Rethinking Camelot
JFK, the Vietnam War, and U.S. Political Culture
Second edition
Rethinking Camelot is a thorough analysis of John F. Kennedy’s role in the U.S. invasion of Vietnam and a probing reflection on the elite political culture that allowed and encouraged the Cold War. In it, Chomsky dismisses efforts to resurrect Camelot—an attractive American myth portraying JFK as a shining knight promising peace, fooled only by assassins bent on stopping this lone hero who would have unilaterally withdrawn from Vietnam had he lived. Chomsky argues that U.S. institutions and political culture, not individual presidents, are the key to understanding U.S. behavior during Vietnam.
More in this series
Praise
[Rethinking Camelot provides] strong arguments against Kennedy mythologists.
– Publisher’s Weekly
An interesting work not only for the history it explores, but also as a study of how various individuals and groups write and interpret history.
– Choice magazine
[Rethinking Camelot provides] strong arguments against Kennedy mythologists.
– Publisher’s Weekly
Chomsky is a global phenomenon … he may be the most widely read American voice on foreign policy on the planet.
– The New York Times Book Review
Contents
| Preface to the new edition | |
| Introduction | Contours and Contexts |
| Chapter 1 | From Terror to Aggression |
| Chapter 2 | Interpretations |
| Notes | |
| Bibliography | |
| Index |
