Women in Early Westerns
analytical Essay
5840 words
Westerns connote images of dirt, dust, guns, horses, cowboys and heroes: physically strong, iron-willed, independent, resourceful, quick-witted men. Although the modern Western (the writings of Louise L’Amour, Zane Grey and the numerous films starring John Wayne, Roy Rodgers, Gene Autry) seems to focus on this ideal hero, the genre actually also provides women with strong, self-reliant, active roles. In fact, many texts that precede the typical modern Western had females as the main characters. However, the role of the heroine still differs from that of the hero; the role does not defeminize women but gives them depth as characters. These women still retain their femininity and domesticity, but they also rescue those around them, take care of themselves, and have a relationship with the land. The Girl of the Golden West, a play written by David Belasco around 1905, perfectly demonstrates this idea. The heroine, the Girl, speaks frankly, carries a gun, takes care of herself, protects the miners’ money, and actually rescues the villain. At the same time, she comforts her boys, desires to recreate the home she remembers, and, epitomizing female virtue, converts the road agent with her love. Other earlier works also provide examples of active, strong women. These earlier works laid a foundation and created a tradition from which the modern-day Western evolved. The tradition began in the earliest days of the colonies with the captivity narratives and eventually blossomed into stories such as The Girl of the Golden West, undoubtedly a Western with a heroine. In her book, West of Everything, Jane Tompkins discusses the essential elements that define the genre. From her discussion, one can extract a working definition: the setting, th... ... middle of paper ... ...of North Carolina Press, 1984. Rowlandson, Mary. A True History of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson.In Women’s Indian Captivity Narratives. Ed. Kathryn Zabelle Derounian-Stodola. New York: Penguin Books, 1998. Sedgwick, Catharine Maria. Hope Leslie; or, Early Times in the Massachusetts. Ed. Mary Kelley. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1987. Slotkin, Richard. Regeneration Through Violence: The Mythology of the American Frontier, 1600-1860. Middletown: Wesleyan University Press, 1942. Southworth, E.D.E.N. The Hidden Hand or, Capitola the Madcap. Ed. Joanne Dobson. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1998. Stowe, Harriet Beecher. Uncle Tom’s Cabin or, Life Among the Lowly. Ed. Ann Douglas. New York: Penguin, 1981. Tompkins, Jane. West of Everything: The Inner Life of Westerns. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how westerns connote images of dirt, dust, guns, horses, cowboys, and heroes, but the genre also provides women with strong, self-reliant, active roles. the girl of the golden west, written by david belasco, demonstrates this idea.
- Analyzes how jane tompkins discusses the essential elements that define the genre in her book, west of everything.
- Analyzes how mary rowlandson's first captivity narratives were genuine, first-person accounts of actual ordeals that developed as a natural, spontaneous product of the new world experience.
- Describes how mary rowlandson lost her family, status, and security after being taken captive by the indians.
- Describes how the poor woman faced the challenges of the wilderness, starvation, and her captors' temperament. she was stripped to absolute poverty from relative prosperity.
- Analyzes how mary rowlandson's will and courage were so strong that she offered hope and support to the other captives despite her broken heart.
- Analyzes how mary rowlandson learns to adapt and uses her skills to survive in captivity. her desire to live proved stronger than her repulsion for such things as horse liver or boiled horse feet.
- Analyzes how mary rowlandson acquires equality with her captors by inviting her master and mistress to dinner. she asserts her independence by talking back.
- Analyzes how mary rowlandson's strength as a survivor pervades the text and becomes more visible as the time passes.
- Analyzes how catharine maria sedgwick, who succeeded mary rowlandson, published hope leslie, a novel that addressed the puritans subjugation of the indigenous population.
- Analyzes how stowe's uncle tom’s cabin contains incidents that embody the heroic spirit carried forth from the captivity narratives and employ the same elements.
- Analyzes how eliza harris rescues her son, harry, from the slave traders by escaping in the night, fleeing by foot, and crossing the ohio river in full flood.
- Analyzes how eliza's motherly nature and care for others distinguish her character and give rise to her heroism.
- Analyzes how southworth's novel, the hidden hand or capitola the madcap, has a strong, independent female and relies upon the same spirit and elements seen in the western.
- Analyzes how cap's repeated forthright, indignant speeches and her fearless deeds establish her heroine status.
- Analyzes how cap accomplishes what others cannot with her spirit intact and the sense that her feat hardly challenged her.
- Analyzes how cap, like other heroines, acts like a woman. she rescues clara, captures black donald, and defends her own honor.
