The role of Vietnamese women during the Vietnam war

Abstract

This thesis will emphasize on the contributions of the Vietnamese women towards the Vietnam War as represented in selected texts authored or co-authored by the Vietnamese women. Initially, it is found that women’s contributions in the Vietnam War do not showcase only what happened ‘during’ the war, but also how the war is affected by the aftermath of the contributions themselves. Moreover, the contributions of the Vietnamese Women are categorized by the socio-ideological differences between the North and the South. The materials chosen will determine the actuality of these distinguished contributions. It will also discuss how they are affected by the war, both during the wartime and in the postwar period. The objectives of the research are to examine the different aspects of Vietnamese women’s social roles and obligations during the Vietnam War and to investigate the influence of the Vietnam War on Vietnamese women. This research is qualitative in approach and employs the analysis of memoirs, literary texts, and historical data. A fieldwork observation was conducted at the Museum of Women in Hanoi, Vietnam. It is hoped that the findings of the research can give an answer to what extent the Vietnamese women have contributed to as well as their lives have affected by the Vietnam War.