Turners Frontier Thesis

The problem with defining the West is that the boundary is subjective. According to Walter Nugent, there is no true consensus regarding this matter. In one of his surveys Nugent states that there is no defined eastern border as the responses varied from the Mississippi to the Missouri Rivers; this problem also arose in the defines of the western border. The core problem lies within personal bias. Because of this, it is important to attempt to gain empirical data in an effort to, without a doubt, determine the most exact location for where the West begins and ends.

The majority of people whom Nugent posed this question to responded in various ways. The respondents were all very qualified to answer this question. The West is their field of expertise. Some were from the Western Writers of America, Western History Association, and from various universities from around the country. Because of this diverse background, the responses were also diverse. As Nugent found, there is no real answer because the West is as much a culture identity as it is a geographical location. Because of this, it is subjective. The answer that resonated with me, as both an Arizonan and writer, is from Bill Crider of the Western Writers of America. Crider states, “To tell the truth, the West for me is associated with the frontier that’s long gone. The West is a part of my imagination much more than it’s a part of my reality.” My personal interpretation of the West is similar to Crider’s. The West is not a geographic location. Instead, it is a way of living – a culture separate from any other part of the United States.

Since the West is more of a culture, it is easier to distinguish the region than it would be geographically. In order to determine the tru...

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...Mexico anymore. Instead, it is the cultural epic center of the West Coast. It does not have its own identity anymore. Because of this, it has lost its Western heritage. I believe that the West has shrunken from the ranges of what most think of classic Western territory. The West can now include Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona. These states still retain their Western heritage while those along the coast lines have lost theirs. I doubt people in Washington and Oregon would boast of the same cowboy heritage that those in the stereotypical West would. The West is more of a cultural identity than one of a geographical range. I find it interesting that every answer will be different based upon beliefs, myths, and cultural identity. Defining the West will always be difficult but that is what makes this topic such an interesting one.