A Look at Asian American Studies - Emery McKee - Ryan Caragher - Emma Rohrer - Gabe Velazquez

PTSD OF THE PAST AND PRESENT

In the novel, “On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous,” the narrator, Little Dog, is writing to his mother Rose, reminiscing about his experiences growing up in a household haunted by his family’s trauma during the Vietnam War. He lives with his mother and grandmother who both show signs of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). After pulling a harmless prank on his mother by jumping out and saying “BOOM, “ his mother freaks out. Little Dog writes, “You screamed, face raked and twisted, then burst into sobs, clutched your chest as you leaned against the door, gasping… I didn’t know that the war was still inside you, that there was a war to begin with, that once it enters you it never leaves—but merely echoes… ” (4). Trauma from war is a common theme throughout the novel, showing that PTSD can pass through generations. He also recounts how his mother would beat him, hitting him from the age of four and even threatening him with a knife. Her episodes of violence are another after-effect of the trauma from war, possibly another manifestation of her PTSD. His grandmother is nearly “bent in half” from pain and stress. His grandmother too suffers from schizophrenia, a result from the war. This book encapsulates how trauma from the Vietnam War that can affect many generations long after the war is over. Today, nearly 50 years after the Vietnam War, some veterans of that war still show signs of PTSD. Matthew Tull examines long term studies, finding, “It's clear that PTSD continues to affect the lives of many Vietnam war veterans today.” He found that these veterans are more prone to substance abuse, mental disorders, and even heart disease. The disorder also has been shown to affect both sons and daughters of Vietnam veterans in a number of ways. This article is consistent with the behaviors displayed by Rose and Little Dog’s grandma Lan. Rose, who as a five year old witnessed her school being napalmed, is understandably traumatized. Grandma Lan, forced into prostitution to survive the war, also showed traumatic after-effects.These fictional characters are not veterans, but Vietnamese survivors of the war in their homeland. It can be argued that the Vietnam War was not over in 1975, because it continues to affect the lives of those who lived through the violent experience both in fiction and in reality. Some people who have lived through the horrors of this particular war can’t put the past behind them. Their health, both physical and mental, are damaged by their exposure to this level of violence.