Day of the Outlaw

When the term “other” is used in the context of a person, it means that he or she is not as important or simply not given as much attention. In the film Day of the Outlaw, women are treated as the other. This is not surprising considering the film was made in 1959. In the late fifties America introduced a new president and was on the brink of the Vietnam War. It was a time when the women had the responsibility of taking care of the home which included: raising the children, cooking the food, maintaining the household, and always being prepared for bad news while their husbands were out fighting a war and receiving all the credit as American heroes. Regardless of how much responsibility women had they were seen as the other and this is certainly revealed in the film.

One example is when the gang of seven men led by Jack Bruhn enters the small Wyoming town and causes a commotion. They feel that because they have been on a long chase by the cavalry that they should be able to have their way with the women available. This proves that women are seen as the other and treated more like disposable cameras rather than people. Bruhn is the only member of the gang who does not treat the women as others. When his men are begging to get drunk and molest the women who were put in the general store, Bruhn steps in as a disciplinarian and refuses his men to drink or be allowed to touch the women. This is rare to see a man step in and protect a woman, but still reveals that his discipline is not the majority during this era.

Day of the Outlaw

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In The Day of the Outlaw, we see themes of the objectification of women and rape. It wasn’t until the 1960’s that rape legislation finally took hold in the United States. The Day of the Outlaw, released in 1959, embodies the frustration felt by women at that time. In the movie, the outlaw men constantly beg to have their way with the women, forcing the women to kiss them and dance with them. They view the women as objects, objects of pleasure. They only reference them as a means to pleasure themselves. The objectification of women by the outlaw men in this movie is quite shocking.

After World War II, many men returned to find women performing their jobs. Men in America were accustomed to being the dominant figure in the home, physically and financially. The rise in employment of women and the replacement in the workplace made men threatened by women’s new found independence. In the late 1950’s, America was on the brink of the sexual revolution, with women gaining more independence from the home and the church. This threat is felt heavily in the theme of adultery in The Day of The Outlaw. Helen Crane and Blaze have obviously had an affair, and they show mixed emotions towards each other. Helen gives herself to Blaze so he wouldn’t kill him. This theme of adultery was not glorified in the movie. Blaze compares taking a married Helen: “it doesn’t make me any different than the men who rode in and took over this town.” Blaze rejects Helen’s sexual independence and power when rejecting her advances, and by comparing an affair with the events in the town, he casts it in a very negative light.

Day of the Outlaw BD

The women’s movement was just starting to happen when the film Day of the Outlaw was made. Women are becoming more prominent in society during this time because their rights are expanding. The women in this film are shown as having a more important role in the west as well. In earlier films, women were over looked and given a very insignificant role where they had very few lines and little influence over the outcome of the film. However, with this increase in women’s rights, the women receive a role of greater importance. The women are a main topic of concern when Bruhn’s men come in and take over the town. The men of the town are consistently afraid for the women in their lives and lead to conflict with the villains.

However, the women are still not shown as being an equal to men. They are consistently being sheltered and taken care of by the men of the town. Instead of thinking they would be find to stay, the main leader of the townspeople, Blaise, comes up with the idea to sneak them out of the town to protect them. This shows that the women were not viewed as being able to take care of themselves, just like children. Also, just because their role has increased due to an increase in women’s rights does not mean that they are viewed as people yet. Throughout the movie, the women are still viewed as objects to the men of the film. The men in Bruhn’s gang were constantly looking to find women to “have fun with” as if they were toys. It is even lowered to the fact that all of the women are summoned to dance with Bruhn’s men, even without their consideration. They are just flung around from man to man as though they were a ball the men were playing with. In the western, this was a monumental step for women though since their limited roles did not even create this type concern over them in previous films.

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The two most prominent issues in Day of the Outlaw which bring up the idea of women as the ‘other’ are notion of women being treated as objects and Helen Crane’s infidelity to her husband.

The 1950’s were a time when American society was returning to normalcy post WWII. The role of women was the home: to be good mothers, loving wives, to keep a clean house and have dinner ready when the husband returned home. Women were largely isolated in their newly built suburban homes. Without a means of expression or freedom, the 1960’s was a response to the 1950’s for women. The film was produced in 1959, on the tail end of the 1950’s stereotypical family, and the cusp of transitioning into the 1960’s women’s movement with debates on birth control, abortion and the unequal treatment of women all prevalent issues.

