Theme Of Western Imagery In This Godforsaken Place

Gunslingers, outlaws and cowboys all are conventional imagery that is found in the western genre. This Godforsaken Place by Cinda Gault utilizes these images along with several other aspects of a typical western novel to offer a compelling consider the genre. With the addition of classic historical western figures, such as Annie Oakley the sharpshooter, the James-Younger Gang of outlaws and the iconic “Buffalo Bill” Cody, the novel brings compelling western elements into play. It depicts numerous recognizable aspects of the western genre, through its use of outlaws, rule breaking and the Native Indian conflict. (Perret) Though the genre is challenged from its core by the protagonist of the story, Abigail Peacock and the iconic Annie Oakley.

Abigail and Annie act as the stand out characters in what could have been a quintessential western novel, their characters avoid the typical female character tropes, offering instead a new model of female personalities, and managing to portray more grounded western heroines. The presence of these two characters elevates the narrative to new heights, adding a complex, strong, engaging aspect, that truly transforms the story.
Throughout the western genre, conflict with or featuring Native Indians, has become a familiar narrative. The concept of ‘Cowboys and Indians’ is a well-known and commonly used element which has become fundamental in the genre. (Boyd 106) This is shown in the novel with the unspoken segregation in Bill Cody’s Wild West Show and more significantly in the conflict between, Gabriel Dumont, Louis Riel, and Sir John A. MacDonald, now known as the Riel Rebellion of 1885. Before Abigail steps into her character as an outlaw and leaves her little town of Wabigoon, she is living with her ill, bedridden father. During this time, we are introduced to the conflict with the Riel Rebellion through Lars relaying information to her, and Abigail reciting articles to her father. The conflict is based off the Métis and Louis Riel, who believed the land belonged to God and should be returned by MacDonald (Gault 60) Using this conflict in the novel acts as an important supporting story, which is initially used to set the scene. It helps frame the scene as a western, and later in the novel is used in a much more significant approach. Abigail’s knowledge on Gabriel Dumont and the Rebellion is later utilized for her own conflict with Shea Wyatt’s wrongful imprisonment. An excerpt from earlier in the novel, depicts how Abigail’s is using her understanding of the rebels and how it is applied to when she composes her grand escape plans at the end.
“In my mind’s eye, I reeled at the spectacle of this gigantic movement of men and animals west. . . Some said this grand show of force was simply to frighten all the Indians across the country by giving them a sample of what they were up against if they chose to collude.” (Gault 21)
Abigail and Dumont use this same intimidation tactic to convince the Governor to pardon Wyatt.

“The sheriff looked around to notice for the first time a forest stocked with Métis warriors, rifles cocked to their shoulders. I could hear the shock in the voices.” (Gault 208) The inclusion of the Native Indians in this story added an extra element of the western genre, turning this novel from a story about a young girl’s journey to how Abigail played a part in the conflict and rebellion. Native Indians play a large role in set up and the eventual solution in this narrative. Even as Abigail eventually works alongside the Métis, the division between Indians and the rest of society at the time is exhibited throughout the novel. Even within the band of outlaws that are a part of the Wild West Show there is a separation. The first instant readers are shown of this is when Abigail describes how “The Indians camped together without mingling too much with other troupe members. The Indian women lived in the Indian section of the show’s living areas, while the white women shooters camped together in their own section.” (Gault 116) The conflict involving Indians and land that takes place in this time, has created a rift between their community and the rest of society, with Indians either living on reservations or living in society, with limits. Even with this separation the outlaws are a more accepting group, with Bill Cody’s hiring of so many Indians in the Wild West Show being an initial problem as Abigail narrates “He had fought the government to be able to hire as many Indians as he needed, and altered their pay to justify getting them on the show.” (Gault 117) This incorporation in the novel of Bill Cody going the extra mile to include Indians in his show, demonstrates how essential Native Indians are to the western genre and how by having them present in the story it conforms to western