- Analyzes how cap is more than a simple hero, she is also our heroine. she has been instructed by mrs. condiment in the mysteries of cutting and basting, back-stitching and felling.
- Analyzes how southworth's text creates excitement and engages the reader through this spirit embodied in the heroine.
- Analyzes how the girl of the golden west fits the definition given for a western, except that the hero is female.
- Analyzes how the girl's pinto provides companionship and a way for her to get "all over the country" (southworth 215), but the audience never sees horses or anyone on horses.
- Analyzes how the girl has a home on the frontier and the character expected of the hero, while possessing the traditional femininity and domesticity of an female character.
- Analyzes how belasco adds depth to the girl's heroism by maintaining her femininity and having her occupy a feminine sphere.
- Analyzes how the girl occupies a domestic sphere, but her den mother is different from the typical domestic scene. she helps her boys better themselves through her academy and helps them write letters to their families.
- Analyzes how the modern western genre explores living in the west. the real realities of the west and life on the frontier do not matter as much as the potential to create heroes, legends and heroines.
- Opines that if you have a house and baby of your own, and no one to tend to nyther than yourself, that's when the bread burns in the oven and the tea-kettle is boiling over.
- Analyzes how southworth uses the idea of the west and her imagination to empower her heroines and engage the reader.
- Analyzes how the sex of female authors affects the role of the heroine in western literature.
- Analyzes the power of the western genre to captivate readers and transport them to another life and another place where the challenges are different and much more interesting than our typical day
- Describes belasco, david, "the girl of the golden west." american melodrama. ed. daniel c. gerould.
- Explains that kolodny, annette, the land before her: fantasy and experience of the american frontiers, 1630-1860.
- Describes rowlandson's true history of the captivity and restoration of mrs. mary.
- Describes sedgwick, catharine maria, hope leslie, or, early times in the massachusetts.
- Explains slotkin, richard, regeneration through violence: the mythology of the american frontier, 1600-1860.
- States that southworth, e.d.e.n., the hidden hand or, capitola the madcap.
- Explains stowe, harriet beecher, uncle tom’s cabin or, life among the lowly.
- Describes tompkins, jane, west of everything: the inner life of westerns.
Related
- analytical
- Contested Plains by Elliot Westanalytical essayThere are many ways in which we can view the history of the American West. One view is the popular story of Cowboys and Indians. It is a grand story filled with adventure, excitement and gold. Another perspective is one of the Native Plains Indians and the rich histories that spanned thousands of years before white discovery and settlement. Elliot West’s book, Contested Plains: Indians, Goldseekers and the Rush to Colorado, offers a view into both of these worlds. West shows how the histories of both nations intertwine, relate and clash all while dealing with complex geological and environmental challenges. West argues that an understanding of the settling of the Great Plains must come from a deeper understanding, a more thorough knowledge of what came before the white settlers; “I came to believe that the dramatic, amusing, appalling, wondrous, despicable and heroic years of the mid-nineteenth century have to be seen to some degree in the context of the 120 centuries before them” .
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how the rapid expansion of white settlements across the front range signified the end of their nomadic way of life and new growth and promise for the white population.
- Analyzes how elliott west presents a convincing argument for the reasons for conflict between not just two human groups, but also between humans and their environment.
- Cites west, elliott, contested plains: indians, goldseekers and the rush to colorado, university press of kansas.
- Analyzes the history of the american west in elliot west's book, contested plains: indians, goldseekers and the rush to colorado.
1191 wordsRead More - The Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandsonanalytical essayRowlandson, Mary. A True History of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson.In Women’s Indian Captivity Narratives. Ed. Kathryn Zabelle Derounian-Stodola. New York: Penguin Books, 1998.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how mary rowlandson, a puritan mother from lancaster, massachusetts, recounts the invasion of her town by indians in 1676 during king philip's war.
- Analyzes how mary rowlandson describes how the indians invade her home, kill her friends, and drag her away from her husband and two children.
- Analyzes how mary and the indians must conserve every part of nature in order to provide a sufficient amount of food for the number of people traveling in their group.
- Analyzes how mary and the indians develop mutual respect and coexist in peace once they realize that they can benefit from each other.
- Analyzes how mary becomes desperate to return to her christian family and friends after her time with the indians.
- Analyzes how mary's attitude towards the savages evolves from hatred to a sort of bond when she leaves for the final time.
- Analyzes how mary is overwhelmed with happiness when she goes home to her family and friends, but her attitude toward indians in general changes greatly.
- Describes rowlandson's true history of the captivity and restoration of mrs. mary.
