The Vietnam War, 1954–1975
Results of the quiz.
1. Conscientious objectors opposed the Vietnam War because of

CORRECT: religious or moral beliefs.
2. In what became known as the My Lai massacre,

CORRECT: American troops opened fire on unarmed Vietnamese villagers.
3. What role did student activists play in the antiwar effort?

CORRECT: They helped lead the protest movement.
4. Why was the Ho Chi Minh Trail important?

CORRECT: It was a critical supply route for the North Vietnamese.
5. The domino theory stated that

CORRECT: if one country fell to communism, neighboring countries would soon follow.
6. College students in the early 1960s could receive a deferment, which was

CORRECT: an official postponement of military duty.
7. At both Kent State University in Ohio and Jackson State College in Mississippi,

CORRECT: students were killed in anti-war demonstrations.
8. At the 1968 Democratic national convention in Chicago,

CORRECT: police used violent tactics to disperse a mob of protestors.
9. The Vietnam War ended when

CORRECT: North Vietnam defeated South Vietnam.
10. After World War II, President Truman pledged American aid to any nation threatened by

CORRECT: Communists.
11. In fighting the North Vietnamese, the American military used

CORRECT: bombs and chemical weapons.
12. Who were "the silent majority?"

CORRECT: a group of more conservative Americans to whom Nixon appealed
13. The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution gave President Johnson the power to

CORRECT: deepen American involvement in Vietnam.
14. President Kennedy's goal in Vietnam was to

CORRECT: prevent the Communists from defeating South Vietnam.
15. American soldiers in Vietnam had to deal with

CORRECT: diseases and surprise attacks.
16. In 1954, Ho Chi Minh became the

CORRECT: pro-Communist leader of North Vietnam.
17. As Nixon began to withdraw American troops from Vietnam, he also

CORRECT: expanded the war into Cambodia.
18. What happened to the citizens of Cambodia after the Vietnam war ended?

CORRECT: One quarter of them were killed by the fanatically Communist Khmer Rouge.
19. As a result of the Tet Offensive, a majority of the American public began to

CORRECT: oppose the Vietnam War.
20. "Hawks" and "doves" were

CORRECT: people who supported the war and people who opposed it.
Part 2:
Analyzing Sources
502 Unit 15 Assessment © Teachers’ Curriculum Institute
Unit15Assessment
In this unit, you learned about U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War and about
lessons to be learned from the war. Use this excerpt to complete the tasks below.
.
Excerpt from Robert S. McNamara,
In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam, 1995
As we learned in Vietnam, military force has only a limited capacity to facilitate the
process of nation building. Military force, by itself, cannot build a “failed state.” . . .
At times U.S. military intervention will be justified not on humanitarian or peacekeeping
grounds but on the basis of national security. Clearly, if a direct threat to this nation emerges,
we should and will act unilaterally—after appropriate consultation with Congress and the
American people. If the threat is less direct but still potentially serious . . . how should
we respond? I strongly urge that we act only in a multilateral decision-making and
burdensharing
context—another lesson of Vietnam.
The wars we fight in the post–Cold War world are likely more often than not to be “limited
wars,” like Vietnam . . . Certainly Vietnam taught us how immensely difficult it is to fight
limited wars leading to U.S. casualties over long periods of time. But circumstances will
arise where limited war is far preferable to unlimited war. Before engaging in such conflicts,
the American people must understand the difficulties we will face; the American
military must know and accept the constraints under which they will operate; and our
leaders—and our people—must be prepared to cut our losses and withdraw if it appears
our limited objectives cannot be achieved at acceptable risks or costs . . .
Finally, we must recognize that the consequences of large-scale military operations—
particularly in this age of highly sophisticated and destructive weapons—are inherently
difficult to predict and to control. Therefore, they must be avoided, excepting only when
our nation’s security is clearly and directly threatened. These are the lessons of Vietnam.
Pray God we learn them.
1. In this excerpt, former Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara
describes four lessons to be learned from the Vietnam War.
Briefly summarize each of these lessons.
The lesson how difficult to fight a limited war which was leading US casualties over
long periods of time .We must understand the harshness we will face during the war.
Our leaders have to prepare for the losses from the war. We also have to recognize the
consequences.
2. Choose one of these four lessons to discuss. Tell whether you
agree or disagree with McNamara’s view. Support your opinion
with evidence drawn from your study of the Vietnam War.
I totally agree with his view. First of all we must be able to acknowledge the losses we
would have before enter the war if not we would end up like Vietnam war because we
didn’t expect to have the enormous casualties loss. We also didn’t know where to stop
because Nixon kept on sending troops to Vietnam regardless of the losses we had. We
have to recognize and accept the truth before it’s too late because we didn’t want to
admit that we lost the Vietnam War.
Why did the United States increase its military involvement in
Vietnam?
The United States kept on increasing its military because it didn’t
want to accept the truth that they were going to lose the war to a poor
country without any special weapons. United States has been
winning any war had happened in the past such as WWII and the Cold
War.
What made the Vietnam War difficult to win?
There are many factors that make Vietnam War difficult to win. First of
all it’s the environment in Vietnam. It has lots of tree, mountain, river
which is hard for the soldiers to navigate the enemies. It is also
because the soldiers who got drafted weren’t well trained.
What lessons for Americans emerged from the Vietnam War?
The Americans have learned crucial lessons about war. War is
expensive, not just the costs, but also the risks that each of the
soldiers had. It also taught Americans that they have to recognize the
consequences they have after the war and be able to determine the
right reason to start the war. Moreover, this war also shows
Americans that don’t think that they are strong and they can win in
any war,