When Jack Bruhn’s outlaw gang rolls into town, women were treated as objects and the stereotypical wife of the 1950’s. The gang expected women, as if they could have them on command, no different than a bottle of whiskey from behind the bar. During the Saturday night social, the women were passed from man to like ragdolls. Even if it is at the expense of the women, it isn’t important that the women were being hurt, or there unwillingly, as long as the outlaws were enjoying themselves. The scenes involving these submissive women were shot almost entirely indoors, similar to where the ideal women belonged in the 1950’s.

The second of the prominent women’s issues present in the movie is Helen Crane’s sexuality and infidelity. Helen shows affection towards Blaise in private, but the town seems to know how they feel each other, and that Helen’s husband stands in the way of them being together. She even kisses Blaise when they are alone. When Helen goes up to Blaise’s room to thank him, she says “I asked if Hal wanted to join me, but he told me to go up alone. I think he understands.” Hal is almost insinuating that he knew of their relationship and was reluctantly acceptant of it. This level of sexual freedom and empowerment is part of what the women’s movement was all about.

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In Andre De Toth’s Day of the Outlaw, the women are treated as nothing more than mere objects. The first piece of evidence supporting this occurs shortly after Jack Bruhn’s gang arrives in Bitters when Bruhn asks, “Who does (Helen Crane) belong to,” implying that her husband Hal has ownership of her. Perhaps the most disturbing instance where the women are treated as objects is the scene where Tex and Pace convince Bruhn to allow them to dance (quite violently, too) with the women of the town. Although the idea of “No Means No” did not become law until long after the film was made, this scene was very similar to the idea of a man not taking no for an answer and continuing to pursue sex. The women are again treated as objects in the very next scene, as they are, for the most part, ragdolled up and down, side to side, and across the room dancing with the men of Bruhn’s gang. During this scene, there was another instance where it seemed like the issue of rape was at the forefront. After being completely overwhelmed with aggression in a dance with one of Bruhn’s men, Helen has a much tamer dance with Bruhn and the following dialogue is spoken:

Helen Crane: [Dancing with Bruhn] Why did you have to do this terrible thing?
Jack Bruhn: There are things worse, ma'am, than dancing with lonely men.
Helen Crane: Please, let us go.
Jack Bruhn: Soon.
Helen Crane: Why did you have to come here?
Jack Bruhn: You should be grateful. Our coming saved the life of your husband.
Helen Crane: I don't believe Blaise would have gone through with it.
Jack Bruhn: Mrs. Crane, when my men and I leave here, there will be a showdown and you will be a widow. (Courtesy of IMDb.com)

This dialogue sound almost like a man who is trying to have sex with an unwilling partner and who continues to pursue that endeavor even though she clearly does not want to go through with it. This is also the kind of situation often when women do not report instances of rape because they feel like it was not the man’s fault or they deserved it. The only difference here is that Bruhn is trying to justify evil actions because it serendipitously caused something good.

As a male, it is much harder to try to understand what goes through a woman’s mind when thinking about a subject as sensitive as rape, but from these are some of the things that Bentley has taught me during freshman seminars explaining rape.

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In the film The Day of the Outlaw, women play secondary “other” roles to the alpha male cowboys. The men in this film treat these women as weak and under the control of the men. During the 1950s, this is exactly how women were viewed. They were seen as objects responsible for staying at home and being an unconditional wife, mother and caretaker. When the group of outlaws invaded Bitters, the men isolated the women into one place where they knew they would be safe and protected. They did this because they did not think the women could protect themselves from Bruhn’s posse and they had to do it for them. Since women had very few rights compared to men, Helen and the other women had no choice but to listen to them and comply with what they wanted. This is also seen when Bruhn and his men used the women for a night of dancing. It was clear that the women did not want to be there but they did not have the right to voice their dissatisfaction. The men spoke to and about the women in very condescending ways , hoping that they could use them as mere entertainment.

The 1950s ideology of a faithful housewife to their man also includes fidelity. It was extremely unheard of for a woman to cheat on her husband and society looked disapprovingly on such acts. In this film, Helen Crane passionately kisses her former lover Blaise Starret when she is married to Hal Crane. They both admit their love for one another but Helen is the one to initiate the kiss and Starret is the one to stop it in the end. This contradicts the women’s job in the 1950s, which was to take care of their husbands, not cheat on them.