1716 wordsRead More - Two Different Perspectives of Life Experiences with Indiansanalytical essay...itan Orthodoxy And The 'Survivor Syndrome' In Mary Rowlandson's Indian Captivity Narrative." Early American Literature 22.1 (1987): 82. Academic Search Complete. Web. 3 Feb. 2014.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how mary rowlandson's narrative begins with a horror scene. she is one of the twenty four people of her home who are held captive by the savages.
- Describes rowlandson's 'a narrative of the captivity and restoration of mrs.
- Compares mary rowlandson's "a narrative of the captivity and restoration of mrs. mary" and benjamin franklin’s “remarks concerning the savages of north america."
- Analyzes dawn henwood's "mary rowlandson and the psalms: the textuality of survival" and kathryn deuronian’s article.
- Analyzes derounian, kathryn zabelle, and franklin, benjamin, in mary rowlandson's indian captivity narrative.
943 wordsRead More - Battle of little bighornanalytical essayMcMurtry, Larry. 2005. Oh What a Slaughter: Massacres in the American West: 1846-1890. 10th Ed. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster.
In this essay, the author
- Opines that panzeri, peter. 1995. little big horn 1876: custer's last stand.
- Describes mcmurtry's book, oh what a slaughter: massacres in the american west: 1846-1890.
- Describes wagner, frederic, and macfarland and company. participants in the battle of little big horn.
- Analyzes how ltc george armstrong custer failed to effectively apply mission command as a warfighting function during the battle of little bighorn.
1599 wordsRead More - The Myth of the Old Westanalytical essayOver the years, the idea of the western frontier of American history has been unjustly and falsely romanticized by the movie, novel, and television industries. People now believe the west to have been populated by gun-slinging cowboys wearing ten gallon hats who rode off on capricious, idealistic adventures. Not only is this perception of the west far from the truth, but no mention of the atrocities of Indian massacre, avarice, and ill-advised, often deceptive, government programs is even present in the average citizen’s understanding of the frontier. This misunderstanding of the west is epitomized by the statement, “Frederick Jackson Turner’s frontier thesis was as real as the myth of the west. The development of the west was, in fact, A Century of Dishonor.” The frontier thesis, which Turner proposed in 1893 at the World’s Columbian Exposition, viewed the frontier as the sole preserver of the American psyche of democracy and republicanism by compelling Americans to conquer and to settle new areas. This thesis gives a somewhat quixotic explanation of expansion, as opposed to Helen Hunt Jackson’s book, A Century of Dishonor, which truly portrays the settlement of the west as a pattern of cruelty and conceit. Thus, the frontier thesis, offered first in The Significance of the Frontier in American History, is, in fact, false, like the myth of the west. Many historians, however, have attempted to debunk the mythology of the west. Specifically, these historians have refuted the common beliefs that cattle ranging was accepted as legal by the government, that the said business was profitable, that cattle herders were completely independent from any outside influence, and that anyone could become a cattle herder.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how the idea of the western frontier of american history has been unjustly and falsely romanticized by the movie, novel, and television industries.
- Explains that the vision of the west as it is commonly known is a myth. the herding business began in 1848, when texas cattle drovers herded their livestock north towards missouri.
- Explains that the cattle herders' "historical significance is not to be found in beneficial contributions to the nation welfare, for they are worthy of note for the political corruption they engendered."
- Explains that the cowboys refused to comply with this legislation and the cattle herding business was blatantly illicit. the range rights system was upheld in courts because the corruption of the "cattle kingdom" had infiltrated the judiciary system.
- Explains that the zenith of the herding era occurred after the american civil war to the eighteen eighties.
- Explains that cattle herding and cowboys were controlled by stockholders and other powerful influences. they also had to deal with investigators who observed movements along the range.
- Argues that the frontier thesis, proposed by frederick jackson turner, disregards all of the atrocities which the americans expanding westward brought upon the natives americans.
2022 wordsRead More - Women In Western Filmanalytical essayWestern films have transcended the culture we live in today. The perception we have on cowboys, the mid-west and the roles of females have originated from western films. Cowboys symbolize a heroic individual who protects the town and the people from the villain. In the film, High Noon, Will Kane the protagonist has returned back to his town to save the people from the Miller gang. The characteristics of a cowboy tend to be very cliche throughout the film. A noble, courageous, confident men who lives by a code of honor.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how western films have transcended the culture we live in today. cowboys symbolize a heroic individual who protects the town and the people from the villain.
- Analyzes how the representation of females in western films conveys the message of women being vulnerable and the cowboys are protecting them.
- Analyzes how jane tompkins' book, west of everything, explains the vivid images of western films. the cowboy prevails and the villain is killed.
