I have a question for those doing Vietnam War studies on the list. I'm
presenting a paper on a poem by Michael Harper, "Debridement," about a
black Vietnam vet. The story is based on the real story of a black vet
given the Medal of Honor for his bravery at Dak To. Throughout
"Debridement" there are texts about the soldier written in the voice of a
military official. My question is this: the main character is referred
to as STAC John Henry Louis--what does STAC stand for? Is this an
acronym for some military position? I've never seen it in any other
Vietnam War lit I've encountered, and I couldn't find it in the Olson
*Dictionary of the Vietnam War*. Very few critics have ever written on
this poem, and none have mentioned this STAC before. Any help would be
greatly appreciated, since I'm giving this paper in about 2 weeks.
Thanks!
Michael Bibby
mwbibb@ark.ship.edu