Your homework for Friday asks you to provide an example of the power of Western imagery and ideas of the Old West and pioneer life in contemporary American culture. We discussed a number of Western themes in class today and I am happy to answer more questions about what you might use as an example if you email me.
In today's present time, I see the President of the United States as a representation of "the frontier." Since our country has always had an obsession with a Western image; where the frontier comes along and saves the day/citizens. Think about how little boys grow up here in America- they look up to superhero's and love to play cowboys and indians. In America, we see our president as our superhero/cowboy who is here to save us. Of course, we recently voted a new "Frontier" as our leader and hope for him to rescur our country from it's current state. This is a simple example of how the frontier image is still present in current times.
ReplyDeleteIn today's culture, I believe the "frontier" representation is very prevalent in country music. Country music's "frontier" appearance is apparent in the songs, the music videos, and in the singers. The lyrics in the songs repeatedly recount stories of dirt roads, pick-up trucks, and tractors. In one particular song, "She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy," the man in the song woos women by driving his tractor, showing off his farmer's tan, and having the rugged, muscular body of a farmer. Additionally, the music videos add to the allure of the farm by depicting young muscular men with their shirts off, soulfully playing a guitar, and impressing women with their tan face and pearly white smiles. Finally, the strongest "frontier" depiction of country music is the singers themselves. The majority of male singers consistently wear cowboy hats, even with their tuxedos. The women singers almost always have tight jeans, boots, and long curly hair. This eludes to the freedom of the west and the ease of life that is portrayed in their attitudes and fashion. Indeed, the frontier is very much alive in today's country music, most notably in the lyrics of the songs, the music videos, and the portrayal of the singers.
ReplyDeleteOne aspect of the Old West that is still prevalent in today’s culture is the good ol’ blue jeans. The image of a cowboy cannot be complete without jeans. Though we still see a great deal of cowboy attire today, for example, the cowboy hat and boots, jeans are something that nearly every person in America owns a pair of. I, personally, do not own a cowboy hat or cowboy boots; they are not really my style. But, I could not even begin to count the number of pairs of jeans that I own. The difference between the Old West and today is that, in today's culture, a pair of jeans, on their own, are not necessarily identified with a cowboy. They are just pants that everyone wears. But to truly dress the part of a cowboy, you cannot forget the blue jeans!
ReplyDeleteI agree with Brittany's post about the western frontier being portrayed in our contemporary time through the President of the United States. The now former President Bush brought that western persona full force with his Texas pride and spending most his time on his ranch. President Bush also brought that in your face and rough attitude associated with cowboys when it came to terrorism, which was so often a huge focus during his administration. The new President Obama doesn't portray that western cowboy so much in his appearance or style, but he does in his message. The western frontier was a time of immense change and instability for the country. President Obama's campaign was based around the "change" he would bring to the country and with the instabilities in our country right now, whether it be the economy or foreign affairs, I think it make a good comparison.
ReplyDeleteIn temporary modern times there are many influences from the ideas of the old west and pioneer life. We idolize these ideas through movies and television shows. Most Americans dream of a life with adventure and exploring new uncharted territory. We are always looking for our next frontier to conquer such as space, and bringing democracy along with other beliefs to other parts of the world. Today we think of G.W. Bush as being a modern day cowboy with the way he tackled our nations problem with a sort of shoot first ask questions later attitude. The idea of a cowboy has always been one of a ruff and tumble hero who has thier fare share of faults but ends up doing the right thing.
ReplyDeleteI think that not only is the idea of the "frontier" still prevalent in the United States culture but the idea of the United States as being the "frontier" in the international sense as well. I believe that there is still a sense of the "West" as being this undiscovered land full of opportunites and freedoms. The American Frontier was a place of excitment and mysteries. I think that is how some still view the United States. I also think that there is still the idea of the American People being these rough, outspoken group of people who are ready for anything and that goes in with all guns blazing. This idea supports the idea of "American Cowboys" and how Americans are still viewed that way today.
