someone who was not in Vietnam gives it an unique angle on the war and how it affected people long after it was over. Also the road trip is representative of how the war affected the whole country. Also being at the Vietnam War Memorial is a powerful image of the huge losses of life that result from war.
Popular culture played a large role in this novel because Sam is part of a generation largely guided by pop culture. Her father and uncle were of the generation that went to war or were affected by the war. Although Sam is affected by the war because of the loss of her father, she doesn't understand it as if she lived through it. The emergence of MTV was her generations escape from the generation above them who were largely still war focused. Also the usage of Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA" was representative of the feeling in America. The most memorable and known part of the song are the patriotic lyrics repeating "Born in the USA." However the lyrics upon closer examination are about the war saying "so they put a rife in my hand, sent me off to Vietnam, to go and kill the yellow man." This shows how much of Sam's generation were starting to move on from the war focusing on the chorus, but her uncles generation is still stuck in the war represented by the other lyrics.
This novel is set in 1984, on a road trip from Kentucky to DC. The fact that it is told from an after war perspective from someone who was not in Vietnam gives it an unique angle on the war and how it affected people long after it was over. Also the road trip is representative of how the war affected the whole country. Also being at the Vietnam War Memorial is a powerful image of the huge losses of life that result from war.
Popular culture played a large role in this novel because Sam is part of a generation largely guided by pop culture. Her father and uncle were of the generation that went to war or were affected by the war. Although Sam is affected by the war because of the loss of her father, she doesn't understand it as if she lived through it. The emergence of MTV was her generations escape from the generation above them who were largely still war focused. Also the usage of Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA" was representative of the feeling in America. The most memorable and known part of the song are the patriotic lyrics repeating "Born in the USA." However the lyrics upon closer examination are about the war saying "so they put a rife in my hand, sent me off to Vietnam, to go and kill the yellow man." This shows how much of Sam's generation were starting to move on from the war focusing on the chorus, but her uncles generation is still stuck in the war represented by the other lyrics.
Blog 11 - JWE
Bobbie Ann Mason's In Country is not only a war novel but also a story about identity. Sam, the main character, has only had the chance to know one of her parents and wonders what her dad was like and how her life would be different if he was still alive. Not only does she have to deal with that but also the fact that she knows nothing about the war he died in or what he did their. Sam can look at Emmett for help to understand her father because he is also a Vietnam veteran but he also represents her mother's side because he is Irene's brother. She tries finding her identity through other people as well but none of them can help her. Sam's friend Dawn could be a help but she becomes pregnant so she is too much like Sam's mom and Sam also looks towards Tom as a father figure but because of his impotency he pushes her away. With no one left to turn to she must find her missing identity on her own. She does this by looking through his letters and war journals but when this isn't enough she decides to try and re-enact Vietnam. She goes to Cawood Pond, which is similar to the terrain in Vietnam. She hopes that by re-living the experience she will be able to relate to her father and find her full identity.
By having the novel set after the war it shows how much the Vietnam war effected not only the soldiers fighting the war but also the people they left behind. In all the other wars stories we have looked at we never see so much emphasis put on someone who never fought or was not even indirectly involved in the war. This is ironic because the title of the novel is In Country which is a term usually used to describe a soldier who is currently invloved in the action. In this book, the title represents that even people like Sam, who have never seen fighting and know very little about war are still fighting to counteract its effects.
Popular culture was also a large part of this novel. The biggest example would be how Sam and Emmett would watch M*A*S*H together. Even though this show is about the Korean War, Sam uses it as a way to try and understand the Vietnam War. Another example of pop culture in the novel is lyrics from the song "Born in the USA" by Bruce Springstein.
By having the novel set after the war it shows how much the Vietnam war effected not only the soldiers fighting the war but also the people they left behind. In all the other wars stories we have looked at we never see so much emphasis put on someone who never fought or was not even indirectly involved in the war. This is ironic because the title of the novel is In Country which is a term usually used to describe a soldier who is currently invloved in the action. In this book, the title represents that even people like Sam, who have never seen fighting and know very little about war are still fighting to counteract its effects.
Popular culture was also a large part of this novel. The biggest example would be how Sam and Emmett would watch M*A*S*H together. Even though this show is about the Korean War, Sam uses it as a way to try and understand the Vietnam War. Another example of pop culture in the novel is lyrics from the song "Born in the USA" by Bruce Springstein.