conventions.
When analyzing a true genre staple, the outlaw narrative is what embodies the western, and it can again be found all throughout This Godforsaken Place. This narrative trope is very much the core of this novel, initially shown in the character of Shep January, it follows Abigail along her journey until Bill Cody’s Wild West Show, where the lifestyle of an outlaw is shown to its fullest. Shep January acts as the novels quintessential lawbreaking cowboy, a character trope which is commonplace in any western. When Abigail finds him, he is running from the law, which can be deduced from the Pinkerton following him. As he relays his past to Abigail, it is revealed that he was once a solider, someone with honour, only to turn into the cowboy he now is. His change in character also conforms to a conventional western aspect, “the prospect of the classic, morally upright Westerner turning from his self-styled code of honor is closely related to the changing view of society in the Western.” (Nachbar 442) January was forced to go from a Confederate Soldier to a member of the James Younger Gang. A band of outlaws who “stuck up stagecoaches and trains and took guns like these all the time.” (Gault 58),” taking part in the “Northfield First National Bank holdup in ’76,” (Gault 51) not only a bank robber but a part of known outlaw gang. Abigail encounters a large band of outlaws in ‘Buffalo Bill’ Cody’s Wild West Show, a band of outlaws who showcase their talents on the road. “The Westerner either works for pay and sells his special talents to the community that must evaluate his work on its own terms or else he becomes an outlaw,” (Nachbar 442) and this show is composed of outlaws, come together to exhibit the true heart of the west and what western convention exemplifies. This is portrayed when Abigail first arrives at the show, “Everyone wore cowboy hats. Most would welcome an ex-Jesse James Gang gunslinger walking among them. Dangerous characters boosted the allure of the show.” (Gault 109) The concept of an outlaw not only refers to anyone who breaks and works outside the law, but anyone who lives outside the laws of society and opposed societal norms. Both Bill Body’s Wild West Show and Shep January bring an aspect of the quintessential outlaw lifestyle to the novel. A lifestyle that has become conventional in any good western novel.
The female characters in this novel stand on their own as a different type of outlaw, one that breaks the rules of society, and defies all expectations of how they should act. Even from the first introduction of the Wild West Show, Abigail is met with an entirely new dynamic where women are not fragile humans that need to be taken care of, but people on their own. This is first seen when she first enters the barn asking for work and she is told, “’Give her a fork to feed the horses and show her the tent.’ Jake pulled a pitchfork down from the wall, smiling as though shy. He could not be surprised about my being a woman, since I had seen in the throng outside there were many of us about.” (Gault 111) The show did not question it when a woman comes in alone with two horses and immediately puts her to manual work. They are not surprised by her appearance either, because they already employ many women to do various jobs in and around the show, “the others were less distinctive as women largely because they, like me, wore the same attire as the men.” (Gault 115) This attitude towards women parallels how she was treated in the back in Winnipeg, where the bank teller, upon hearing about how she was traveling insisted that “’this rough country is no place for a woman riding a horse alone.’” (Gault 92) the teller not only scolds her for traveling alone but, as the man, feels responsible for her safety. To ensure her safe travels he buys her a train ticket and has her travel with the Russians who also feel responsible for her. To leave their settlement Abigail must lie about meeting up with family because in Canadian society, a woman should not be traveling alone. This is again contrasted when she goes to the bank in New York, and nobody from the show notices or mentions that she has gone into the city by herself. Abigail’s second encounter with the unfamiliar acceptance from the outlaws of the shows comes when she meets Annie Oakley, who is a prominent performer in the show. Annie is not only a member of the Wild West Show, but she is even the “best shooter in the show”, her talent is shown when she recounts how
“she intended to introduce a new kind of motion to her act with the help of a bicycle, anew invention that intrigued her. Also, she planned to throw her hat in the air and, when it landed on the ground, thunder by on her horse, dangle from the saddle, and pick it up while shooting twenty or so glass balls in the process.” (Gault 123)
While many women in the time were expected to do very little but cook, clean and take care of their family, Annie Oakley is an incredibly talented sharpshooter and performer. She breaks the rules set for her by society just as Abigail does when she learns to shoot and leaves Wabigoon.