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Women's issues can clearly be seen in The Day of the Outlaw. This film was made in 1959, a year when women still didn't have many rights. Most of the women at that time were housewives who cooked, cleaned and raised the children. This view of women can be seen in the movie at various points.

One of the most important issue is that of women being treated as objects. We can see several times in the movie that the women are just tossed back and forth. Bruhn's men even refer to the women something to give them pleasure for the time being. They also treat the women like objects, always trying to grab at them and molest them as if they have no feelngs. The women also go wherever they are told to go, as if they are objects under the men's possession. This issue just translates into society at that time. Women were not treated as human beings in 1959, they were just objects that men kept at home.

Another very important issue that ties in with women being objects, is the thought of rape. In 1959, rape still wasn't illegal. The Anti-Rape movement actually only started picking up in the 1960s through 1970s. Therefore, at the time that the movie was made, women were not coming forward. The women stayed quiet, because they almost felt ashamed for being raped. We can see this in the movie when two of Bruhn's men go upstairs to find any other people who are in the house, and they find a woman. We just hear her scream and rush down the stairs with her clothes ripped in several places. She does not accuse them of trying to rape her, but just stays quiet. This is what the women in the 1950s were doing also.

It is sad to think about how long it took women to have the rights that we have now. Unfortunately, this movie is just a reminder of the struggles that women half a century ago and even before that, went through.

NH Day of the Outlaw

The film Day of the Outlaw was created in the year 1959. At that period of time women did not have many rights. Women were expected to cook and clean for their husbands and maintain a tidy household for their family. Women did not have much of a voice when this movie was created and there were certain parts of the film that shocked me and certain parts that made perfect sense for the time period.
When Bruhn's gang enters the town and begins demanding that they are going to do whatever they please with the women of the town not a peep is heard out of any of the women. They know that it is not their place to get involved and they just let the men do all of the talking. It is troubling to see how women were treated at that time and it shows through the film that men did not think much of women. They are treated by Bruhn's men as if they are not even people, they are just objects. The men try to kiss them and have intentions of essentially raping them and they say nothing. Such issues surely existed in the 1950's but they were not spoken of.
I was very shocked by the strange relationship that Helen Crane had with Blaise. Although they were ex lovers, the act of Helen being unfaithful to her husband and kissing Blaise would be considered extremely inappropriate at the time that this film was made. This is where we see the "other" of women come into the film more than any other time. Her unfaithfulness was extremely uncharacteristic for a woman at that time and it was also uncharacteristic for the Alpha Male Cowboy to partake in such a situation.

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Although the film The Day of the Outlaw manly focuses on the alpha male cowboy it also brings up some very important women’s issues of the 1950’s and early 1960’s. The first issue is the issue of women being treated like objects. In the film the women of the town are treated like objects by the gang. When the gang comes into town the first thing they look for are the women. They treat them like objects and take advantage of them because the gang only sees them as objects of attraction. The gang also feels that they have the right to use women in any way they want because they feel that is why they are there. In 1950’s women were just seen as housewives and were expected to stay home watch over the children and the house while also catering to her husband. While some women were entering the workforce a majority of them were still staying home and fulfilling the classic role for women of that time.

Another issue seen in this film is the issue of rape. It is constant throughout this whole film because the members of the gang attempt to take advantage of the women of the town at any chance they get. In the 1950’s rape was present but most women that were raped did not come forward because they were scared of what society might think. Women of this time were expected to keep up a good appearance to society and admitting they were raped would tarnish this appearance. Also this brings us to another issue in this movie the issue of adultery. In the movie Helen Crane kisses her ex lover Blaise even though she has a husband. This was unheard of because the 1950’s was a very family oriented time period so cheating on your husband or wife and jeopardizing your family was not very common in this era.

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In the film Day of the Outlaw we see the women as "other". When you look at the role women play in this film it is quite obvious what time period it was shot in. It was filmed in 1959. The fifties was a time era where women were thought to be more as an object of society. They were to tend to the husband when he got home from work, raise the kids, and clean the house. In the film we see the women treated more like objects than people. This is shown in the scene where the men are passing the women around the social like they are merely objects to occupy them. Also, when the gang rolls into town they feel as though they should be able to have their way with the women after a long trip. These attitudes toward women in the film reflect the way women were viewed in society during the fifties. They had hardly no social status and were basically believed to exist solely to take care of their husbands.