Blog 11 CJ
Bobbie Ann Mason’s novel, In Country, is both a coming of age story and a story about the Vietnam War. Sam struggles to come to term with her life as she searches for answers to her father’s past. She has trouble deciding what to do with her life and much of her difficulty is caused by the emptiness she has inside due to the lack of information about her father and lack of a strong mother figure. Mason writes, “She’s in limbo, stationed right in the center of this enormous amount of energy” (17). Sam is stuck in-between her teen age years and adult hood. She has been pre-disposed to adulthood while taking care of Emmett and having her best friend become pregnant. Her unconventional home life makes it difficult for her to find her place in the world. Sam begins to understand that not all of her questions will be answered. Emmitt says to Sam, “There are some things you can never figure out” (226). Emmitt says this to help her recognize that she will never be able to truly understand what it was like in Vietnam. Sam is holding back her life with the constant struggle to learn about Vietnam. While at the Vietnam memorial, Sam has an epiphany. Mason writes, “And she will never really know what happened to all these men in the war” (240). Sam had to learn that she can not dwell on the past and must take what she has learned and apply it to the future.
Mason uses pop culture in the novel to show how the war has influenced society and to display how Sam and other people have been only exposed to what is present around them. As she searches for answers, Sam begins to think about the war when seeing things that have sheltered her from the war her whole life. Mason writes, “All the flags flying from the stores that week made Sam preoccupied with the Vietcong flag Emmett had flown from the courthouse clock tower years before” (89). The small town happenings that used to seem mundane to Sam have deeper meaning now that she has dedicated herself to find out more about Emmitt and her father’s past. All of the other franchised stores and media images, such as MTV, represent the way times have changed since the war and the way many people have lost interest in the veterans. As people are more interested in what is going on in the present, veterans are looked down upon. Another reason for Mason’s constant cultural references is to show how music and culture are heavy influence on Sam’s life. Mason writes, “On the cover, Bruce Springsteen is facing the flag, as though studying it, trying to figure out its meaning” (236). This is representative of how certain artists at the time had contrasting views of America and what it meant to be American. Just as Bruce Springsteen did not like the way Vietnam veterans were treated, so too did Sam constantly question the treatment of the veterans, especially pertaining to Agent Orange.
While the media and advancements of society have distracted people from the occurrences of the war, the time has displaced Sam from the war era. The displacement has made her struggle to learn more about her father and the war even more difficult. What she wished to unearth the veterans want to keep hidden and out of mind. Emmitt does not like talking about the war and feels that Sam should leave the subject alone. Mason writes, “Don’t fret too much over this Vietnam thing, Sam” (57). Emmitt does not want the war to take over Sam’s life as it has taken over his own life and the other veterans’ lives. The time that has passed separates Sam from the culture of society during the time of war. She is drawn to soldiers during the time of the war, shown through Sam’s love affair with Tom, one of Emmett’s friends. Sam eventually accepts the fact that she will never be able to truly understand. While living in a small town the characters are sheltered from the big city. In the city there were often more war protests and movements. Where the novel takes place is a more conservative area and is less likely to see political friction from the war.
Mason uses pop culture in the novel to show how the war has influenced society and to display how Sam and other people have been only exposed to what is present around them. As she searches for answers, Sam begins to think about the war when seeing things that have sheltered her from the war her whole life. Mason writes, “All the flags flying from the stores that week made Sam preoccupied with the Vietcong flag Emmett had flown from the courthouse clock tower years before” (89). The small town happenings that used to seem mundane to Sam have deeper meaning now that she has dedicated herself to find out more about Emmitt and her father’s past. All of the other franchised stores and media images, such as MTV, represent the way times have changed since the war and the way many people have lost interest in the veterans. As people are more interested in what is going on in the present, veterans are looked down upon. Another reason for Mason’s constant cultural references is to show how music and culture are heavy influence on Sam’s life. Mason writes, “On the cover, Bruce Springsteen is facing the flag, as though studying it, trying to figure out its meaning” (236). This is representative of how certain artists at the time had contrasting views of America and what it meant to be American. Just as Bruce Springsteen did not like the way Vietnam veterans were treated, so too did Sam constantly question the treatment of the veterans, especially pertaining to Agent Orange.
