“The cow-boy is now gone to worlds invisible; the wind has blown away the white ashes of his camp-fires; but the empty sardine box lies rusting over the face of the Western earth.”
-Owen Wister, "The Virginian"
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| Fight for the Water Hole by Frederic Remington |
The Western is not a very popular genre today, some even say it's dead. All one need do to confirm this is to look at how many prominent westerns are coming out now. Last year we got only one and this year the only one that is on peoples radar is a remake that has people more trepidatious then excited. So it may come as a surprise that the western is actually my favorite genre. There are are variety of reasons why this is true but, in the end, it comes down to just one.
The Western is America's Mythology. It might not involve supernatural elements or mythological creatures but its mythical none the less. Though it takes place in a clearly defined historical period it portrays it in an exaggerated and, at times, completely fictitious way. The idea of western towns constantly plagued by violence and crime or frequent clashes between settlers and Indians are based on a relatively small number of actual historical events. But it goes deeper than that. Wikipedia states that "mythology helps convey belonging, shared and religious experiences, behavioral models, and moral and practical lessons" and this is exactly what the western does particularly through the examination of the archetypal western hero.
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| Gene Autry |
The western hero bears resemblance to other heroic mythical figures, in particular the Knights of the round table. If you compare the
chivalric code of Arthur's knights to
Cowboy Code developed by Gene Autry you will find many similarities. For example both demand truthfulness, respect for women and the protection of the weak. Also, like King Arthur's knights, the western hero and, in particular, the gunfighter, is a
paladin like figure. Someone who fights for what is right but is not averse to using violence to stop evil. A paladin tends to see the world in black and white terms, for the evil there is no chance of redemption and violence is necessary in order to stop them. The western hero is often shown to be the only one capable of bringing order because they are the only one's willing and able to do what is necessary. This separates them from society. Symbolically they are a part of two worlds the physical realm which makes them vulnerable and subject to death and temptation and the spiritual realm which places them on a higher moral plane where they can dispense justice as they see fit. As a result of this, any attempt to crossover to the physical world completely and to try and "settle down" and seek worldly happiness usually spells doom for the hero. So, contrary to popular belief, the western hero rarely "gets the girl." Again parallels can be drawn to Arthurian mythology where, whenever the knights have relations with a women they end up getting in trouble.
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| Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly in High Noon (1952) |
Owen Wister's "The Virginian" helped to establish many traditional elements of western mythology. The central character in the book follows most of Gene Autry's rules. He is also shown, mostly, as a man apart though it should be noted that he does settle down and get the girl in the end. In some ways this presents a slightly different take on the mythological paradigm outlined above. In the story the Virginian must face down Trampas, a cattle thief and a general nuisance who demands satisfaction when the Virginian accuses him of stealing. The Virginian feels that he must face Trampas not just to save face but because he feels he has a duty to put an end to Trampas evil, corrupting influence on society. In a plot point later borrowed by
High Noon the Virginian's bride-to-be, Molly, threatens to leave him if he goes through with it but of course he does it anyway. Despite this, Molly forgives him in the end and the two get married and "ride off into the sunset." Here the hero
can find happiness but only after going through a crucible where he risks losing that happiness completely and when he does find happiness he enters our world completely and ceases to be a paladin. In Jack Shaefer's "Shane", by comparison, the hero tries to live a normal life only to find himself caught up in a violent conflict and called to use his skills with a gun once again. In this story there is no escaping fate and Shane proclaims "A man is what he is, Bob, and there's no breaking the mold. I tried that and I've lost."
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| Alan Ladd and Van Heflin in Shane (1953) |
Another major element in western mythos is the idea that violence is a natural part of history which is necessary in order to pave the way for civilized society. The cowboys and pioneers who cleared the wilderness and fought the Indians would make way for the homesteaders and farmers and finally the railroads would bring towns, cities and industry. The real history, of course, was much more messy but western stories often portray it as a series of violent conflicts which would ultimately lead to the birth of civilization. The Indians resist the pioneers and cattlemen, corrupt cattle barons resist the homesteaders and farmers and finally bank-robbers and outlaws threaten the development of towns and cities. The west is a wild place which attracts violent and wild men who, ultimately must make way for civilized men and, especially, women, to tame it. This cycle, the passing of the untamed west to the roll of progress and civilization, is often shown in a tragic light, though it is still seen as necessary. As Olive Carey's Mrs. Jorgensen say's in John Ford's seminal film
The Searchers "Some day, this country's gonna be a fine good place to be. Maybe it needs our bones in the ground before that time can come." This idea creates a dichotomy in the western mythos. The key thing which separates heroes from the villains is their acceptance or rejection of this idea. The western hero accepts that he is part of a dying world and is willing to surrender his supremacy to civilized society while the villains refuse to do so. This is perhaps best illustrated in John Fords
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance where John Wayne's character Tom Doniphon allows James Stewart's Ransom Stodard to take credit for killing Liberty Valance so that he can be elected to represent the Texas territory in Washington and bring about a more civilized society. George Steven's film adaption of
Shane sums up these themes perfectly in this exchange between Shane and the evil rancher Ryker:
Shane: Yeah, you've lived too long. Your kind of days are over.
Rufus Ryker: My days! What about yours, gunfighter?
Shane: The difference is I know it.
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| John Wayne and Clair Trevor in Stagecoach (1939) |
With that said there are Westerns that don't fit into the traditional Mythological mold and instead seek to reexamine western tropes in a more critical fashion. Henry King's film
The Gunfighter is about a more amoral kind of man who, when he was young, made a reputation as a fast gun, a reputation he is now trying to run away from. The main character in this film, Jimmy Ringo, is not a heroic righter of wrongs but rather a man who, despite his best efforts, leaves violence and death in his wake. Ironically these stories also follow the mythological trope of the hero who can never find happiness, as Ringo's attempts to reunite with his former love ultimately lead to his death. But here it's not the character's heroism or sense of righteousness that separates him from society but rather his violent lifestyle. There are also films like
Stagecoach, which use the genre and its portrayal of the west as an idyllic land plagued by violent conflict as a vehicle for social commentary. In the case of
Stagecoach the west is ultimately a place for the films outcast characters to escape social prejudice.
Westerns can explore mature themes of violence and provide relevant social commentary but it's always done beneath the veil of the uniquely American mythological world that the genre creates. As a history buff, a fan of mythology, and something of a lapsed patriot the western resonates with me in a way no other genre can.
Sources
http://nieveroja.colostate.edu/issue2/shane.htm
http://www.wyohistory.org/encyclopedia/owen-wister
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ThePaladin
http://www.lordsandladies.org/knights-code-of-chivalry.htm
http://www.geneautry.com/geneautry/geneautry_cowboycode.html
http://www.cracked.com/article_20372_5-ridiculous-myths-everyone-believes-about-wild-west.html
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