306 wordsRead More - Catharine Maria Sedgwick’s A New-England Tale and Hope Leslieanalytical essaySedgwick, Catharine. A New England Tale. Ed. Victoria Clements. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how catharine maria sedgwick was among the first american authors to publish historical and other fiction. her novels, a new-england tale and hope leslie, contradict the mainstream ideals of her time.
- Explains that the roles of men and women were clearly defined during the nineteenth century. women were judged by piety, purity, submissiveness, and domesticity.
- Explains that piety was an extremely important attribute for a woman, and women's advice journals and books discussed it. caleb atwater wrote in the january 1841 edition of the ladies repository.
- Explains that women were warned that men would try to steal their purity, but they must be strong and resist the temptation. thomas branagan threatened women with a horrible fate if they did not remain pure.
- Explains that the next requirement for being a "true woman" was submissiveness. according to society, men were superior to women by "god's appointment."
- Explains that domesticity is the final goal of being a "true woman." the strict expectations placed upon women helped determine the lives and experiences they faced.
- Explains that catharine maria sedgwick was raised in one of the most notable families in the connecticut river valley. her father, theodore, was a federalist, and her mother, pamela, came from the prominent family of joseph and abigail dwight.
- Analyzes how theodore's decision to continue his career far away from his family left pamela to "assure him that submission is my duty, and however hard, i will try to practice what reason teaches me i am under obligation."
- Analyzes how catharine became close to her four brothers during childhood, and their relationships remained strong through adulthood. sedgwick was taken away from her sister frances' wedding due to crying.
- Analyzes how sedgwick's life experiences directly influenced the way she wrote many of her characters, but she did not refrain from portraying married women in her novels.
- Analyzes how jane elton's character portrays the ideal every woman should strive to achieve. she is pious, following her christian beliefs by being kind to everyone disregarding their status.
- Analyzes how jane prolongs her engagement with edward because the appropriate length is one year and one day despite his pushing for an immediate marriage. she realizes edward is not the kind of man she can reform as she once hoped.
- Analyzes how jane's integrity is determined by domesticity and submissiveness. she will not lie to mrs. wilson, but she will make her own decisions.
- Analyzes how sedgwick commented on religion through many of her characters. a new-england tale depicted calvinists as biased, greedy, and selfish.
- Opines that the trouble and expense of taking you upon my hands is very great, but it did not seem suitable that being my brother’s daughter should be put out at present.
- Analyzes how sedgwick doubts the goodness of calvinism when she asks, "if we look around upon the circle of our acquaintance, and observe how few there are among those whom we believe to be christians, who govern their daily conduct by christian principles."
- Analyzes how sedgwick's alternatives aren't calvinist. they are examples of sincere christians who are willing to help others and listen without being judgmental. crazy bet makes an example of mrs. wilson.
- Analyzes how sedgwick uses her puritan characters to show the problems of prejudice, while her native american characters demonstrate the worth of every human being.
- Analyzes how magawisca and everell deeply care for each other despite their differences. mononotto kills mrs. fletcher and her daughters to avenge the death of his people.
- Analyzes how everell and magawisca overcome the barriers of diverse cultures to appreciate each other. faith leslie falls in love and eventually marries oneco.
- Analyzes how the relationship between hope and magawisca is important because sedgwick revises the prevalent tendency, racist as well as gynophobic, to split women characters into sexual and chaste, the dark and light.
- Analyzes how hope leslie depicts the "true woman" with her piety, purity, and domesticity, but she can also be defiant.
- Explains that hope's purity helps her marry the man she truly loves, everell fletcher, and her wisdom keeps her safe from the evil sir philip gardiner.
- Analyzes how catharine sedgwick opened many doors with her writing, allowing women to think for themselves about the decisions that affected their lives.
- Describes the works of victoria clements and mary kelley.
3303 wordsRead More - Abigail Peacock Genderanalytical essayInstead of categorizing its characters into either completely compliant demure women or total lawbreaking, cowgirls, the novel depicts two females that do not follow any of the conventional western tropes. My using the two characters of Annie Oakley and Abigail Peacock, the novel challenges the western genre, by offering these stronger more complex women, who are both caring, sometimes ladylike women, while also being tough, cowgirls who shoot guns. Annie is first shown as a strong willed, fierce character, who is exceptionally talented with a gun, a hobby that would be considered unladylike by many. Though instead of conforming to what is expected of her by the genre, she also manages to have very strong opinions on how a woman should behave “Annie Oakley had big opinions about how a woman should ride and shoot. She was bullheaded about being ladylike.” (Gault 67) Annie’s ethos characterizes her as a tough western, cowgirl, but her actant shows to have some very conservation
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how annie oakley and abigail peacock challenge the western genre by offering strong, complex women who are caring, sometimes ladylike, while also being tough, cowgirls who shoot guns.
