The Best We Could Do

by

Thi Bui

Ngô Đình Diệm Term Analysis

The repressive United States-backed politician who led South Việt Nam from its independence in 1954 until his assassination in 1963 during a coup d’état that was also backed by the United States. and Bố work for his government as teachers, but also cope with its repressiveness firsthand (as when a general tries to cut off Bố’s long hair).
Get the entire The Best We Could Do LitChart as a printable PDF.
The Best We Could Do PDF

Ngô Đình Diệm Term Timeline in The Best We Could Do

The timeline below shows where the term Ngô Đình Diệm appears in The Best We Could Do. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Preface
Intergenerational Trauma Theme Icon
Assimilation, Belonging, and Cultural Identity Theme Icon
Repression and Freedom Theme Icon
...led byHồ Chí Minh, and the capitalist South was run by the Western-backed, antidemocratic leader Ngô Đình Diệm . (full context)
Chapter 6: The Chessboard
Family, Inheritance, and Parenthood Theme Icon
Intergenerational Trauma Theme Icon
Assimilation, Belonging, and Cultural Identity Theme Icon
Repression and Freedom Theme Icon
Memory and Perspective Theme Icon
...his grandfather until she nearly gets caught in the crossfire of a street battle between Ngô Đình Diệm ’s government forces and the local mafia, or Bình Xuyên. The shooting destroys her opium... (full context)
Assimilation, Belonging, and Cultural Identity Theme Icon
Repression and Freedom Theme Icon
Memory and Perspective Theme Icon
...the Teachers College because it guarantees him a job, salary, and a way out of Ngô Đình Diệm ’s military draft. It is at the Teachers College that Bố meets Má. (full context)