COLLECTIVE REMEMBERING, COLLECTIVE FORGETTING: AMERICAN WAR MNEMONICS IN VIETNAM AND KOREA

Abstract How do nations choose which events to memorialize? In a study of the collective mnemonics of the United States' wars in Vietnam and Korea, I argue that the latter has been disproportionately discounted given its long-lasting and timely impacts. Using concepts such as semiotics, "dominant voices", and habitus, I argue that the intense memorialization of the Vietnam War has been sustained through resources not put towards the Korean War. I argue that sentimentality guides us to continue strengthening Vietnam War mnemonic devices and, in turn, leads us to further indoctrinate Vietnam as an unforgettable war while further relegating the Korean War to the status of "forgotten."