American Old West

Ehrlich's narrative focuses on what the life of a cowboy truly is when compared to the image of them created by the media. Generally, a 'cowboy' is a male rancher who is thought to be an insensitive, hard-bitten, tough young man who will accomplish any job needed for the ranch with no emotional reactions of any kind. This means no matter how demanding, dangerous, or exhaustive the job may be a cowboy will accomplish the task at hand. If a cowboy's entire persona was judged on how they acted…

Now these are extremely important topics for an author of his type in the early twentieth century, Adams wanted to educate Americans what it was to be an actual cowboy. Adams did this by creating a fictional story based on events that he had experienced through his ten years of being a cowboy. Though through just reading the book a reader would not know right away that this was…

the time in She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, such as in the scene when they are leaving the army base on their horses with the beautiful landscape of Monument Valley in the background. The film also gives off a theme of negative feelings towards Native Americans because they are constantly attacking the heroic cavalry members and others. John Wayne’s classic acting really ties the Western film atmosphere all together with his gallant and valiant personality. She Wore a Yellow Ribbon possesses nearly…

The 1996 film Lone Star, written and directed by John Sayles, is a neo-western suspense thriller set in Rio County, TX on the Mexican/American border. Chris Cooper plays a county sheriff, Sam Deeds, who returns home after his father, sheriff Buddy Deeds, played by Matthew McConaughey, has passed away. After returning home, Sam begins an investigation into the death of Charlie Wade, the long-missing and former sheriff of Rio County played by Kris Kristofferson. During his investigation, Sam…

misconception about the Old West was if it was violent or nonviolent. Because cowboys, Indians, railroad workers, settlers, and soldiers played out their disputes on the Great Plains. Which led to different beliefs if the West was violent or not. So was The Old West really violent? The Old West was located on the Great Plains (The Great American Dessert). It was anything West of Mississippi and was between the early 1860s and 1890s. There were Plain Indians and new players who resided in the…

While discovering the west, pioneers encountered difficulties which authors then used in their stories leading to the idea of the frontiersman. We're still learning whether or not the many myths were insight into the reality or merely an idea of how frontiersman and the West are portrayed. Many of these myths or ideas are what aided in the understanding of American history. In the later half of the nineteenth century, the "mythic frontiersman" commonly was described as full of hope, righteous,…

Old Trail Town in Cody, WY There are not many eras in American History, that has intrigued us as much as the "Old West." Over the years, the Old West has been depicted in many ways, especially bringing attention to to the legends of gunfights and the notorious outlaws, who seem larger than life back then. In Cody, Wyoming, there is a special place that brings visitors back to these days. Old Trail Town is an amazing attraction that captures this unforgettable time in history. With a…

Jane Tompkins’s West of Everything is an energetic and lively account of the most beloved and legendary American genre—The Western. Western films and novels have become a large part of many American’s lives and continues to influence filmmaking to this day. People from all over the world visit western states to have what they think is the cowboy experience. West of Everything expresses a heavy concern with the role of gender in the genre, however, and points out that it is a male dominated field…

The Great American West An Analysis of Willa Cather’s “My Antonia” The feminist movement in America was a time of great struggle, change, and most importantly retaliation. Considering the low status of women at that time, being subordinate to their husbands, it was difficult for them to give their. This led many women to the outlet of writing; writing was often a way for them to display their knowledge and independence and begin this new revolution which would disturb the order of things which…

The novel The Female Frontier: A Comparative View of Women on the Prairie and the Plains was written by Glenda Riley. Riley was born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1938 and gained her Ph.D. from Ohio State University in 1968. After she received her Ph.D. she went on to acquire he first teaching position at Northern Iowa University, where she held this position for 21 years. She also founded the University of Northern Iowa’s Women’s Studies Program. This wide range of knowledge on this particular subject,…