In the article 'The West - Hardboiled: Adaptions of Film Noir Elements, Extentialism, and Ethics in John Wayne's Westerns' by Sue Matheson is an ode to John Wayne as an actor and the impact his roles have had on his viewers throughout his career. Matheson discusses John Wayne as an image of "American manhood"(888), he was "the almost perfect father figure"(888) for viewers to idolize due to his extraordinary masculine qualities depicted in each of his roles. This article perfectly presents the influence John Wayne has had in shaping Westerns overall but also clearly explains the phenomenon he left behind.
According to Matheson in order to truly understand the legacy Wayne has left behind it is imperative that you understand how noir elements function. She believed that " the connection between characters and milieu is extremely important because states of the inner world, the mind and emotions, are transmitted by expressionist techniques of exaggerated or distorted representations of the outer world" (890). The writer begins to explain a film noir by using an example from the Western, The Searchers, to depict "the presence and authority of the land" (890). This example is used to show how landscape helps to emphasize the emotional state of Wayne throughout the movie. Another element that Matheson focuses on is the attire and appearance of characters and how this contributes to explaining elements of the characters personality for example Matheson states that the level of dirt or cleanliness displayed by a character tell viewers how "normal or abnormal a character's psychology is" (892).
The article continues by explaining the topic of Existentialism which is "another important component of the noir framework and underpins much of the characterization and the action in Wayne's West" (895). This aspect is relevant because " As in film noir, moral individualism and persuasive corruption are closely linked with Wayne's Westerns" (896) and an example taken from the film The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance follows. In watching many of Wayne's films viewers learn that " In noir films, the world is ultimately corrupt and corrupting. Thus decent, normally law-abiding citizens tend to find themselves enmeshed in situations that require them to become criminals" (896).
Lastly, Matheson brings forth the discussion of the theory of ethics in Westerns particularly concerning John Wayne and his actions and decisions. Matheson states that " men are men because their behavior is fundamentally ethical". She uses an example from the film The Man Who Shot Liberty Vance concerning the issue of Liberty Vance being called "a man" and the argument Peabody presents against it, not because he is an outlaw but because he violates " one of the most fundamental value concepts of virtue-ethics: "the highest good" "(891). The article points out that "what would usually be regarded as the good life is, in these Westerns, modified in a curious way-one may say "modernized"- by postwar disillisionment" (900) This tells us that in Westerns traits such as courage, wisdom, self control and fairness are considered noble. It is in Wayne's West that we see such virtuous traits come out in extreme situations of rashness and cowardice. Therefore these virtue's " are a matter of degree rather than kind" (900).
In Conclusion, " the investigations of ethics in Wayne's Westerns not only illustrate the existential problems that arise when individuals become their own moral centers, but also put forward an explanation as to why this Hollywood icon and his movies continue to be a popular phenomenon, haunting generations of American men and women over half a century after Hiroshima" (905).
In the article 'The West - Hardboiled: Adaptions of Film Noir Elements, Extentialism, and Ethics in John Wayne's Westerns' by Sue Matheson is an ode to John Wayne as an actor and the impact his roles have had on his viewers throughout his career. Matheson discusses John Wayne as an image of American manhood through his character’s as the alpha male cowboy. Due to his extraordinary masculine qualities depicted in each of his roles he was an ideal father figure. This article perfectly presents the influence John Wayne has had in shaping Westerns overall but also clearly explains the phenomenon he left behind.
ReplyDeleteAccording to Matheson, in order to truly understand the legacy Wayne has left behind it is imperative that you understand how noir elements function. Matheson also presents one of the cowboys main characteristics, moral ambiguity. Another element that Matheson focuses on is the attire and appearance of characters and how they contribute to explaining elements of the characters personality.
The alpha male cowboy is to the western as the hard-boiled detective is to the film noir. The next point that Matheson makes is comparing the hardboiled detective to the alpha male cowboy of the western.
The article continues by explaining the topic of Existentialism which is a 20th century movement that assumes that persons are completely free and therefore responsible for what they make of themselves. This aspect is relevant because westerns are similar to film noirs. A film noir is a film genre that is usually applied to American thrillers or detective films made particularly from 1944 – 1964. In a film noir moral individualism and persuasive corruption are primary elements and they are also closely linked with Wayne's Westerns. As a result of this corrupt stand up, law abiding citizens can be placed in situations where they may have to result to being criminals.
Lastly, Matheson brings forth the discussion of the theory of ethics in Westerns particularly concerning John Wayne and his actions and decisions. Matheson states that men act the way that they do because they are men and they believe their actions are ethically correct.
In Westerns traits such as courage, wisdom, self control and fairness are considered noble. It is in Wayne's West that we see such virtuous traits come out in extreme situations of rashness and cowardice.