ReplyDeleteI thought of Hollywood as a contemporary frontier. For many decades aspiring actors, actresses, musicians and writers travel there in hopes of bettering their lives and accomplishing their dreams, much like the pioneers during Western expansion. In terms of the pioneers many times their dreams fell apart. They had to take the risk of getting attacked by the Native Americans and dying from lack of food. The modern group risks not being able to survive due to lack of money or resources. Hollywood is an undiscovered frontier for many aspiring actors, actresses, musicians and writers.
ReplyDeleteAll of the ideas above and those we discussed in class are definitely the most common representations of the American West--rodeo cowboys with big belt buckles getting the job done. We like to think of the West as an idealistic place of beautiful scenery and passionate love, where all you need are your own two hands. Most of the time, Hollywood caters to this image, but a very interesting change in the mold of the "Western" movie is 2005's 'Brokeback Mountain', starring Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal.
ReplyDeleteBrokeback Mountain is a love story indeed--but as most of us know it chronicles the struggles of two sheep herding mountain cowboys who discover that they are in love with each other. While one (Gyllenhaal) is more willing at first to succumb to his homosexual desires, both eventually realize that they are unhappy in their respective marriages and long for each other.
This movie pushed the limit of our traditional take on a Western and portrayed very different characters than we are used to. At the same time as it pushed a social agenda and worked to support gay rights and acceptance, 'Brokeback Mountain' also challenged the common perception of the American West.
-Alison Dzwonczyk
I don't know much about the cultures that still reflect the frontier mentality. However, one thing I have noticed is country guys and their pick up trucks. This is the modern day horse and provides the modern man with the ability to roam freely like the horse enabled cowboys. Much like the cowboys did with their horses men today take the same care of their trucks, in many cases. Putting the vehicles well being above their own. This also has trickled into other cultures within the US as well so it is not exclusive to only those people. Maybe their is a little bit of frontier in all automobile lovers. Even if we love cars instead of trucks.
ReplyDelete---Eric Mitchell---
I think Mary hit the nail on the head with the the view of an American being the "rough, outspoken group of people" who hold their heads high no matter the situation. I believe we still hold the frontier image always looking for more, having the biggest cars, biggest houses but still thinking about the next dollar to gain and spend. With our government being the international policemen or cowboy if you will saying we can take 'em. Even tho we may not be conquering the physical borders of Foreign soil, we are in fact influencing other cultures with fast food such as McDonald's, and pushing democracy into many foreign governments.
ReplyDeleteFrom Adam Baum:
ReplyDeleteThe ideas of the Old West and pioneer life, are some of the more interesting and popular ideals in any culture today. I feel like the West is such a popular concept because in a sense, the West was won. During the time the West became so popular, it was because people wanted to know about it. They wanted to know about another way of life different from their own. The movies and stories that reached millions of people propelled the west forward. Everyday men and women saw a life that was astronomically different from their own, and in some way it fulfilled imaginations.
I believe that the image of the frontier still prevalent today and is one that you might not see as often, the cowboy. When people first witnessed cowboys, they were the toughest guys around. Western movies featuring cowboys dominated the movie industry for years. The idea of the cowboy, and the gunslinger mentality is very much alive today. People see cowboy’s as warriors that feared nothing, had nothing to lose, and never backed down from a fight. In a culture dominated by weapons and hand-to-hand combat (violence), part of these ideas stemmed from that western mentality.
In the modern world today, tobacco companies profit on the western image of a cowboy in the pioneer life by using the images in advertisments. They try to show that ciggerates will make you a rough and rugged cowboy by imagery and catchy slogans. It makes the consumer think of instead of the health effects of smoking, but rather of the way they will be percieved in society. Although this would have a greater appeal to men rather than women, women are still interested in the advertisment because of the usually of the good-looking cowboy.
ReplyDeleteLyndsey Miller
The Amish people are a great example of pioneers living in todays world. The Amish are the type of people who are set on the old ways of life back when the new advances weren't avalible. Now a days people drive cars and adapt to the changing ways of life when new things come along but the Amish don't do that. The Amish tend to drive horse and buggy still like back in the day and tend to not use cell phones or cars like other people may choose to. Its a very different way of living that most people aren't use to seeing. The average person is use to seeing the rich, nice cars or the big house not a horse and buggy. They don't believe in time as we do and don't rely on clocks or set schedules to run their lives. They are not as stressed as we are so their lives are easier and more relaxing. Their life style has not changed much from what it use to be like years ago before all of the advances.