Another interesting development in the film was Helen's struggle to stay faithful to her husband. She wanted her ex lover Blaise. This is something that typically would not have been seen in the fifties. The era is known for its conformity, and families and relationships were typically very formal in those days. When Helen kisses Blaise I'm sure it was unusual to watch as a viewer back in the fifties because occurences like that were out of the ordinary. Even if such a thing did happen it was in private and kept quiet.

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Day of the Outlaw is an interesting film to look at the “other” in because it primarily focuses on the alpha male cowboy and his battle with the villain. There are women within the film that do play a somewhat significant part of the plot. The “other” in this film would be Helen Crane, ex lover of Blaise Starrett and current wife of Hal Crane. From the viewer’s point of view, during the film a few women’s issues can be spotted.

The first issue that we can spot is that women are seen as objects. This is very evident when Bruhn and his men first arrive in town. The men of the town however, respect their women. When Bruhn first comes in his gang asks where the women are because they want to have their way with them. Their excuse was that they have been traveling for a long time and needed a break. Pace, a member of Bruhn’s gang, is the person whom most obviously sees women as objects. He pushes for the gang to be able to do what they want with the women. Every chance he gets, he constantly tries to get Ernie to kiss him. The idea that the men were going to do whatever they wanted with the women brings up the idea of rape as well. In the time period that the film was made, rape was something that was still kept hushed in society. Women did not come out and testify against their rapist. It was a very traumatic experience to go through and women did not want to go through it again in the court room.

An issue immediately came into my head when I saw Helen Crane put a move on Blaise and then proceed to initiate a kiss. A woman cheating on her husband was still not accepted within society. It was more acceptable for a man to cheat on his wife. A woman was not supposed to do anything that would jeopardize the family. Another issue that is seen in this film is women are controlled by men. The women do not try to speak up against Bruhn and his men when they gather them up and force them into the room at the store. They also go along with the men’s idea to leave town and walk out in the snow. They do not really have a voice for themselves. They are outnumbered and out powered by Bruhn’s men. In this film, women do not have the power that they have today.

SP The Day of the Outlaw

The role that Helen Crane plays in The Day of the Outlaw mirrors quite similarly the role of the fifties’ housewife. As a young woman in love with Blaise Starrett, Helen struggles to maintain her faithfulness to her husband, a duty which surmounts her own personal desire to be with Starrett, the man with whom she really should have been with. Likewise, women in the fifties were bound to their role as the housewife, taking care of the children, doing laundry, and cooking. Even with the desire of joining the workforce, as some of them had gotten the taste of while being a “Rosie the Riveter,” women were condemned to return to their lives of homemaking. Women during this time were not given any social status, and were merely objects in men’s lives, as depicted when the gang throws around the four women during their Saturday night social. Furthermore, Bruhn is set against letting his men entertain themselves with the women because they would be a distraction – not because it would be inappropriate or harassment. In addition, Starrett claims that much of the action in the film is “too rough for the women;” the women are told repeatedly to stay indoors – just as women were encouraged to stay at home during the 1950s – and are violently confronted when they attempt to leave. Not only are women’s rights restricted, but their lives are centered around serving men. The woman of the fifties was meant to serve her husband when he got home, and take care of the entire home. This dynamic is reflected in Helen’s role, when she offers herself to Starrett “in any terms [he] wants, as long as [he] doesn’t hurt [her] husband.” Helen sacrifices her own free will for her husband, which emphasizes the complete dedication that the role of the fifties woman was supposed to have for her husband.

