Rewriting the Vietnam War: A Refugee’s Confession in The Sympathizer
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Vietnamese war refugees in the US have historically been erased and displaced from the US-centered narrative of the Vietnam War and its aftermath. However, Viet Thanh Nguyen’s debut novel, The Sympathizer (2016), presents a different refugee character who attempts to disrupt the US-centered narrative of the Vietnam War. Completing his spy mission, the character writes a confession that reveals inhumane war crimes committed by the two Vietnams and the US. In addition, when he becomes a refugee by joining the boat people, he brings another copy of his confession to make sure his memory of the war is to be remembered. Thus, he owns narrative authority and questions the US-centered history with his alternative narrative. This paper argues that the narrator suggests a revolutionary refugee character who deconstructs stereotypical images of vulnerable, voiceless refugees. The paper will first explore how the narrator intervenes in the US-centered narrative of the Vietnam War and punctures the perception of the US as a heroic savior for the Vietnamese. Then, it will analyze how the narrator problematizes the US’s binarized understanding of the Vietnamese and reveal that the US is also responsible for brutal war crimes. The narrator attempts to rewrite history by humanizing the Vietnamese and breaking down the fixed frame—the inhumane Viet Cong, the poor and helpless South Vietnamese, and the good hero US. Centering his confession in narrating memories of the war, he represents a refugee who resists the US-centered narrative of the Vietnam War and re-historicizes the Vietnamese memories.
Abstract
Vietnamese war refugees in the US have historically been erased and displaced from the US-centered narrative of the Vietnam War and its aftermath. However, Viet Thanh Nguyen’s debut novel, The Sympathizer (2016), presents a different refugee character who attempts to disrupt the US-centered narrative of the Vietnam War. Completing his spy mission, the character writes a confession that reveals inhumane war crimes committed by the two Vietnams and the US. In addition, when he becomes a refugee by joining the boat people, he brings another copy of his confession to make sure his memory of the war is to be remembered. Thus, he owns narrative authority and questions the US-centered history with his alternative narrative. This paper argues that the narrator suggests a revolutionary refugee character who deconstructs stereotypical images of vulnerable, voiceless refugees. The paper will first explore how the narrator intervenes in the US-centered narrative of the Vietnam War and punctures the perception of the US as a heroic savior for the Vietnamese. Then, it will analyze how the narrator problematizes the US’s binarized understanding of the Vietnamese and reveal that the US is also responsible for brutal war crimes. The narrator attempts to rewrite history by humanizing the Vietnamese and breaking down the fixed frame—the inhumane Viet Cong, the poor and helpless South Vietnamese, and the good hero US. Centering his confession in narrating memories of the war, he represents a refugee who resists the US-centered narrative of the Vietnam War and re-historicizes the Vietnamese memories.
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