Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
The american west history
Wild west in the 1800s
Railroad boom in the us
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: The american west history
The Wild West begins after the Civil War in 1865 and lasted 30 years. It was called the Wild West because of their lawlessness which allowed wild and unrestrained behavior. The American Wild West was a country with a lot of danger, including cowboys, guns, and horses where Chon Wang had the role of a famous sheriff. This supported that the film is historically realistic because famous outlaws and lawmen of the American wild west. There are real famous sheriffs who took down the outlaws, bandit bank robbers and thieves. For example, the legendary outlaw Billy the kid was brought to justice by Sheriff Pat Garrett after trailing Billy for over six months and many other outlaws. With all immigrants and scattered people come together, the American wild west represented a growth of our nation and a united country. In the movie Shanghai Knights, Chon Wang was a sheriff in the Wild …show more content…
West who has captured many fugitives. Chon Wang’s father was murdered by Rathbone, who came from a royal family to steal the Imperial Seal. Chon Lin, who witnessed the murder sent out a letter to Chon Wang, her brother, saying that she has headed to England for revenge. Chon Wang represents a Chinese immigrant searching for a new life in an untamed land in Nevada, United State. Most Chinese immigrants came to US with the notion of striking it rich and then return to their families as wealthy people even having to face severe discrimination and economic hardship to get to the United State. Most of them settled in California because of the gold discovery. Chon Wang, who had no share for the tickets to England, went to find his buddy, Roy, in New York who’s supposed to have his leftover share of the gold that he’d borrowed. Instead, Roy spent the gold investing in the zeppelin. However, that doesn’t go well with Roy so he ended up working as a hotel waiter. Zeppelin is a great airship made by the German company for World War I to carry out the first strategic bombing missions. Roy borrowed Chon Wang’s gold for an investment contradicts with the investment that businessmen invest back in the day. However, with a similar idea, Cleveland borrowed money from JP Morgan to put the US economy back on solid ground because the Treasury were almost empty. Back to Roy, he ended up using the gold to publish and printed books that he wrote and invest in a zeppelin. The gold that Roy borrowed from Wang represents a valuable mineral that was discovered. It is known as the Gold rush of 1849, where people in the search for precious minerals (mining the west). Transportation in the film also contained another historical quality.
With the near-extinction of the buffalo came the rise of the cattle drive. The terminus for a cattle drive was whichever rail like was closest, and as the railways continued to extend west, the destinations of the cattle drives changed. Roy and Chon Wang have to ship themselves in a crate to England because of the lack of transportation fee. After you get to England, the only transportation that they can get was to ride on the horse crate or walk by foot because automobiles are not invented yet. Last but not least, even though “Shanghai Knights” is a little off the range from the Wild West, unlike “Shanghai Noon”, it still covers some events that occurred in the American Wild West life. Like the dangerous and deadly life in the west. In which they dressed up as cowboys with the lawless nature. This film depicts the Wild West as a place where rules didn’t apply and everything was settled with guns. The idea of transportation, investment, Chinese immigrants contains both pros and cons that’s related to the American Wild
West.
Many westerns contain some of the same elements. For instance, almost every western ever made involves a sheriff. He is usually the peace-keeper of a small town overrun by outlaws and cowboys, which he eventually chases out of town or kills. Another element of westerns is a gunslinger. A gunslinger is usually a young man who makes his living shooting other men in showdowns, a classic example is Billy the Kid. Railroads are also a recurring image in westerns. Since the railroad was the major mode of transportation in the old west, it is always present in westerns. Finally, westerns always have a villain. The villain, usually a man, dresses very slick and will stop at nothing in his quest for power. In addition, the villain usually has a gang to carry out his dastardly deeds. The gang is usually full of incompetent, but loyal thugs, who would love to destroy a small town just for the pleasure of wanton destruction. The elements of a western are very simple, but easily manipulated into a very interesting plot.
The Wild West is also referred to as the American frontier due to the numerous
Wright, Will. (2001). The Wild West: The Mythical Cowboy & Social Theory. New Delhi, London: Sage Publications.
Somewhere out in the Old West wind kicks up dust off a lone road through a lawless town, a road once dominated by men with gun belts attached at the hip, boots upon their feet and spurs that clanged as they traversed the dusty road. The gunslinger hero, a man with a violent past and present, a man who eventually would succumb to the progress of the frontier, he is the embodiment of the values of freedom and the land the he defends with his gun. Inseparable is the iconography of the West in the imagination of Americans, the figure of the gunslinger is part of this iconography, his law was through the gun and his boots with spurs signaled his arrival, commanding order by way of violent intentions. The Western also had other iconic figures that populated the Old West, the lawman, in contrast to the gunslinger, had a different weapon to yield, the law. In the frontier, his belief in law and order as well as knowledge and education, brought civility to the untamed frontier. The Western was and still is the “essential American film genre, the cornerstone of American identity.” (Holtz p. 111) There is a strong link between America’s past and the Western film genre, documenting and reflecting the nations changes through conflict in the construction of an expanding nation. Taking the genres classical conventions, such as the gunslinger, and interpret them into the ideology of America. Thus The Western’s classical gunslinger, the personification of America’s violent past to protect the freedoms of a nation, the Modernist takes the familiar convention and buries him to signify that societies attitude has change towards the use of diplomacy, by way of outmoding the gunslinger in favor of the lawman, taming the frontier with civility.
When the average modern American thinks of the Old West, they often think of cattle drives, outlaws and lawmen, and John Wayne; things they see in western movies. Another staple in western movies is the range war, it is important for modern Americans to know which parts of the west were true and which were false. The range wars of the late 1800’s were important to rights and responsibilities because they changed the way many people lived in the west and midwest, finally stating the concept of private and public property.
