as part of an evolving Western narrative; at the time, the original thirteen colonies were the Western most part of the United States of America. The gun became so strongly tied to the narrative of the cowboy, that the two became almost synonymous with one another. As a result, the narrative of the cowboy came to shape the representation of the gun. The classical Western narrative saw the gun as the tool of an idyllic cowboy. A cowboy who often played a part in either winning, or protecting the West. Through the heroic depiction of the cowboy, he came to represent core American values of patriotism, fairness and bravery. As a result, the representation of the gun evolved. It was still represented as the tool by which to forge and protect American values, but it had become associated with a certain character and a certain period of American history. A period centred around the expansion of America, the civilization of the frontier. This explains the iconic idea of ‘the gun that won the west’. A trope which has been accepted as a part of American culture. Evidence exists of this in film, for example, the square-up that begins Winchester ’73 defines the Winchester as “The gun that won the west”. 7 The longevity of the trope is evident through its use in modern America; an article written in 2015 discusses the “guns that won the west”. 8 The idyllic cowboy, a representative of American values, is a mythological figure. Historian David T Courtwright, an expert in the history of violence has gone as far as to call the cowboy myth “the most evocative of America’s mythic figures”, highlighting the well-established status of the myth. 9 In his work, Courtwright goes on to dismantle the myth of the cowboy, explaining that cowboys were in reality far less appealing than their mythical counterpart. A statement he powerfully supports with a quote from President Chester A. Arthur who defined cowboys to Congress as “armed desperadoes”. 10 Historian Phillip D. Jordan has extended this strain of analysis breaking down the most basic conceptions of the cowboy. Jordan explains that their lifestyle of hard work and reckless drinking in their time off meant that few developed their shooting skills beyond a beginner’s level. 11 Another conception of the cowboy’s connection to the gun can be broken down by referencing the gun controls in cities such as Dodge City and Tombstone, where guns had to be handed into the sheriff’s office 7 Winchester ’73 , dir. by Anthony Mann (Universal Pictures, 1950). 8 Phil Spangenberger, 22 Guns that Won the West! (2015), <https://truewestmagazine.com/old-west- guns-22-guns-that-won-the-west/> [accessed 8 December 2020]. 9 David T. Courtwright, ‘The Cowboy Subculture’, in Guns in America: A Historical Reader , ed. by Jan E. Dizard, Robert Merrill Muth and Stephen P. Andrews Jr., (New York: New York University Press, 1999), pp. 86-104, p. 86. 10 Courtwright, p. 86. 11 Phillip D. Jordan, ‘The Pistol Packin’ Cowboy’, in The Cowboy: Six Shooters, Songs and Sex , ed. by Charles W. Harris and Buck Rainey (Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press, 1976), pp. 57-85, p. 58.
41
Made with FlippingBook HTML5