"Towards a History of Modern Vietnam" featuring Professor Christopher Goscha
Channel: Voices on Vietnam Cornell University
Date: 2016-06-17

Cornell Voices on Vietnam Spring 2016 Speakers' Series presents Professor Christopher Goscha (Professor of History at Université du Québec à Montréal) - "Towards a History of Modern Vietnam." Recorded May 5, 2016. Visit us at www.vovcornell.com. 

This event is co-sponsored by Southeast Asia Program, the Department of Asian Studies, the Department of History and the Department of Government.

Acclaimed historian and Vietnam specialist Christopher Goscha discusses his latest work, The Penguin History of Modern Vietnam (2016). Popular impressions of Vietnam are still largely dominated by the Vietnam War, with most English-language accounts focused on American experiences, sources, and perspectives. But Vietnam’s history is much richer and more complex than a mere Cold War confrontation, complete with expansion, schisms, colonial conquest and subjugation, cultural renaissance, and revolution. Drawing on research and discoveries from a host of Vietnamese-language and global sources, Professor Goscha outlines a rich and compelling overview of modern Vietnamese history, portraying a cast of memorable characters – from Emperors to rebels, poets to priests – and providing a fascinating look at the intricacies and complexities of modern Vietnamese history. Compelling for scholars and non-specialists alike, The Penguin History of Modern Vietnam represents the first English-language general history of contemporary Vietnam.