Toxic Hotspots as Exceptional Examples : Commons of Tragedy of Agent Orange in Central Vietnam

抄録

Landscapes and human bodies scarred by past tragedies can serve as depositories of memories and meanings that can be drawn as symbolic resources by the surrounding communities; but it can also contaminate these communities with stigma and the fear of further calamities. Through the discussion of this Janus-faced nature of such "commons of tragedy" this article explores people's relationship to the toxic hotspots left behind by the United States use of Agent Orange in A Luoi valley of Thua Thien Hue province, where I conducted my field research in 2008 and 2009. I argue that the people of A Luoi construct the sense of normality and exceptionality vis-a-vis the concrete presence of toxic hotspots (including victims' bodies). Such commons of tragedy as exceptional examples of ubiquitous legacy of Agent Orange allows the individuals most closely marked by this poison to reckon with this tragedy, while preventing its negative implications from taking over their life.