The American War in Vietnam

Cornell University Southeast Asia Program #13

by Jayne S. Werner (Editor), David Hunt (Editor), Gareth Porter (Contributor)

As suggested by the title, this collection of essays focuses upon American involvement in the Vietnamese War. These essays were originally written for a symposium in 1988 in which (for the first time since 1975) scholars from both the U.S. and Vietnam met to discuss and debate the war and its impact on their respective nations. Thus, these works (by American authors) though alternately probing and guarded, are always thought-provoking. They display the mind at work in its search for answers, explanations, and meaning. Questions of politics and history (diplomacy, the Tet offensive, Chinese involvement, U.S. war veterans) are considered and reconsidered by such authors as Allen Whiting, Jayne Werner, Nyo Vinh Long, and Paul Comacho.

132 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1993

About the author

Dr. Jayne S. Werner was an American scholar and educator, and one of the leading experts on the contemporary history & politics of Viet Nam. She earned her bachelor’s degree in political science at the University of Pittsburgh in 1966, and her PhD. from Cornell University in 1976. She was a co-editor of the Bulletin of Concerned Asian Scholars (BCAS) from 1976 to 1980. Dr. Werner was affiliated with Columbia University from 1981 to 2015, ultimately as a research scholar at the Weatherhead East Asian Institute (2010-2015). At the time of her death, she was also Professor Emerita of political science at Long Island University.