ReplyDeleteThe most recent I have seen the frontier come into play in recent american culture is the Marlboro cigarette advertisements. With the depiction of the strong and manly cowboy that men wish to be like and what women find attractive. These advertisements have been used over several decades to get people, specifically men, to buy Marlboro cigarettes so that they to can be manly and attractive. This has even led Marlboro's strongest line of cigarettes, the Marlboro Red, to be nicknamed "cowboy killers." Regardless of the nickname, the depiction of the cowboy for Marlboro has led them to rise as America's number one selling cigarette.
ReplyDeleteFor the most part I'm going to be piggy-backing on some of the prior posts.
ReplyDeleteStarting with the presidents. Teddy Roosevelt was a "rough rider" during the Spanish American War and he was very passionate for the preservation of the West and it's beauty. Even John McCain used "maverick" to describe his campaign. I relate maverick to the movie Mel Gibson starred in which took place in the Old West with the cowboy ruffians, stagecoaches, and gun slinging. By refering to maverick I also thought of the town shoot out: the men meet at high noon, turn their backs and take three paces then shoot.
Drawing on the country music aspect. I'm a big country music fan and always have been. I have the cowboy hat, boots, plaid shirts and jeans to prove it. The music itself draws on country boys, dirt roads, and trucks. I always tell my friends I want to date a country boy or at least a guy who drives a truck. That's very alluring and contributes to an idea of a hard working guy.
The west is where people went to settle and expand away from overcrowded cities. Even today, people go out west, especially to California, to "find themselves." The West, to me has always been a spacious place where people can start over.
For anyone who remembers playing the Oregon Trail in elementary school, that's a western influence I can think of. It lets you go through the Oregon Trail as a pilgrim and go through the hardships that they experienced while traveling westward looking for gold. And of course when you did poorly you died of dysentery.
ReplyDeleteI belive that a good example of the "frontier" spirit in the modern day is Americas approach to the foreign world. Many times America goes into situations with an attitude that could be described as "cowboyish". This attitude is charecterised by a belife that we are right about the idea wheter that be true or not and also by a sense of confidence and a belife that we can accomplish any goal that we set out to acheive. This sense of optimism and confidence i belive charecterizes the western spirit.
ReplyDeleteOur idea of the "Old West" was this idea of the "All American Dream". That anything is possible with a little bit of hard work/manual labor and time. The "West" represented freedom and adventure. The only things you had to worry about was nature itself and the railroads moving in. That a man was a "man's man" and a woman held the family and home together. Hollywood does an amazing job of putting these images on the silver screen. One movie that came to mind when discussing the western theme was "3:10 to Yuma". This was about a man trying to save his farm from the bank (which was trying to use his land for the railroad) and he offers to take a wanted bank robber to Yuma to catch a prison train. He does this all for the money to save his farm and family. This movie is full of gun fights, fist fights, and adventure.
ReplyDeleteToday the West represents a similar type of adventure. When we think of "West" today, we think of California and Hollywood. Its supposed to be the land where dreams come true for those you can survive it. Just like the old west. Now a days all the gun fights are done on the set of some fancy studio, and closest you get to a real cowboy in Hollywood would a pack of cigarettes. The cowboy as a symbol just utters coolness and fun (Which is advertising at its best).I think this the western theme is just that a theme of history. An idea of what it was like such as in the renaissance period or the 50's era. Its all so the hippies, cowboys, freaks, geeks, flappers, and fighters have a permanent place in history and in our minds of our ever changing American lives.
The first thing that came to mind when I thought of this is the commericials for Pace salsa. They're narrated by a man with a western kind of accent and there are images of tough looking men in cowboy hats working with chili peppers. These commericials, as well as western cowboy mentality of the past and present, seem to be mostly about flaunting masculinity, or just power in general. If we think about male behavior today, many men grunt and yell and charge around the way we imagine cowboys doing. People get into competitions with each other to try to prove strength - cowboys had gun fights to show each other who was toughest, and the same thing still occurs today. We think of cowboys sometimes in a heroic way but also as people who were violent, self-serving and extremely invasive (with respect to Native Americans). Those are characteristics of our American society today - the feeling that America can take what it wants by any means it wants.
