UC Irvine

Through case studies involving countries like China, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan, this chapter uses a comparative transnational frame and my concept of sub-empire of memory to elucidate East Asia nations’ role in the Vietnam-American War. Scholars have previously exposed their involvement in what is also known as the Second Indochina War. Less explored are the various forms of what I trauma returns, like massacres or rape or famines, that are commemorated/contested. While Western nations have barely begun addressing their role in Vietnam, East Asian countries have not. This silence or denial has resulted in a great eruption of memory and a struggle over historical meaning.