Product Description

First published in 1971, Philip Jones Griffiths' account of the Vietnamese War was the outcome of three years' reporting and is a detailed survey of the conflict. Showing us the true horrors of the war as well as offering a study of Vietnamese folk life, the author argues against the de-humanizing power of technology and highlights the arrogance and hypocrisy of American imperialistic attitudes. This new edition is a recreation of the original with Philip Jones Griffiths' personal layouts and commentaries. There is a foreword by Noam Chomsky, who was profoundly affected by the book when it was originally published.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #457429 in Books
• Published on: 2001-09-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 221 pages

About the Author
Philip Jones Griffiths's has been a member of Magnum Photos since 1971. His photographs have appeared in every major magazine in the world, and his assignments, often self-given, led him to over 120 countries in all five continents. He has exhibited widely in the US and Europe, continues to work for Life and Geo on such stories as Buddhism in Cambodia, Drought in India, Poverty in Texas, The Re-greening of Vietnam, and the legacy of the War in Kuwait. He has also made a number of films including a documentary for the BBC on the descendants of the HMS Bounty living on Pitcairn Island, a film about the effects of strip-mining on a valley in South Wales and a film about the Khao-I-Dang Refugee camp in Thailand for the United Nations' High Commission for Refugees.

Customer Reviews

Vietnam Inc
Phillip Jones-Griffiths doesn’t see photography as an objective medium: his approach to the photo-story is to photograph everything that moves in front of the lens, and then edit his results to produce the “truest” representation he can of the event he witnessed when making the pictures. Vietnam Inc, when originally published, sold out in three weeks. At the time of its publication a great deal of imagery and journalism was published across the world that could have been described as “anti Vietnam War”. Vietnam Inc however is different. As Jones-Griffiths clearly intended, it’s more than a war story: suggesting that, in a broader context than the conflict in question, might is often far from right. His pages for example discussing the manner in which the American Army tried to teach hygiene to an already meticulously hygienic people offer a significant parable on the notion of understanding difference. At the time of its first publication Vietnam Inc was unique: a thoroughly researched, articulate and clearly presented treatise upon a conflict that, rather than being produced years later as a historical document, arose from the midst of the turmoil itself. Looking now at the new and almost unaltered version of Vietnam Inc, it still speaks with the clarity of a historical document, having lost none of its impact in its journey down the years; and as such remaining the finest piece of journalism to have come out of the Vietnam War.

Very powerful
Published in 1971 at the height of the Vietnam War, Philip Jones Griffith's "Vietnam Inc." is an exhaustive, compelling, highly emotional look at what the American involvement in Vietnam was producing, not only for the Vietnamese but also the Americans who took part. Surprisingly little of the book is given over to the actual combat itself, as the Welshman Griffiths turns his eye and his pen to effects the war was wreaking on everyone else, from the servicemen groping at teenaged prostitutes, to the terrified villagers bombed out of their homes, to the officers coolly poring over projections showing them "winning" the war. A landmark in conflict photojournalism, Jones Griffiths' book is a textbook example of how to see and report with a critical eye.
My only complaint is that although any war is not pretty, nowhere in this book is the awesome beauty of the people or country displayed.

Thought provoking
I purchased this book recently purely due to the fact that it is likely to become highly collectible in years to come (the first edition is worth quite a lot now) but I was quickly suckered in by this powerful photo-essay.

The images are of a predicabtly high standard but as is often the case with these books it is the captions that provide heart rending context, for example the image of a distraught mother holding her child is sad enough but the simple caption states that her husband was killed a short time before the photograph was taken and the US were about to destroy the village she lived and kill her ad her child. Horrible stuff but powerful, relevant and highly important.

Prior to reading this book my knowledge of the Vietnam war was limited to the 'Hollywood' version but the essays contained here will blow you away, they contain concrete truth and reveal why the war was destined to failure from the beginning. The term 'hearts and minds' was used during the Vietnam war and this echoes strongly with parallels to the current situation in Iraq.

I have no strong politicial views but this book ignites passionate debate and forces the question of why the US insists on imposing their own brand of democracy on nations who neither desire no require American intervention.

In conclusion this book is an extremely well produced piece of photo-journalism, a perfect amalgam of photos and illuminating essays.

Shocking, powerful but highly relevant in todays current climate. Recommended