Aubade with Burning City

In the minds of many Americans, the Fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnam War is where the conflict ends. It was the end of a nearly 20-year struggle, and the media dubbed it the "postwar period" once the United States withdrew. However, both South and North Vietnam continued to face massive casualties leading up to April 29, 1975, and the North Vietnamese victory was only the beginning of new economic and political challenges.

Apocalyptic imagery in “Aubade with Burning City” conveys this morbid mood. When people walk through the square, their footsteps sound “like stones fallen from the sky” (Line 9). The rule of law and any sense of safety breaks down as military trucks move through the streets, children scream, and an unseen figure throws “A bicycle […] / through a store window” (Lines 19-20). Colors convey the sense of doom simply and effectively: “Red sky” (Line 34); “The city so white it is ready for ink” (Line 37). A shell flashing in the hotel room momentarily illuminates the present, and when the light leaves, the darkness is hauntingly final: “Don’t worry, he says, as the first bomb brightens / their faces, my brothers have won the war / and tomorrow… / The lights go out” (Lines 45-48).