Author Lynda Van Devanter spent one year as a U.S. Army nurse in Viet Nam. In this memoir she talks about that even though nurses who served in Vietnam were not formal combatants they still experienced the same trauma adjusting back to civilian life, long after the war ended. She began the book in the present day, as she still was tormented by night sweats and flashbacks. “Vietnam was the worst time of my life, yet it was also, in many ways, the most important and most intense” (Van Devanter 14).
Van Devanter’s memoir is divided into three sections: before Vietnam, during Vietnam and after her service overseas. Lynda spent most of her life living in a sheltered suburban community. Her first assignment after nursing school was in Southeast Asia. She was a tough minded young woman who was a little unsecure about her appearance but that didn’t stop her from being confident about her ability to succeed in the world.
Lynda grew up in a strong Catholic household. She lived with her mother who was often …show more content…
She experienced a profound shock with the transition, just like the rest of the servicemen. She was not greeted well back in the states. She was often cursed at when appearing in uniform. “Welcome home, asshole!” were screamed at her by anti war protestors (Van Devanter 209). This was a big difference than before the war when Lynda and Barbara were just two friendly women. The memories of Vietnam were very hard on Lynda and it made it difficult for her to have a relationship with men and to be able to trust people again. It appeared that her service and the service of other women were not important to the general public. Many American simply did not believe that female nurses would be sent by ‘our’ military into combat (Van Devanter 225). This was very devastating for her. Lynda found herself replying, when asked what Vietnam was liked, that it “sucked” and then saying no more (Van Devanter
Van Devanter’s memoir is divided into three sections: before Vietnam, during Vietnam and after her service overseas. Lynda spent most of her life living in a sheltered suburban community. Her first assignment after nursing school was in Southeast Asia. She was a tough minded young woman who was a little unsecure about her appearance but that didn’t stop her from being confident about her ability to succeed in the world.
Lynda grew up in a strong Catholic household. She lived with her mother who was often …show more content…
She experienced a profound shock with the transition, just like the rest of the servicemen. She was not greeted well back in the states. She was often cursed at when appearing in uniform. “Welcome home, asshole!” were screamed at her by anti war protestors (Van Devanter 209). This was a big difference than before the war when Lynda and Barbara were just two friendly women. The memories of Vietnam were very hard on Lynda and it made it difficult for her to have a relationship with men and to be able to trust people again. It appeared that her service and the service of other women were not important to the general public. Many American simply did not believe that female nurses would be sent by ‘our’ military into combat (Van Devanter 225). This was very devastating for her. Lynda found herself replying, when asked what Vietnam was liked, that it “sucked” and then saying no more (Van Devanter