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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
This 4 page paper looks at the western, in film, in John H. Lenihan's work called Showdown. The book is critically evaluated but much of the paper provides an overview of its contents. Bibliography lists 2 sources.
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4 pages (~225 words per page)
File: RT13_SA404JHL.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
of view but also with information that is applicable to a variety of areas. While viewing westerns in general, many people are mesmerize by the fighting, the conflict, and the
rather primitive nature of the old west before it was built up. Yet, there are other ways to view the western film and Lenihan provides a sociological and historical approach
to the history of this film genre. Lenihan tells about the formulaic aspects of this genre in the chapter called "The Western Formula" (10). Here, it is noted that
there is a method that seems to underlie most films in the niche (10). Indeed, the author begins by telling how far the western novel had come and that westerns
had become a keen area of interest (10). The author marks the beginning of this genre with the Great Train Robbery, a film that would first appear in 1903 (10).
Hence, the western is really something that is characteristic of the twentieth century. Whether it will live through the twenty-first or die off is debatable. It is important to
note that the western, to Lenihan, is more than mere film or entertainment. He explains: "The Western gave substance to the ideal of personal self-determination and responsible freedom that the
realities of modern life and institutions seem to deny" (11). In the western, there were also differences in terms of plot as well as locale and costume (11). The author
goes on to talk about the juxtapositioning of the Indian and the "lawless" white man (12). Indeed, a new paradigm arose and young boys were prompted to play Cowboys and
Indians. The next chapter in the book is entitled "Cold War-Path" (Lenihan 24). War is discussed at length in this chapter, and not just the cold war. This is one
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