Telltale Hearts: The Origins and Impact of the Vietnam Antiwar Movement [Hardcover]

Adam Garfinkle (Author), Stephen E. Ambrose (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1995

Demonstrating that the antiwar movement was of little value and even helped--inadvertently--to prolong the carnage of the Vietnam War, a critique sets a new standard for discussion of the movement and describes its continuing role in contemporary America.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Garfinkle (Israel and Jordan in the Shadow of War), director of the Foreign Policy Research Institute's Middle East Council, convincingly challenges the commonly held view that the Vietnam antiwar movement played a major role in winding down the conflict in Southeast Asia. While granting the movement some initial successes, he argues that the conduct of the youthful radicals who took over in 1966 repelled many potential antiwar members of the middle class. His startling but well-supported argument is that the movement ultimately had little effect on the conduct of the war and may actually have prolonged it. Garfinkle defines the agendas of such prominent protest groups as the Weathermen and Students for a Democratic Society and goes on to examine the underestimated postwar influence of the antiwar movement on American political and popular culture. This work is sure to stir controversy and will cause many readers to view the Vietnam antiwar movement in a new way.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

In a thoroughly researched and well-written work, Garfinkle (Foreign Policy Research Institute) explores the impact of the Vietnam experience on American society from the perspective of the antiwar movement. He builds careful cases for his three conclusions: 1) the movement proved counterproductive at crucial junctures in the war; 2) it was the product of broader social changes in American society, with the war providing the catalyst for its emergence; 3) the movement has had a continuing role in American society. Based on sound research and directed at a general audience, the work effectively uses examples from popular culture and avoids academic jargon. With the recent White House announcement to restore full diplomatic ties with Vietnam, perhaps this society will move to closure on that unhappy chapter in American history. Garfinkle's work assists that process with its insightful analysis. For all academic and large public libraries.?James Rhodes, Luther Coll., Decorah, Ia.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 370 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press; 1st edition (July 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312125208
• ISBN-13: 978-0312125202
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,129,650 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Book was clearly written and loaded with evidence., August 23, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Riverside, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Telltale Hearts: The Origins and Impact of the Vietnam Anti-War Movement (Paperback)

Garfinkle debunks one of the great myths of the Vietnam era, that the antiwar movement in any way hastened the end of our involvement there. As the author notes, much of the reason for the almost universal acceptance of this view is because we are so used to hearing it, and because on a certain level we want to believe that outraged Americans can and did change the course of history. Garfinkle points to a number of Harris and Gallup polls from the 1960s which clearly demonstrate that if there was anything more hated than the war itself, it was the antiwar movement. He also details how this rage on the part of the "silent majority" put Richard Nixon into office, which gave America four more years of war and another 25,000 dead American soldiers. A wonderful book, rich with detail and original insight.