The Western genre has been more than entertainment—it’s served as a powerful tool for American identity and propaganda. Uncover how the Western myth has shaped perceptions of American values, from Manifest Destiny to Cold War patriotism, and how it continues to reflect and critique the nation’s ideals.
Introduction
The myth of the West is not just a genre of fiction; it has also functioned as a foundational narrative for American national identity, deeply embedded in the country’s history, culture, and politics. From the 19th century onward, the Western has served as a vehicle for promoting the ideals of individualism, Manifest Destiny, and the moral righteousness of American expansionism. It has been used to justify territorial conquest, wars, and the broader American imperial project. The Western’s influence stretches beyond entertainment, playing a role in shaping public perception and national ideology, both within the United States and globally.
This article was inspired by conversations with my son, Bill, during his time at the University of Birmingham, on his degree course in English Literature. This article is the fifth of my “Myth of the West” cycle.
Manifest Destiny and the Early Western Narrative
At the heart of the Western myth is the notion of Manifest Destiny, the belief that Americans were divinely ordained to expand westward across the North American continent. This idea, which took hold in the 19th century, provided a moral and ideological justification for the displacement of Native Americans, the annexation of Mexican territories, and the settlement of the American frontier. The Western genre, in its early form, reinforced this narrative by portraying the West as a vast, untamed wilderness awaiting the civilising hand of white settlers.
The Westerns of the early 20th century, including the novels of Zane Grey and the silent films of the 1910s and 20s, often depicted pioneers, cowboys, and lawmen as heroes bringing law, order, and civilisation to a savage land. Native Americans were frequently cast as antagonists in this story, obstacles to progress who had to be overcome for the sake of national growth. This moral dichotomy, which framed American expansion as both righteous and inevitable, aligned with the national narrative of the time.
Dime novels and pulp magazines, which popularised the Western during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, contributed to the glorification of Manifest Destiny. Stories of Indian fighters, cowboy heroes, and outlaw lawmen filled the pages of these publications, celebrating the rugged individualism and violent triumphs of the frontier. These stories helped shape the public’s perception of the West, not as a place of complex interactions between cultures, but as a battleground between civilisation and savagery, where the white man’s victory was both just and necessary.
The Western in the Context of American Wars
The Western genre’s role as national propaganda became especially apparent during times of war. Throughout the 20th century, the Western myth was repurposed to reflect contemporary conflicts, positioning the United States as a force for good, much like the white settlers and cowboys of the frontier were portrayed as bringers of civilisation.
During World War II, for example, Western films and novels were used to promote the ideals of American heroism and resilience. Films like Stagecoach (1939) and The Ox-Bow Incident (1943) depicted moral dilemmas and conflicts that echoed the broader struggle between democracy and fascism. The clear moral lines drawn in these films reinforced the idea that America, much like the cowboys and lawmen of the Old West, stood for justice and order in a chaotic world. These films offered audiences a simplified, romanticised vision of American history that reinforced patriotic sentiments during a time of global conflict.
The Cold War era saw the Western genre take on new significance as a metaphor for the struggle between the United States and the Soviet Union. Westerns of the 1950s and 60s, such as High Noon (1952) and The Searchers (1956), positioned their heroes as lone defenders of freedom and democracy, standing against lawlessness and tyranny. The solitary cowboy or sheriff, acting out of moral conviction, became a symbol of American individualism and the fight against communism. The Western myth, with its focus on good versus evil and the righteousness of the American cause, became a powerful tool for reinforcing Cold War ideologies.
The Western as Global Propaganda
The Western genre did not only serve as national propaganda for domestic audiences; it also became a tool for projecting American values abroad. As Hollywood films became a major cultural export in the mid-20th century, the Western helped shape international perceptions of the United States as a land of freedom, heroism, and opportunity. The cowboy, with his rugged individualism and moral clarity, became an iconic figure representing American ideals to the world.