- Analyzes how abigail is set up as someone who craves adventure, though the will and resources to go out and seek it, and so allows herself to be held back.
- Analyzes how this godforsaken place explores the dangerous, sometimes outrageous lifestyle of a western cowboy and the wild west show, embodying the tropes of outlaws and gunslingers.
651 wordsRead More - Slotkin, R. Regeneration Through Violence: The Mythology of the American Frontier 1600-1860. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1973.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the puritan colonists encountered indians whose savagery challenged their discipline and morals. the situation naturally compelled them to fight each other for their mutual interests.
- Explains that mythology is a unique source of information about early america. the most important experience for american frontiersmen is the challenge to the "myth of the frontier."
- Analyzes how the colonists came to america because they saw an opportunity to regenerate their religion and live according to it without subjugation. griffith's portrayal of the indians suggests their savage, non-puritan nature.
- Analyzes how the savage indian danger lurking in the wilderness affects the puritan attitude to the frontier and establishes a basis for other myths that define the american frontier experience.
- Explains that as the american pioneers push further west, the wilderness closes in around them and encounters with indians occur more frequently.
- Analyzes how werner herzog's 1973 film, "aguirre: wrath of god," portrays the captivity narrative in a non-traditional way.
- Argues that aguirre's lust for pleasure and riches represents his obsession with the savage eucharist.
- Analyzes how aguirre locks out opposition to his authority by declaring that ursua and anyone else who opposes him will not be allowed into el dorado and that for their betrayal they will be killed.
- Analyzes how herzog's film reveals another aspect of the captivity myth that traditional puritan narratives deny. in the spanish expedition and in ursua’s party, indians are taken captive or convinced to help the spaniards with their quest.
- Analyzes the possibility of a puritan analogue to the savage eucharist. the captivity myth lends itself to misery and spiritual decay of pioneers and indians alike.
- Explains that the dangers posed by captivity gave rise to another important myth-figure in frontier history. when puritan fighting methods failed to defeat the heathens, some frontiersmen adapted themselves to the conditions of the wilderness.
- Analyzes how the hunter hero connection is evident when viewed together. the warrior feels driven to prove his strength and power through acts of incredible cruelty, which is exacerbated by his fear of being at one with the totally helpless victim.
- Analyzes how the essence of the hunter hero myth is portrayed by michael mann in his 1992 film, "the last of the mohicans."
- Analyzes how nathaniel's hunter hero role is solidified later in the film, when he fights to save munro’s daughters from great peril.
- Narrates how the mohicans rescue alice from the indians at the edge of a cliff. magua is the more powerful fighter, and alice is faced with the same dilemma as inez.
- Explains that the essential part of each captivity narrative is the redemption and restoration of the victim. chingachgook shows his warrior prowess by killing magua in one savage stroke.
- Analyzes how the sources of captivity and hunter hero myths are narrative accounts written by puritan colonials that exclude important indian experiences.
- Analyzes slotkin's account of english cruelty that is often overlooked because of their defeat. the captivity narrative does not apply exclusively to puritans being captured by indians.
- Explains that the english colonists came to america expecting to renew their lives through the puritan faith, but instead found their faith and society in danger from the heathen indian presence in the wilderness.
2234 wordsRead More - Ingraham's Influence The Emergence Of The Movie Western Filmanalytical essayAlthough Colonel Prentiss Ingraham’s “Adventures of Buffalo Bill” preceded the advent of the Western film by almost twenty years, the roots of the genre can be identified throughout the 1884 dime novel. Indeed, many of the narrative conventions listed in Richard Slotkin’s introductory article “The Movie Western” can just as easily be applied to the text as they can to any film from the genre’s classical period.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that although colonel prentiss ingraham's "adventures of buffalo bill" preceded the advent of the western film by almost twenty years, the genre can be identified throughout the 1884 dime novel.
- Analyzes the dichotomy between wilderness and civilisation in ingraham's novel. the land west of cody’s home state of kansas is dangerous due to its native american residents, who would "give up buffalo meat for a human scalp."
- Analyzes how the novel concludes with a final showdown between buffalo bill and yellow hand, an alleged cheyenne chief feared by cody's white contemporaries.
- Opines that we should question the truthfulness of ingraham's novel. while some of the stories described in "adventures of buffalo bill" corroborate with those told in cody’s autobiographical work, these escapades are embellished to give him a mythic status.
412 wordsRead More