Heaven and Earth Chapter 2

In the second chapter of Le Ly Hayslip's memoirs, she was drawn more and more into the war.  During the nights, she, along with most of the other village children, began to attend secret meetings of the Viet Cong and became part of their "political cadre," and they were taught to steal weapons and ammunition from the Republicans.  Cadre leaders promised that if the children were to die because of the Republicans (for no reason or for withholding information), then they would "live on in history."  Le Ly was also imprisoned for the first time in her life after the Republicans found her, hiding from their bombardment, in a ditch.
In this clip from Forrest Gump, the American soldiers are seen passing through a village, much like Le Ly's; they also took part in a battle, which destroyed much of the village and surrounding area.

 

"Although I was still blinded by my young girl's vision of glory, I began to see dimly what a terrible spot the war had put him [her father] in.  For me and most other children, the new war was still an exciting game.  For my father, it was a daily gamble for life itself."  Le Ly and her childhood friends often played a game where they would spilt up into the Viet Cong and Republican soldiers and then conducted mock battles.  When the real war began, the children originally remembered their games and did not think too heavily on the reoccurring battles.  Clips like these from movies regarding the Vietnam War really help me see what the war was like.  Similarly, once Le Ly had been manipulated enough, she began to realize the realities of war, which meant that the games were over.

In this chapter, Le Ly, along with everyone else in Ky La, was faced with a major Dilemma, a situation that requires a person to decide between two equally attractive or equally unattractive alternatives.  The village was expected to support the Viet Cong and turn in Republican soldiers; also, the Republicans demanded that they care for their soldiers and house them in the villagers' own homes.  Le Ly had siblings living in both the South (her sister Ba) and the North (her brother Bon), and she did not know which side was "right." However, she obeyed the Viet Cong soldiers who promised her life and esteem for following their cause in the war.