Although many people defend the Old West saying that it was not very violent, the Old West was indeed very dangerous. The Old West was not as violent as Egypt is today but it still was drastically hostile to both the Americans and the Native Americans. How might you depict the Old West?
The story is an Eastern take on the Hollywood western with a dash of satire,
When one thinks of the United States of America, they probably consider our history, our culture, our media, our impressive cities and the extremely wide variety of beautiful wildernesses that we are lucky enough to still enjoy. We are lucky enough to have a melting pot of cultures in this country, and many different kinds of people. However, when thinking of an original, all-American figure, cowboys come to mind for many people. Our history and the settlement of the U.S. was unlike any other country, and the development of the country in the more western states came with the unique and fascinating time period referred to now as “The Old West”. The Old West was a crucial time in American history, and though it was a simpler time it also came with its share of excitement. Some of the most memorable details about the Old West were the characters that came with it, and some extremely interesting ones were the least conforming- the outlaws. Jesse Woodson James was one of the most notorious outlaws in American history. His name would go down in history as one belonging to a tough as nails and fearless bank robber who led a group of outlaws across the mid-west robbing banks and trains, and even murdering people. When we look at the big picture of what the U.S. has become today, The Old West certainly has had a large impact on our culture, and Jesse James certainly had a large impact on the Old West. Though most would argue that he was not a decent or moral person, one cannot argue that he was still a very interesting and unique icon of the west. So how did Jesse Woodson James change and leave his mark on the United St...
In the 1930's Native Americans and women were viewed as inferior races. The films produced during the early part of the 20th century, particularly those starring John Wayne reflected these societal attitudes. The portrayal of minorities in Stagecoach and Fort Apache clearly reflect the views of society at that time. The depiction of the West is similar to that which is found in old history textbooks, em...
A typical Western would usually be set in the late 19th century in the mid-west of America in a remote town. The town is usually small, lonely and unwelcoming. Typically a western set looks like it is in the middle of a desert with sand, cacti and tumbleweed which gives a desert look, there are usually never any lakes or rivers around these features make the place look really hot and deserted. The buildings are generally timber board houses with swinging doors and outside the buildings are places to keep their horses, there is also always a General Store and a Saloon. Horses and carriages and cattle are used to give a western feel. The cowboys are typically dressed in western style clothing for example they wear simple shirts and jeans they may also wear ponchos, waist coats, hats, boots with spurs, guns and a belt to hold the gun and bullets, Hero's tend to wear lighter clothing and the villain’s tend to wear darker clothing.
The story of the American West is still being told today even though most of historic events of the Wild West happened over more than a century ago. In movies, novels, television, and more ways stories of the old west are still being retold, reenacted, and replayed to relive the events of the once so wild and untamed land of the west that so many now fantasize about. After reading about the old west and watching early westerns it is amazing how much Hollywood still glorifies the history and myth of the old west. It may not be directly obvious to every one, but if you look closely there is always a hint of the Western mentality such as honor, justice, romance, drama, and violence. The most interesting thing about the Old West is the fact that history and myth have a very close relationship together in telling the story of the West.
Few Hollywood film makers have captured America’s Wild West history as depicted in the movies, Rio Bravo and El Dorado. Most Western movies had fairly simple but very similar plots, including personal conflicts, land rights, crimes and of course, failed romances that typically led to drinking more alcoholic beverages than could respectfully be consumed by any one person, as they attempted to drown their sorrows away. The 1958 Rio Bravo and 1967 El Dorado Western movies directed by Howard Hawks, and starring John Wayne have a similar theme and plot. They tell the story of a sheriff and three of his deputies, as they stand alone against adversity in the name of the law. Western movies like these two have forever left a memorable and lasting impressions in the memory of every viewer, with its gunfighters, action filled saloons and sardonic showdowns all in the name of masculinity, revenge and unlawful aggressive behavior. Featuring some of the most famous backdrops in the world ranging from the rustic Red Rock Mountains of Monument Valley in Utah, to the jagged snow capped Mountain tops of the Teton Range in Wyoming, gun-slinging cowboys out in search of mischief and most often at their own misfortune traveled far and wide, seeking one dangerous encounter after another, and unfortunately, ending in their own demise.
Sanitary conditions in the West were practically non-existent. In the cities, horse manure covered the streets. Housewives emptied garbage, dishwater, and chamber pots into the middle of the city streets where free-roaming pigs devoured the waste. The pigs left their urine and feces on the streets. It was not easy to wash clothes. Many people had clothes splattered with manure, mud, sweat, and tobacco juice. Privies, or necessary houses were often to close to the homes with a very noticeable odor on hot and/or windy days. If a family had a kitchen, all the members washed at the sink each day, without soap, rubbing the dirt off with a coarse towel. Eventually, many cold bedrooms had a basin, ewer (pitcher), cup, and cupboard chamber pot. Bed bugs and fleas covered many of the travelers’ beds. “Isaac Weld saw filthy beds swarming with bugs.” These insects followed the travelers, crawling on their clothes and skin.
Maryanne Kearny, Joann Crandall, and Edward N. Kearny write about the impact of the American frontier in their book the American Ways. They mention the core role of the frontier heritage in shaping the American values, and how the majority of the contemporary people tend to reveal the character of life on the frontier. Furthermore, the authors explain how the movies and the TV shows represent the cowboy as a hero, and they left behind the fact about the frontier behavior with the American Indians. Finally, the writers represent the basic values of frontier society, such as, self-reliance, inventiveness, and equality of opportunity. However, the most significant issues from the book that I would like