ReplyDelete--Dana Hellman--
I agree with Nathan. One of the quintessential American images is that of a cowboy, a gun slingin', "This town ain't big enough for the both of us" kind of cowboy. George W. Bush is a wonderful representation, only his guns are nuclear and his catch-phrase might be, "This world ain't big enough for any governments other than democracies."
ReplyDeleteI think America in general is a contemporary representation of the frontier. The West, meaning the United States, is still new and distant in relation to the rest of the world. We are called "the land of opportunity," which parallels the west in frontier times. Mary said it best when she wrote that we are an undiscovered land full of opportunities, which is so true.
The Frontier was explored by pioneers with expansionist goals and ideals, and I believe that those goals and ideals are still very prevalent today. We are constantly looking for ways to expand our "empire." I don't necessarily mean expand in terms of land, but areas like science and space, too. We are always in search of something new.
Hey all, sorry this is so late, but work kind of got in my way.
ReplyDeleteAt any rate, western ideals and culture have very thoroughly permeated our modern society. Like was previously posted, the Marlboro man, pickup trucks, and country music all try to keep the idea of the cowboy alive. In other aspects, I'm sure we've all played a few games of Texas hold'em in our time.
What strikes me particularly is the heritage and tradition we've gained from the old west. In my experience in the Army, we draw a lot of heraldry and history from the armies of the past. The modern-day cavalry hat is essentially the same as it was in the civil war and the Indian wars. The pants on our dress blue uniforms, though a lighter shade of blue, are a homage to the riders of the old west. Nearly everything about our dress blues comes from the older uniforms of the late 1800's.
An important theme in the excerpt from Roosevelt is the importance of hard work in succeding and earning respect. He was obviously trying to encourage people to work and accomplish the American dream by alluding to the pioneers. The western expansion creates an ideal of the American dream. We as Americans take something unexplored, dangerous, and risky, and with hard labor and endurance make it a functioning entity. The Constituiton, the west, manufactoring ect. I beleive that our efforts to expand democracy in Vietnam and Iraq portrays our "western" expansion outlook. Also space exploration has been compared to our western expansion.
ReplyDeleteThe rugged and tough Western Imagery that we see in movies and advertisement gives a sense of conquering something bigger than yourself. The adventurous life has much appeal. We look at the Western Imagery as being courageously brave while being simple and honest. Hard work with family values are the core of Western Imagery. Although the work seems endless and the jobs tiring, at the end of the day there would be dinner with the family. The imagery is still cherished and continues to impact the modern times. This connections that we have made with the Western Imagery helped President Bush get into power. He used the appeal of a southern man to seem simple and honest. This made people feel like he was relatable because he was "one of us". Yet the western idea of facing something bigger than yourself, has helped our current president get into office. As American's, we are always wanting to conquer and expand as far as we can. We are always wanting more. Now, we are expanding our ideas into Iraq. In the past, pioneers were looking to the grass that was greener. President Obama is representing the forward movement into the uncertain future. That is how the idea of Western Imagery will continue to be incorporated into our modern times. The heroic image of an honest man fighting for his family and what he believes in will not perish. These images are too strong to be forgotten.
ReplyDelete-Dione Hardin
The Old West is something that city slickers during the Nineteenth Century probably wanted to see. As many people have already said, Americans' lust for westward expansion came to give the region an elevated status. The idea that one could work the land and be his own boss sort of evolved into the American Dream. As far as imagery, the cowboy look took off and has been successful ever since. Everyone knows who Clint Eastwood is, whether you've seen any of his movies or not, and additionally most people even know that he's not a man to be messed with.
ReplyDeleteThe way I see the Old West in modern America is the way our culture is never satisfied. The pioneers were practical in seeking out new land to make a better life for themselves but over time this has evolved into a competition of status. In America it is all about being #1. To Americans, it's #1 or nothing at all. We have to have the biggest, fastest cars, iPhones, the biggest house, most prestigious job, and so on. Since we have run out of land we continue to push the boundaries of status items to soothe our egos. Keeping up with the Jones seems to be quite a popular cultural phenomenon in America.
