Sheriff Matt Dillon: Human or Lawman?
Gunsmoke, starring William Conrad as Sheriff Matt Dillon, was the longest running western radio program ever to air. It is the story of a country that moved west, and the man who moved with it. Matt Dillon's fairness, caring, and stern attitude epitomize the stereotypical old-west lawman.
Matt Dillon's fairness comes through clearly when he deals with a would-be gunman and a man posing as a gunman in "The Lamb" (12-05-53). When the latter was shot by the would-be gunman, Dillon threw the gunman in jail and sent the other man to the doctor. When he found out that the injured man had only been mistaken for a well-known gunman, he sounds very disappointed for both men. He doesn't let the gunman have the reward money that he would have received if the other man had been the outlaw he had mistaken him for and when that man dies, he faces being hanged.
Matt Dillon's caring attitude enables a young woman named Nina Peters to stay in Dodge while her husband has to leave for a while ("Nina" 12-5-53). When her husband returns, he finds out that a couple of ruffians have caused her to have a miscarriage. Dillon allows Mr. Peters to fight one of the men who hurt Nina. Dillon seems almost pleased that Peters was able to beat up the bully and offers to buy him a drink afterward.
Dillon uses a stern manner deal with a couple of ruffians in "Kick Me" (11-26-53). The men had written a false letter of recommendation, telling an old Indian that it would get him a job with the trail herd. In return for getting him kicked out of the camp, the old Kiowa made Indian medicine against him. When one of the men ended up dead, Dillon jumped to the conclusion that the Indian had killed him. He was adamant about his innocence, and the dead man's partner ended up confessing to the killing. Dillon dealt with him accordingly.
When considering the attributes of the Old West lawman, the mind frequently turns to the lawmen made familiar through works of fiction, created for the purposes of entertainment. One specific example of such a fictional depiction of "the lawman" exists in the episodic radio series entitled, "Gunsmoke." In this series, Matt Dillon, the Sheriff of Dodge City, repeatedly exhibits many qualities, which could be labeled as stereotypical. After analyzing several Gunsmoke episodes, and reviewing the analyses of many others, one trait, which seems to be present in Matt Dillon, is that of invincibility. Matt Dillon shoots the "bad guy" but never gets shot. He is always victorious. He always wins. We can see this pattern exemplified in three diverse situations. First, Dillon always wins a face to face gunfight. Secondly, Dillon is victorious even when he is ambushed or unprepared for an attack. And finally, Dillon wins even when no physical violence or gunplay takes place.
The old-west lawman is an American hero and represents the ideals of American society. He is immediately thought of when one contemplates strength of character and other fine qualities. As an irreplaceable part of American tradition, his characteristics are looked upon as a model to all other Americans. Much of what is known about the old-west lawman comes from stories of fiction one of these being the radio program Gunsmoke. Matt Dillon, a U.S. Marshall, plays the lead role in this favorite American radio series. In each episode he beats the odds as he protects his home of Dodge City. Demonstrating the qualities of the old-west lawman, Matt Dillon, of Gunsmoke, is trusting, respectful, and courageous.
A hit was put out on Taylor and Zavala by leaders of the Mexican drug cartel because they were becoming a nuisance. This hit was carried out by the same Latino gang members who had previously done a drive-by shooting of a rival gang. The officers were enticed towards their imminent deaths with a car chase which was set up by the Latino gang members. This chase led them towards an apartment complex which was rigged with many gang members and artillery to ensure that neither Taylor nor Zavala would survive. The two were ambushed but decided that gunning their way out was their best option. When the officers made it to an alley they were met by another Latino gang member who fired at Taylor and Zavala, hitting Taylor once in the chest before being shot and killed by Zavala. Zavala went to aid Taylor who appeared to be quickly dying and called out for help. Before police back up arrived the original Latino gang members found Zavala in the...
In the 1950s the radio program, Gunsmoke, starred William Conrad as Marshall Matt Dillon. Gunsmoke was set in Dodge City, Kansas between 1872 and 1885, when the Santa Fe Railroad reached town and when the Texas cattle drives were forced to end by local farmers. Known as the Queen of the Cow Towns, the Wicked Little City, and the Gomorrah of the Plains, this little town had the reputation for being a hostile, lawless town where the fastest gun ruled (Gunsmoke). The character Marshall Matt Dillon was modeled after the real lawmen such as Wyatt Earp (1848-1929) who tamed Dodge City. Dillon was laid-back, tried to avoid conflicts, and was tough when the need arose.
Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Mike Fridley knew he wanted to become a negotiator after the day he was dispatched to the scene of an armed homicide suspect.
Is there anything that could justify Deputy Sheriff Fields, the SRO at Spring Valley High School, treating this teenage girl like this?
While observing Matt as a character, he demonstrates that he is a lone wolf, only few people care about him, and he is always treated differently. The text states, “Matt never saw anyone except Celia and, once a month, the doctor.” According to the text, “Matt
In chapter two and three of the book, Matt vehemently demonstrates his longing to make friends and his curiosity in namely one major event. When Steven and Emilia plan on leaving Maria behind because she refuses to leave, Matt shatters the window so he can save María. Steven and Emilia rush back. Matt hastily introduces himself: “My name is Matt. I live here. Do you want to play?” (Farmer 18), but does not get the reaction he wanted. Matt then decides, impulsively, to jump out of the window so he can get to know them better. However, he steps on the broken glass and is seriously injured. This leads to the revelation of Matt as a clone later at the Alacrán estate.
Uncannily intelligent and devilish at times, Pearl also has a peculiar connection with the scarlet letter. She often asks adults such as Hester questions that catch them off guard. She often acts like a little imp, causing trouble and acting in such ways that are looked down upon. Strangest of all, she has an obsessive connection with the scarlet letter “A”. Although Pearl as major of a character as Hester, it seems as though the whole novel revolves around her. After all, she is as close as one can get to a psychic seven year old.
Matt soon realizes he was living away from El Patron's mansion in secrecy. He is later taken to the mansion and being taken care of a woman named Rosa, a horrible woman who physically abused Matt. El Patron soon found out about his clone's abuse and severely punishes Rosa. Matt soon finds a life of luxury in the mansion and takes advantage of it for many years. After a couple of years, Matt will then have to face donating his organs to El Patron by force, but he escapes. He is then captured by farm patrol, mistaken for an illegal immigrant he is later put to work by force into a water purification plant. He later escapes again back to Opium, only to find out that he is the only person worthy of ruling Opium.
However, Matt Fowler had different reasoning for his actions. After burying his twenty-one year-old son who was just on the cusp of graduating college, he finds that Strout, his son’s murderer, has been released on bail pending trial and until then he has resumed his normal life. Watching his wife not only mourning the loss of their son, but also having to see the killer in daily activities, has caused a mental and emotional strain on their life. The affect on Fowler’s family that Strout is walking around free and seemingly unconcerned is one of the main reasoning that is posed when Fowler and his friend Willis T...
knife duel. He is an example of how disrespect can ruin someone. He was disrespected, his father was
There is no way that she could get an abortion and not tell Matt. “I was there too, remember, when we made the baby?”(pg 317) Matt already knew that Kimberly was pregnant, so he would’ve known that she had gotten an abortion, even if she never said anything to him. If Kim got an abortion, and did tell Matt, he would be mad about the fact that she did it without talking to him about it first, but would eventually get over it, because of his love for her. He would persuade Kim to stay with him, and his old fashioned morals about men always taking care of the women would keep Kim from reaching her full potential. If she kept the baby and did tell Matt, then he would convince her to stay with him and that they would be able to raise a family. Kim would once again be limited, and she would not be able to provide her child with the nice life she dreamed of. When she has Jason and doesn’t tell Matt, it allows her to go to Yale, become a doctor, and achieve most, if not all, of her
While the western frontier was still new and untamed, the western hero often took on the role of a vigilante. The vigilante’s role in the frontier was that of extralegal verve which was used to restrain criminal threats to the civil peace and opulence of a local community. Vigilantism was typical to the settler-state societies of the western frontier where the structures and powers of government were at first very feeble and weak. The typical cowboy hero had a willingness to use this extralegal verve. The Virginian demonstrated this throughout with his interactions with Trampas, most notably in the interactions leading up to the shoot out and during the shoot-out itself. “Others struggled with Trampas, and his bullet smashed the ceiling before they could drag the pistol from him… Yet the Virginian stood quiet by the...
The position that is being argued is that music should stay in schools. This author is making the claim that music makes children excel in their education. This author uses many different sources. The author relies mainly on studies to back up his argument. The article is recent.