SP Rooster Cogburn

During the 1960s, women in America began rebelling against the unequal treatment they received, and were no longer content with the “woman’s place” in society. Eula Goodnight depicts this breakthrough role of women in Rooster Cogburn as a strong-minded, fearless woman. When in face to face confrontation with Hawk and his loaded pistol, Eula never phases from her confidence or courage, refusing to yield to the violent display of male power. This sudden revision of the female is inevitable in society, as women across the country are standing up together and can no longer be suppressed by patriarchy – however, the development is hard to accept for most men, as illustrated by Rooster Cogburn’s who seeks to maintain the typical male-hero, damsel-in-distress dynamic. Eula proves her capability of performing as well as a man when she shoots down Hawk’s goon, saving Rooster’s life in the process, but is denied the gratification that Rooster was all too quick to give to Wolf. While Eula does embody the changing status of the female, she follows the classic view of women, as well, by not expecting Rooster to recognize her competence, brushing off the lack of commendation because it is what she has learned to expect over her lifetime as a woman. She continues to follow this classic view throughout the film, filling the part of the obedient female when Rooster states that she “pay heed to every word [he] says til this thing’s over” – what he does not realize however, is that Eula is patronizing him with her response of “naturally, marshal.” Her reply is comical for female viewers watching the film during the time of its release because they are all too familiar with padding their husbands’ ego and playing this subservient role, when in reality, women superseded that role long ago. In all, this film is about making men realize that, even though they do not want to change the current gender roles, they can no longer stop women from changing their own role. Rooster Cogburn finally realizes this inevitability when he says at the end of the film “she is the way she is because that’s the way she wants to be.” Eula concludes the film with “getting the last word in,” to emphasize the fact that women during the 1970s were not pursuing their equality idly, but with determinability that would never weaken until that equality was gained.

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Rooster Cogburn was produced and released during the time that Roe v. Wade was passed. The bill exists today as one of the most famous civil rights documents. Though it unarguably stands for women's rights, some differ in opinion about the ethics of abortion, and some but not all may believe that it gives a woman a right to kill, which may be an influencing idea on the theme of death in this particular film.

During this film's time period, women still filled an unequal role among men, however, Eula breaks this as a function of the other. As the daughter of a preacher and the leader of a town, she has a deep education and leadership qualities and often shows up Rooster in terms of wit. What stands out as the key difference is that Eula pushes Rooster into helping find the killers, rather than Rooster going willingly. Rooster essentially becomes dominated by her as she continues to steer the rest of the movie. If this had followed the classic view of women, there would have been little education and no domineering mindsets. Eula truly is her own woman and understands the world around her. Compared to most women in other Westerns, she truly serves as someone not to be reckoned with.

The film Rooster Cogburn is vastly different from the classic Western. While the setting may be similar, the characters take on new levels of importance.The time period that this film was produced helps the viewer to understand why the film has its characters acting the way it does. The film was shot when the Women’s Rights Movement was making progress and women were gaining rights. The idea of women becoming equal to men is shown in Katharine Hepburn’s character, Eula Goodnight. Eula Goodnight is an extremely strong character and woman. The way in which women are viewed in this film is very different from the classic view that Western’s portray women. Typically women are seen as weak, over emotional, and dependent.

However, in Rooster Cogburn, Eula Goodnight is an extremely strong, independent woman. Her role is as important as Rooster’s and more important than Hawk and his men. She grabs the viewer’s attention with her sophisticated language and polite manner. Rooster calls her out on her speech and asks her where she is from. She says she is from the Boston and that she supposes she should “learn some southern phrases” (Rooster Cogburn, 1975). Another interesting aspect about Eula Goodnight is even though she speaks a lot, her language does not do what it typically does to other women; makes them weak and crumble. Eula does not show a great deal of emotion when she talks in comparison to women in other Westerns. You can tell what kind of mood she is in but nothing exaggerated. Instead, her language to shows her power. For example, when Hawk rode into her settlement, she greeted them and when they refused to obey her requests she simply continued talking and remained calm while being shot at. We normally see a woman at home tending to the house and children while her husband is at work. Conversely, Ms. Goodnight states that she does not need a man by saying she choose not to marry one and not to reproduce one either. Ms. Goodnight showed the viewers very early on that she does not fear guns nor does she approve or use them . This is a typical portrayal of women’s use of guns in Westerns. What is unusual though is how Ms. Goodnight did not hesitate when buying a gun or using it. We find out later that she has an extremely accurate shot when she shoots one of Hawk’s men before he can shoot Rooster. She does not brag about the shot just explains that she has all brothers so they taught her.

