Group 2: Liz Broderick, Stephanie Hurley, Maria Mazzaro, Kevin Reda, Nicole Anastasio, Jen
Fiorillo
Dr. Martin Luther King Readings
1. How did communication technologies affect opinions of the Vietnam War?
2. In what way does Dr. King believe the Vietnam War “mutilates the conscience”?
3. Dr. King states, “America has ended up supporting a new form of colonialism.” What
does he mean by this? (235).
4. Dr. King believes in a “deadly western arrogance.” Does this exist today? What are some
more modern examples of it? (235).
5. Do you think that the United States has a tendency to use “freedom” as justification for
otherwise unsupported actions? (236).
6. What’s more important to Dr. King: peace abroad or comfort at home? What was more
important to the US government during the Vietnam War? What is more important to our
government today?
7. How did the Vietnam War bring about increased racial issues?
8. Dr. King states, “no nation can claim victory in war.” Do you agree? Is it impossible to
win a war today? Why/why not? If it is impossible, why are wars still fought? (239).
9. How would Dr. King feel about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan?
10. How is Dr. King’s fight against poverty and opposition of the Vietnam War related?
Where is the irony in these two situations?
11. In what ways was America’s support of the Vietnam War hypocritical?
12. Dr. King states, “The war in Vietnam is but a symptom of a far deeper malady within the
American spirit.” What does he mean by this? (248).
13. According to King, our government made a "tragic decision" (p. 235) related to the war
in Vietnam. What was that decision and what were the consequences of it?
14. King writes, "We are engaged in a war that seeks to turn the clock of history back" (p.
236). According to King, how was our government's response to Vietnam a repeat of past
historical events? In other words, what events in U.S. history was this war reminiscent
of?
15. King asserts that the sixth casualty of the war in Vietnam is the prospects of mankind's
survival. Therefore, is King hopeful that progress will come to Vietnam? If so, what will
bring about this progress? If not, what is hindering progress from occurring in Vietnam?
16. King writes, "I speak now not of the soldiers of each side, not of the junta in Saigon" (p.
244). To whom is King speaking to? What does he say has to happen before a
"meaningful solution" (p. 244) can be found?
17. According to King, "we have destroyed their two most cherished institutions" (p. 245).
What are these two institutions and what has the United States done that prevented the
people of Vietnam from rebuilding their lives?
18. King explains that the United States entered the war with the motive that our government
would serve to liberate the people of Vietnam. According to King, since entering the war,
how has the American government failed to be a liberator? In other words, which actions
on the part of our government have contradicted its initial mission to be a liberator in
Vietnam?
19. King asserts repeatedly that America, by engaging in war with Vietnam, supports "a new
form of colonialism" (235). Do you agree with King? Was our goal of invading Vietnam
to acquire territory or help others acquire territory? Do you see any parallels to
America's role in Vietnam and England's role in the New World?
20. King asserts that America should not be spending money in Vietnam because there were
so many poor living in the United States (236). This is an effective argument, but Kind
never examines why exactly the Americans are poor. Does it matter to his point? Would
it differently affect your opinion of his point if he had?
21. In your opinion, should we have stayed out of Vietnam because there were poor people in
America? In other words, does the good of the whole world (idealistically) trump the
good of our individual nation?
22. In your opinion, why did we enter into Vietnam? Does your reason agree or disagree
with King's reason?
23. King draws a comparison between the United States in Vietnam and Germany in World
War II (238). In what ways is this an accurate comparison?
24. King believes that war solves no problems. Is this idea of a world without war feasible?
Do you agree?
25. Is it possible to discuss civil rights of the African American population without
discussing rights of all people?
26. Can you separate government reforms in American foreign and domestic policy?
27. Why do you think America sided with the French, over the Vietnamese whose
independence represented the ideals America was founded on?
28. Do you think King views America’s role in Vietnam as an impediment to progress? How
impactful is the disintegration of America’s standing in the world?
29. Do you agree with Kings argument about the government’s unwillingness to address
domestic poverty concerns since the start of the Vietnam war? Do these problems still
exist today and If so, are they getting worse?
30. Have many of Kings fears about America’s decreasing respect in the world continued to
come true since his writings?
31. King was attacked by many contemporaries for criticizing the war, why do you think this
was the case?
32. In both articles King speaks about America's arrogance as a major pitfall of Western
society. Do you agree?
33. In the first article, who is King addressing? Does the root of King's concerns stem from
America's involvement in Vietnam and the events taking place there OR from America's
neglect of the poverty situation on the home-front? In other words, for King, which is the
greater of the two 'evils'?
34. How does the Greek story of Ulysses and the Sirens and the parable of the young man
told by Jesus affect King's speech? How do King's religious undertones affect his
speeches?
35. King suggests that America can & should become a moral power (p. 241) over all other
'types' of power. Do you think this is sufficient to maintain a superpower standing in the
world?