What's in a Name?

The most important aspect of Maya Lin's article about how she crafted the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial is the importance she believes a name conveys and the meanings that go along with it. Along with the visual representation of that name, will come all the memories and feelings associated with that individual in the mind of the person viewing it. She discusses the reasons and methodology behind her work and defends the apolitical nature of the monument because others try to find a hidden agenda within her design. She believes that the price of human life in war should be clearly remembered, and nowhere is that price more apparent than in viewing a massive memorial with all the names of the deceased and P.O.W.s on it. These names on a massive wall, however, appear no larger than half an inch. The sheer scale of the war and its effect on human life will doubtless have profound meaning on any individual that beholds it. In seeing the name of a loved one on the wall, they are forced into accepting that person's death and that is the first step in being able to overcome that loss.

Born in the U.S.A. presents such an opposite view of the American dream. The song masks itself under the guise of patriotism but contains a much darker meaning. The protagonist and narrator of the song was born in a poor town. He serves during Vietnam thinking that perhaps his patriotism will bring him a better lot in life. When he returns home from the war, grieving for the loss of his brother, he is unable to find a job in his own decrepit town. He casts his life onto the streets somewhere between the local factory and jail. This presents the life of an American as a tragedy where no one can really live up to the beliefs and ideals that we as a nation claim to represent.