Films like Shane (1953) and The Magnificent Seven (1960) resonated globally, presenting American values of justice, self-reliance, and democracy in an easily digestible form. The Magnificent Seven, for example, was a Western adaptation of Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai (1954), and its success overseas demonstrated how the Western myth could be transposed into different cultural contexts while still promoting American ideals.
During the Vietnam War era, however, the Western as a tool of propaganda faced challenges. The genre’s simplistic good-versus-evil narratives no longer aligned with the increasingly complex and morally ambiguous realities of American foreign policy. Films like The Wild Bunch (1969) and Little Big Man (1970) began to question the righteousness of American imperialism, using the Western setting to critique the violence and injustice that had been historically glossed over in the genre.
The Revisionist Western and the Critique of National Myths
By the late 1960s and 70s, the Western genre began to undergo a transformation, as filmmakers and writers increasingly used it to critique the national myths it had once upheld. The revisionist Western, exemplified by films like The Wild Bunch and Unforgiven (1992), challenged the notion that the West was a place of moral clarity and heroic conquest. These films exposed the darker side of American expansionism, particularly the violence, racism, and exploitation that had been central to the creation of the United States.
In Little Big Man, for instance, the myth of the West is turned on its head, with Native Americans portrayed sympathetically and white settlers and soldiers shown as aggressors. The film’s protagonist, Jack Crabb (Dustin Hoffman), narrates his life story, revealing the brutality and moral ambiguity of the American frontier. The film reflects the growing disillusionment with American foreign policy during the Vietnam War, using the Western setting to critique the idea of American exceptionalism and manifest destiny.
Clint Eastwood’s Unforgiven also deconstructs the traditional Western hero. William Munny, played by Eastwood, is a former gunslinger who has tried to leave his violent past behind, but is drawn back into it for one final job. The film presents a grim view of the West, where violence begets more violence, and the heroic myths of gunslingers are revealed to be hollow. Unforgiven critiques not only the Western genre, but also the broader American myth of redemptive violence, questioning whether justice can truly be achieved through violent means.
The Western in the Modern Era: Subversion and Reflection
In the 21st century, the Western continues to serve as both a reflection of American identity and a critique of national myths. Films like No Country for Old Men (2007) and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007) present a more nuanced and often bleak view of the American West. The landscapes are still vast and beautiful, but the moral clarity of earlier Westerns is gone, replaced by ambiguity and existential uncertainty.
In No Country for Old Men, the West is not a place of heroism or redemption, but a violent, uncaring landscape where traditional notions of justice have collapsed. The film’s antagonist, Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem), represents a kind of nihilistic evil, unstoppable and indifferent to human life. The old Western values of individualism and frontier justice are powerless in the face of this modern threat, reflecting a broader sense of unease about the direction of American society.
At the same time, filmmakers like Quentin Tarantino have used the Western genre to subvert and critique historical narratives. In Django Unchained (2012), Tarantino reimagines the Western as a story of Black empowerment, with the protagonist, Django (Jamie Foxx), seeking revenge on the white slave owners who have wronged him. The film plays with the tropes of the Western, using them to confront America’s history of slavery and racial violence in a way that the traditional Western never could.
Conclusion
The Western has always been more than just a genre of entertainment—it has functioned as a tool of national myth-making and, at times, propaganda. From its early role in promoting the ideals of Manifest Destiny to its use as a metaphor for Cold War struggles, the Western has reflected and reinforced America’s vision of itself as a land of freedom, justice, and individualism.
However, as the genre has evolved, it has also become a space for critical reflection, challenging the very myths it once upheld. Revisionist Westerns and modern subversions of the genre have exposed the moral complexities and injustices of the American West, forcing audiences to reckon with the darker aspects of American history and identity.
Today, the Western continues to serve as both a reflection of American ideals and a critique of them. Its enduring appeal lies in its ability to adapt, to question, and to reflect the shifting values and anxieties of American society. In doing so, the Western remains a powerful and versatile cultural narrative, deeply intertwined with the history and identity of the United States.