ReplyDeleteThe way I see our government is as the vigilante good cowboy of the west. Our government has been known to step in and do what THEY think is right for foreign counties regardless of what the citizens say. With the rate of Americanization throughout the world soon there won't be any West to explore.
I believe paintings, movies, stories, and films from the “frontier” or pioneer life have a huge affect on American Culture. Many famous artists have used cowboys and Indians in their drawings and they have also painted pictures of out west, and those paintings have been top sellers. Pioneer movies still affect American culture today, I remember growing up and watching Little House on the Prairie Rodeo is still big today in American culture, just like it was in the early days.
ReplyDeleteThe idea of the frontier life has continued to affect American culture because even in today’s world we still do the things pioneers did but we made it more technological. Farming is still big in American culture today but instead of hand-picking the crops, we have machinery for those. Without farmers in the pioneer life, maybe we wouldn’t have thought about using different machinery to farm our lands. Religion and Education in the pioneer life has affected American culture and made it expand. Education started out as one little building called schoolhouses and now there are many schools in one local area. I believe that pioneer life still has a huge affect on American culture today, and will always have a huge affect.
In comtemporary American culture there is still the attitude of pioneer life. A lot of people want to make things more simple because of all the technology in the world and advances. There are still people who want to do things like "live by the land" and grow their own food because it's healthier. Or people who enjoy making their own blankets and clothing items. I think that it is easy to go out and buy what you need, but because of the affect that pioneer life had on people; some of them still find it appealing to work hard and make what you want happen. People used to work very hard back then, and I think that it is important to continue to have ideals of the pioneer life.
ReplyDeleteR.Ellis
ReplyDeleteLike many other people have said, I agree that President Bush is a great example of how pioneer life and western imagery has effected American culture today. Being a Texas oil man and coming from the "cowboy way" is a way to think about how the western imagery has developed drastically over the past forty years. He is the defintiton of a "good ol boy" from the west that wears levi strauss blue jeans, cowboy boots, and a denim button down shirt. When people think of a cowboy they think of it as someone that is going to help us in a time of need. A person that will rescue us with guns blazing in the air. Bush came into the office with the hope of saving us in some sense and brought a western image along with him. He learned how to be polite and a gentleman from his father. That's the western way. I just thought he was a good depiction of how the west came to effect American culture.
I believe that in today’s society the imagery and representation on frontier and pioneer life is very different from the actuality of what it was. I think in the contemporary aspect we have sort of glamorized this past life style in some way. When I hear pioneer or frontier I think of the gold rush and expanding west. I think about glamorized cowboy thieves and old western movies.
ReplyDeleteI know that we are still pioneers and frontier people today we just don’t always see it that way since, when I think of frontier persons anyway, I think of cowboys or something more like Little House on the Prarie. But we still are very much like that still only in a more modern time. We still have farmers and exploders looking to expand and find something new. We still have people working hard to support their families and have a good life. This will always be important to the American culture because we are not only the country that we are because of pioneers and frontier men and women but we continue to take what we learned from the past in American culture and take it and grow from it.
From Jennifer Sayegh:
ReplyDeleteThe frontier way of life represents the idea of a god-given right to expand, and
grow beyond our space, and into new-found territory. It represents the idea
that people have a duty to their nation, and thus should work hard to expand
and increase the territory and power. I find contemporary representations of the
frontier or pioneer life in every American and how we are raised to think and
live. For instance, America is the biggest country that focuses on Globalization.
Although, America is no longer expanding its territory it is expanding its
resources and power. America employs many agencies and people worldwide,
and American resources and let alone the American culture, such as music, and
even simply America's English language is spread globally. America is viewed as
a great Super power, and a very rich nation that provides its citizens with a lot
of
resources and power. The 'frontier' and the notion of having to work hard to
expand, and grow is instilled in every American. Thus the American Dream says
that there are no borders, and with hard work anyone has the opportunity to
achieve anything. America's political views greatly represent the 'frontier' way of
life ideology. Take for instance the threatening foreign involvement that has
been taking place in the middle east.