While the media and advancements of society have distracted people from the occurrences of the war, the time has displaced Sam from the war era. The displacement has made her struggle to learn more about her father and the war even more difficult. What she wished to unearth the veterans want to keep hidden and out of mind. Emmitt does not like talking about the war and feels that Sam should leave the subject alone. Mason writes, “Don’t fret too much over this Vietnam thing, Sam” (57). Emmitt does not want the war to take over Sam’s life as it has taken over his own life and the other veterans’ lives. The time that has passed separates Sam from the culture of society during the time of war. She is drawn to soldiers during the time of the war, shown through Sam’s love affair with Tom, one of Emmett’s friends. Sam eventually accepts the fact that she will never be able to truly understand. While living in a small town the characters are sheltered from the big city. In the city there were often more war protests and movements. Where the novel takes place is a more conservative area and is less likely to see political friction from the war.
Blog 11 KSP
Bobbie Ann Mason’s In Country is a war novel that details the life of girl named Samantha Hughes who is trying to figure out what happened to her during the Vietnam War. Although it can be viewed as strictly a war novel, it can be portrayed as a story of struggle, truth, and growing up. In the novel Sam lives with her uncle Emmett who is a Vietnam Veteran and simply tries to make it through each day the best he can. Like many who returned home from the war, Emmett suffers from a form of PTSD and does not know how to go about a “normal” day. He says, “There’s something wrong with me. I’m damaged. It’s like something in the center of my heart is gone and I can’t get it back” (225).The Vietnam War has taken a piece of Emmett’s heart, and he has seen things no human being should ever be a witness to and that is why he is the way he is. In addition to this, In Country can be viewed as a story of truth and growing up because Sam is trying to figure out what happened to her father in Vietnam, but at the same time she is trying to find herself.
This novel takes place in the summer of 1984 as Sam, Emmett, and her grandmother Mawmaw drive from their Kentucky home to Washington D.C. The time period is crucial to the understanding of this story because unlike the other war novels, this novel is not a firsthand account. It is told through the voice of a young girl who was removed from the Vietnam War, but was still affected by it through the death of her father Dwayne. The setting of this novel also plays into the role that pop culture had.
In the epigram of this book Mason uses the lyrics of a classic American song. “I’m ten years burning down the road/ Nowhere to run ain’t got nowhere to go” (Bruce Springsteen, “Born in the U.S.A.). Here it is evident that almost ten years after the war was over people were still trying to put their lives back together. Before the Vietnam the music of the Beatles and Bob Dylan was popular, but after the war people were trying to find a way to explain what had happened. The 1980’s was a time when people were finally putting to rest some of the pain and suffering they had endured so that they could hope for a better tomorrow. The use of this particular album is especially telling because it expresses the emotions of most people which included pain, loss and searching.
Pop culture serves as a comparison between the Vietnam generation and the MTV generation. During the 1980’s many of the soldiers who had children were coming of age, but unlike their parents who went to war at the age of eighteen, they born to a different culture. MTV was created in 1981 and featured the musical styling of artists such as Michael Jackson and Bruce Springsteen, who were mentioned in the book.
This novel takes place in the summer of 1984 as Sam, Emmett, and her grandmother Mawmaw drive from their Kentucky home to Washington D.C. The time period is crucial to the understanding of this story because unlike the other war novels, this novel is not a firsthand account. It is told through the voice of a young girl who was removed from the Vietnam War, but was still affected by it through the death of her father Dwayne. The setting of this novel also plays into the role that pop culture had.
In the epigram of this book Mason uses the lyrics of a classic American song. “I’m ten years burning down the road/ Nowhere to run ain’t got nowhere to go” (Bruce Springsteen, “Born in the U.S.A.). Here it is evident that almost ten years after the war was over people were still trying to put their lives back together. Before the Vietnam the music of the Beatles and Bob Dylan was popular, but after the war people were trying to find a way to explain what had happened. The 1980’s was a time when people were finally putting to rest some of the pain and suffering they had endured so that they could hope for a better tomorrow. The use of this particular album is especially telling because it expresses the emotions of most people which included pain, loss and searching.
Pop culture serves as a comparison between the Vietnam generation and the MTV generation. During the 1980’s many of the soldiers who had children were coming of age, but unlike their parents who went to war at the age of eighteen, they born to a different culture. MTV was created in 1981 and featured the musical styling of artists such as Michael Jackson and Bruce Springsteen, who were mentioned in the book.
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