Charles Coggins

FORREST GUMP 
Forrest Gump is a made-up character, but he and his friend Jennie live through many major historical events. 
This movie is an interesting way to review what we covered this semester in US History.  Pay attention to the
cars, music, Jennie’s haircuts, etc.  It is all chosen carefully to portray the different decades accurately.  Don’t
miss anything!! 
Most answers are found in the movie...some will require additional research after you watch the movie.  Those
questions are in the bold italic font   
 
1)  How does Forrest Pay for college? 
 With a football scholarship
 
2)  What college does he attend?  What was their heyday in football?   
 University of Alabama Their heyday was January 1, 1962

3)  Who are the “coons” trying to go to school? 

Two African Americans
 
4)  When were the schools in Alabama desegregated?  How was this done?   
Schools in Alabama were desegregated on June 10, 1963. President John F. Kennedy federalized National
Guard troops and deployed them to the University of Alabama to force its desegregation.
 
5)  Why does the army think that Forrest is a genius? 
Gump is very obedient and follows automatically without thinking every order. He can also build a rifle
quickly
 
6)  What does Forrest know about Vietnam before he goes?   
That it is “hot”
 
7)  What is Jennie’s advice about Vietnam? 
Run at the first sign of trouble
 
8)  When did the United States start fighting in Vietnam?  What was the goal of the war?  When did it end? 
What was the outcome?   
November 1st, 1955. To prevent Communist domination of South-East Asia. April 30th 1975. Communist forces
ended the war by seizing control of South Vietnam in 1975, and the country was unified as the Socialist
Republic of Vietnam the following year.
 
9)  Describe the fighting conditions in Vietnam (at least the ones shown in the movie). 
U.S. troops fought a jungle war in the dense brush. U.S. troops had difficulty in finding their enemy, who
attacked in ambushes and escaped through a network of underground tunnels. Besides of the mental
pressure, soldiers were confronted to the harsh tropical climate and were constantly threatened by
poisonous creatures.

10)  Lt. Dan calls for an airstrike.  They are planning to “nape” the area.  Nape is a nickname for Napalm. 
What is Napalm?  How would war protestors back home use this issue to help make their case against this
war? 
Napalm is a mixture of a gelling agent and petroleum. War protestors would use this to help make their case
against the war because it is deadly and harmful
 
11)  It might seem random that Forrest learns ping-pong but there actually was Ping-Pong Diplomacy.  Look
this up, learn about it, and write a paragraph summarizing what it was and why it was important. 
Ping-pong Diplomacy was the exchange of Ping-pong players between the United Statesand China in the 1970s.
An American ping pong team received an invitation to Japan fortheir 31st World Table Tennis Championship,
all expenses paid. This event was an earlyhint to the people from both areas that the relations between the US
and China wasimproving. The event paved the way for President Richard Nixon to pay a visit to Beijingthe next
year, making him the first president to visit China
 
12)  Forrest meets Nixon and shows him his wound – what years was Nixon president and what is President
Nixon’s legacy? 
17. President Richard Nixon was in office from January 20, 1969 to August 9, 1974. His five years in the White
House saw reduction of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, détente with the Soviet Union and China, the
first manned Moon landings, and the establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency and Occupational
Safety and Health Administration.
 
13)  Forrest meets the Black Panthers.  Research this group and write a short paragraph of their mission,
years they were most active, and original leaders.   
The Black Panthers were most active during the 1960s. Some of their leaders were BobbySeale and Huey P.
Newton. Their purpose was to patrol African American neighborhoodsand protect the residents from any form
of police brutality.The Black Panther Group stillexists today with a new name: The New Black Panther Party
for Self-Defense
 
14)  Forrest meets Jennie’s boyfriend.  He is a student at University of California, Berkley.  That detail was
done on purpose.  Find out what was the significance of Berkley during the 1960’s. 
It is important that Jennie's boyfriend is from Berkley because there was a two-day-longprotest against the
Vietnam war on the Berkeley campus and was where the Vietnam DayCommittee was formed
 
15)  When was the Captain Kangaroo program on TV?  What kind of show was it?   
The Kaptain Kangaroo program was a children's TV show that was aired from October 3,1955 to December 8,
1984.
 
