(de/re) Construction Of "hero Image"-on Ron Kovic's Vietnam War Memoirs Born On The Fourth Of July

American Vietnam War literature as a rare flower commences in the late 1960s and early 1970s in American literature. It gives rise to an abundance of excellent works and prominent American writers, among which American Vietnam veteran—Ron Kovic is an extraordinary one who makes great contributions to American literature. Born on the Fourth of July, commented as "the most powerful book on the Vietnam war yet to be published", is Kovic's autobiographical memoirs about the Vietnam War. Critics at home and abroad pay much attention to its movie edition, which is directed by Olive Stone while the memoirs edition is seldom touched upon. The thesis attempts to focus on Ron Kovic's transformations prior to, during and after the Vietnam War, providing readers with a whole view of the war and American soldiers'life on the battlefield and dilemma after returning home from the war. It aims to reveal the details of construction, deconstruction and reconstruction of hero images. History, social and cultural backgrounds as well are put into consideration during the analysis. The thesis consists of six parts.The introduction is divided into three parts. The first part presents a brief exposition of the Vietnam War, Vietnam War literature and Vietnam War writers as well as the war's profound effects on American individuals and society. Then the thesis illustrates the memoirs Born on the Fourth of July and its author Ron Kovic from critics'points of view. Meanwhile, the title and theme of the memoirs are covered in the introduction.Chapter One, which is divided into two parts, aims to elaborate on the construction of an "ideal hero". The first part sets out the myth of "Manifest Destiny" by taking historical and social backgrounds into account, which contains such key terms as "Chosen People" and "City upon a Hill". The historical origin of an "ideal hero" is revealed in this part. The second part describes the modern development of the two terms during the special time era. Finally, it attempts to clarify the relationship between the "ideal hero" and the theme of the thesis.Chapter Two constructs the "wounded hero" in the particular historical context of the war. Two parts constitute this chapter. The first part is the brief account of the representatives of the" wounded hero" in American War literature, showing the nature of Vietnam War and soldiers'true reflections and struggle on the battlefield are described in this part. Meanwhile, a separate peace is also analyzed. The second part deals with what the "wounded hero" image is in the memoirs and how the image is constructed.Chapter Three focuses on the deconstruction of the "ideal hero" image and "wounded hero" image. In this chapter, the "ideal hero" has been downgraded to the non-hero after returning home. And the "wounded hero" leads the life just like that of animals. This chapter deconstructs the two hero images through unfolding the real life experiences of American Vietnam veterans in front of the public, thus deceptive and destructive sides of the Vietnam War are exposed.Chapter Four reconstructs the "anti-war hero" after the previous construction and deconstruction. The thesis demonstrates the deep reasons for the appearance of the "anti-war hero" as well as its opposition to American government. As a result, it is a distillation of the theme of the thesis.The conclusion part is the summary of the preceding chapters. It presents the reflection on Vietnam War and elaborates the close relations between the history of the war and politics. Besides, it exposes the disasters of the war to individuals, society and the whole nation. At last, the thesis imposes substantial significance on the contemporary world situation and international relations through the intense research of Vietnam War literature.