The Vietnam War continues to provide instant "lessons" of history for everyone concerned with contemporary American foreign policy. Unfortunately, these lessons are often contradictory or simply wrong. This course will seek to rescue the Vietnam War from the distorted images of Hollywood and the sacred truths of those on both the Right and Left of the political spectrum. First, we will examine the origins of the Vietnam War in the late 1940's and 1950's within the larger frameworks of anti-communism and de-colonization. Second, we will examine the war from the perspective of both the North and South Vietnamese. Third, we will examine the political science theories of nation-building and escalation that led both John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson to commit over 500,000 American troops to Vietnam. Fourth, we will examine the antiwar movement and the political and strategic factors that finally ended the war in 1975. The final section of the course will examine the enduring impact of the war on Southeast Asia and revisit the lessons of Vietnam in the context of contemporary American foreign policy. Format: lecture/discussion. Requirements: Heavy Reading Load (175-200 pages a week), In-Class Midterm and Final Exam, Final Paper (15-20 pages), and a series of short assignments. No prerequisites. Enrollment limit: 24. International Relations Subfield