16)  Forrest meets John Lennon of the Beatles.  What was the impact of the Beatles during the 1960’s?   
The Beatles played a big role as trendsetters in the hippie counterculture movement of the 1960's by including
the ideals of the alternative culture in their songs and expressing these ideals through their behaviour and looks.
In this way, they were able to contribute to changes in youth cultures.
 
17)  Lt. Dan represent the disgruntled Vietnam Veteran.  Why was it difficult for veteran returing from
Vietnam especially compared to World War II Veterans? 
While WWII Veterans came back as heroes, Vietnam vets were perceived as baby killers after the Mai Lay
Massacre.
18)  Forrest invest in a “fruit company”.  What company is he talking about?  When was this company first
created? 
Forrest Gump is referring to Apple. Apple was first created in 1976.
 
19)  Jennie is tired – what disease is being implied that Jennie may have (think of the time period) 
AIDS or HIV
 
20)  What kind of shoes did Jennie give to Forrest?  What year did this company start?   
Jennie gives Forrest Nike sneakers. The company started in 1964 named Blue Ribbon Sports, until changing
their name on May 30, 1971.
21)  List five (5) specific examples from the film where the filmmaker used historic events to move the  story
along.   
 
1. At Forrest’s home, which is a hotel, Elvis Presley is a guest. He sings Hound Dog, and Forrest dances
awkwardly in his braces. Later on, Elvis adopted Forrest’s dance moves into his performance on the Ed
Sullivan Show.
2. Forrest was named to the All-American team and met John F. Kennedy at the White House.
3. Forrest went sightseeing in D.C., and accidentally found himself among a group of veterans attending an
anti-war rally led by Abbie Hoffman
4. When he became a shrimping boat captain, he was caught in Hurricane Carmen, but since his boat was
the only one left standing after the storm, he and Lt. Dan obtained a monopoly of shrimp.
5. Forrest decides to run “For no particular reason”, and then he goes all the way to the other side of the
country, and back and forth again and again. This attracts media attention, in what would eventually
become the jogging craze of 1978 to 1981.

 
22)  Choose one and write a two-paragraph essay describing how the historical event is woven into the story of
Forrest Gump.

While many historical events were woven into the story of Forrest Gump, I chose to highlight the event
that has the most concurrent theme in the movie – the jogging craze of 1978t o 1981, or, Forrest running.
Forrest runs away from bullies, he runs toward Jenny, away from battle, across the united states, and through
the football field. Not only Forrest, but Jenny runs away from her father, and tries to run away from her abusive
past. It seems safe to say that running is a recurrent image in Forrest Gump. Even Jenny’s last name, Curran,
reminds us of the Latin word currere, which means to run. For Forrest and Jenny, running is not only a way to
overcome their limitations, but since it works for Forrest and not Jenny, it’s a literal symbol of Forrest’s ability
to triumph, just like when he bursts out of his braces and sprints down the road. However, Jenny looks on,
wishing to be that bird that she will never become. That makes me wonder…no matter how fast Jenny runs, she
can’t escape. Is that because her average intelligence doesn’t protect her in a way that a low IQ such as Forrest’s
does?

Involving the Jogging Craze, this is important for so many reasons. Think about it – Forrest had just had
his Mom die in the same house that he grew up in, but then Jenny comes back into his life, and he says that
having Jenny back into his life was the “happiest time of his life! Just like peas and carrots.” But then, it starts
to rain; nothing good happens when it starts to rain in a movie. All of a sudden, Jenny had left in the middle of
the night, after rejecting his marriage proposal. Forrest was in pain. He was hurt and it was his bottom. The
bottom is different for everybody but change always takes place in the valley. It’s a motivating factor. We can’t
live on the top of life and success. So Forrest started running. To get to his place of comfort – in this case,
running across America back and forth a couple of times. But the reason why Forrest started running wasn’t the
reason why he kept running. Later in the running sequence montage in the movie, he said, You need to put the
past behind you before you can move on.” In our lives, it’s okay to have different motivations for change once
we begin a new path. It can start with a period of pain and fear, but our reason why changes. Our reason why
needs to contain passion, goals, dreams, and a vision of our future self. The pain needs to be accompanied by
love. In Forrests’ case, Jenny.