The epigram in the begin of chapter one “Vietnam is nobody’s dog” give the idea that the Vietnamese have no satisfaction in being a country ruled by others. This epigram is one that has a lot of meaning behind the words. The words dog is a statement saying that the people of Vietnam will not become ones of slavery or ones who serve another power. They do not want to owned as a pet that has to be paraded around so another country can show off their power. This statement shows that the Vietnamese people have a strong since of pride in who they are and they will not let someone else change who they are without putting up a strong fight against the people who wish to oppress them. Both Appy and Olson/Roberts show that the Vietnamese have a past