Apart of the mentality of working hard, and spreading globally, the idea of the
'frontier' and pioneer life is great expressed in fashion trends. Representations
of country boys and girls, country musics, jeans, and pick-up trucks are a few
representations seen today. Another connection to how the Frontier Ideology is
alive today is easily recognized through the push to grant equality in the U.S.
Americans are working hard to expand beyond the territories notion, but rather
expand the borders to overcome the boundaries drawn between men, and
women, and just expanding equality to all citizens in general.
From Nicole Lange:
ReplyDeleteWestern imagery is prevalent in today's society through fashion, from the cowboy
hat, to flannel shirt, blue jeans, and cowboy boots. Instantly when I see a cowboy
hat, my mind goes to a scene from an old western movie. At any country concert,
you see girls wearing cowboy hats and cowboy boots. Although chaps aren't a
typical item that you would see everyday, they are still associated with the west, as
are spurs. Also, when I see a big belt buckle, I am reminded of a cowboy. These
stereotypical items lead anyone's mind to a flashback of an old country movie. In
these movies, there was always the strong cowboy figure who rode up on his horse
with his lasso, and saved the day. He pulled his gun out of his holster and twirled
it around his finger, while the movie plays the infamous country music. Sometimes
there was a shoot out, or even a fight to "draw first". But at the end of the day,
the cowboy won and he got the girl.
From Anna Zalusky:
ReplyDeleteMy boyfriend has been to California, Arizona, Wyoming, Idaho, and everywhere in between. He frequently talks about returning, about "going out West" as he says it. To him and to many "out West" means freedom, possibilities, having the room to move around and be yourself, be what you've always wanted to be.
While on one of his trips he passed through a small town near Taos, NM. Everyone in the town lived off the grid in simple straw bale houses. A place like that could only exist in "the West," a region that resides outside of normal civilization where you can make your own rules.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteFrom Kylee Moon:
ReplyDeleteI agree with Nathan. One of the quintessential American images is that of a cowboy, a gun slingin', "This town ain't big enough for the both of us" kind of cowboy. George W. Bush is a wonderful representation, only his guns are nuclear and his catch-phrase might be, "This world ain't big enough for any governments other than democracies."
I think America in general is a contemporary representation of the frontier. The West, meaning the United States, is still new and distant in relation to the rest of the world. We are called "the land of opportunity," which parallels the west in frontier times. Mary said it best when she wrote that we are an undiscovered land full of opportunities, which is so true.
The Frontier was explored by pioneers with expansionist goals and ideals, and I believe that those goals and ideals are still very prevalent today. We are constantly looking for ways to expand our "empire." I don't necessarily mean expand in terms of land, but areas like science and space, too. We are always in search of something new.
The frontier way of life represents the idea of a god-given right to expand, and
ReplyDeletegrow beyond our space, and into new-found territory. It represents the idea
that people have a duty to their nation, and thus should work hard to expand
and increase the territory and power. I find contemporary representations of the
frontier or pioneer life in every American and how we are raised to think and
live. For instance, America is the biggest country that focuses on Globalization.
Although, America is no longer expanding its territory it is expanding its
resources and power. America employs many agencies and people worldwide,
and American resources and let alone the American culture, such as music, and
even simply America's English language is spread globally. America is viewed as
a great Super power, and a very rich nation that provides its citizens with a lot
of
resources and power. The 'frontier' and the notion of having to work hard to
expand, and grow is instilled in every American. Thus the American Dream says
that there are no borders, and with hard work anyone has the opportunity to
achieve anything. America's political views greatly represent the 'frontier' way of
life ideology. Take for instance the threatening foreign involvement that has
been taking place in the middle east.
Apart of the mentality of working hard, and spreading globally, the idea of the
'frontier' and pioneer life is great expressed in fashion trends. Representations
of country boys and girls, country musics, jeans, and pick-up trucks are a few
representations seen today. Another connection to how the Frontier Ideology is
alive today is easily recognized through the push to grant equality in the U.S.
Americans are working hard to expand beyond the territories notion, but rather
expand the borders to overcome the boundaries drawn between men, and
women, and just expanding equality to all citizens in general.