How Vietnam War Affected Pop Culture

The Vietnam War saw over 58,000 United States soldiers lose their lives in the eight years the U.S. was involved. The heavy loss of life ignited a wildfire of outrage in public opinion, causing nationwide protests and distress to end the war and bring the troops back. Many Americans discovered that using their techniques with the arts was the best way to challenge government decisions and influence the collection of Americans who opposed involvement in Vietnam. These actions affected pop culture heavily through the use of public protest, creating anti-war art, and putting. The emotional appeal held over the people's heads from the public protests was a heavy coating against the war. Because Vietnam was the first war that was broadcasted across

The art ranges from basic cartoon segments in the newspaper to the use of songwriting in the 1960s and early 1970s. Blossoming singer and songwriter Marvin Gaye had been gaining controversy and positive public criticism for a while before releasing his anti-war hit “What's Going On?” in 1971. Gaye was met with dense criticism, both good and bad. But Gaye was especially criticized because he was a black singer leaning out of his normal stream with music. He still found success though, and the song peaked 2nd on the Hot 100 charts in the United States. It was cherished and worshiped as one of the many songs played during protests, and anti-war rallies. Numerous other artists produced inspiring ant-war music in spite of the government’s choices in Vietnam, including renowned guitarist Jimi Hendrix. Hendrix was one of the first African-American musicians to publically oppose the decisions made by the U.S. considering Vietnam. In 1968 during the acclaimed Woodstock festival in New York, Hendrix performed his rendition of The Star Spangled Banner, it “was played, not as a patriotic anthem, but as a reflection of the violence done in the name of the flag” (Peace 8). Aside from music, movies were all the commotion during the 60s and 70s, and culture-changing films like Platoon created a realistic experience of the atrocities in Vietnam for viewers to encounter firsthand. Platoon was a movie directed by Oliver Stone, who had served previously in Vietnam before being let go because of significant injuries. Being a part of the war gave Stone the opportunity to recreate what he had seen in a more thrilling and educational sense. He explored the use of post-war mental health in soldiers and ways of coping which could turn very gruesome and something not for the warmest-hearted people to see. It brought subjects to film that Hollywood hadn’t seen before like psychological