Rooster Cogburn also incorporates Native Americans into the movie. In this film, they were not the “enemy”. Instead they are seen as living peacefully among whites and trying to learn the language. They are portrayed as harmless human beings who are very innocent. They do not drink or use guns. When Hawk and his gang attack the Native Americans are left to defend themselves with their bare hands. The way in which Rooster Cogburn portrays both women and Native Americans is representative of a time period in the United States when rights were being distributed evenly and equality was starting to set in.

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During the time period that this film was created, many great changes were occurring in the country. Mainly, women were acquiring more civil rights and becoming more prominent members of society. In years before, women were not viewed as prominent members of society. They were seen as the person to raise the family and take care of the house. With women’s movements on the rise, they could now be seen as contributing members of society, just as they were beginning to be shown as in the westerns.

The women in westerns are generally regarded as unimportant characters that do not have a significant role in the films. In the film Rooster Cogburn, women are shown to take a much more important role in the western. Eula Goodnight, the woman in the film, is a strong and independent woman who can fend for herself and is viewed as an equal character to Rooster Cogburn. During a particular fight scene, she is even shown as being a respectable marksman, something normally reserved for male leads, when she saves Cogburn from being shot. Another way Goodnight is shown as having a more important role is she is the one to have a minority sidekick on the journey, not the cowboy as is common in older westerns.

As seen is this and other more modern westerns, women’s roles are evolving. This is based solely on their growing status in the society at that time. With women being looked at as more than just a housewife, they were being portrayed as more than that in the films as well. Rooster Cogburn’s portrayal of women is a great leap forward in showing that women can have a place in the west.

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The 1960’s and 1970’s were a time of great positive change for women in America. In 1963, the Equal Pay Act was passed, prohibiting sexual discrimination with pay. 1964, the Civil Rights Act was passed, which prohibited any discrimination based on color, race, religion, or sex. In 1972 Title IX was passé,d banning discrimination based on sex in public schools. The Equal Rights Act was passed by congress in 1973 and stated that women and men should be treated fairly by law. This legislation was the result of the women’s rights movements as well as a change in culture of how women were viewed by men.

These changes were reflected in how women were portrayed in media during that time and specifically by how they are treated in Westerns. In 1975, Stuart Millar directed Rooster Cogburn, a perfect example of the change taking place in women’s roles in western film. We see the relationship between Rooster Cogburn (an old, one eyed, misogynist cowboy) and Eula Goodnight (a minister’s daughter who is very religious, stubborn, and brave) as a metaphor for the battle between the old view of women and the new. This metaphor continues in the way the relationship between the two changes throughout the movie. Early in the movie Rooster berates Eula and women in general. He orders her around, telling her she can’t protect herself, has no business out in the wild, and mocking her religion. We get a sense he does this because he’s a ‘good old boy’, but we also see this done in a cruel and ignorant way. Eula shows her religion based stubbornness and bravery early by standing up to Hawk and his henchmen. She also fights Rooster about leaving the mission; She can take care of herself. Eula does not let Rooster leave her behind on the hunt for Hawk, and does not let him sway her from her religion. She constantly asserts her independence. Rooster grows to respect this about her, mentioning that she’s different than other women. This respect culminates with Eula confessing to the Judge about her killing Hawk. Rooster finally accepts in the end that she can take care of herself, just as America is finally accepting women as equals in the sixties and seventies.

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The film Rooster Cogburn debuted in 1975. This is an important moving in redefining the women’s role in western movies.

In Two Mules for Sister Sara, Sara was a prominent character, and she did trick Clint Eastwood’s character. However she tricked him in order for her to protect her, because she would have been helpless otherwise. Eula Goodnight does not need Rooster Cogburn to accompany her for her own protection; rather she is eager to travel with him, grabbing a rifle and refusing to stay behind. Eula, vows to see Hawk and his gang to justice after the deaths of her father and friends. Throughout the movie, she wields and uses a gun, formally an activity solely for men unless the situation is dire (such as when the wagons are circled and under attack by Indians ).

The rise of the female role in westerns can be attributed to their ever-rising role in society outside of the home. In 1963, the Equal Pay Act was passed, which abolished wage discrimination based on gender. Signed by John F. Kennedy, it was appropriately part of the ‘New Frontier Program.’

Part of the reason this movie separates itself from previous westerns, and gives Katharine Hepburn’s character such a prominent role in the dialogue, is that the screenplay was written by actress Martha Hyer, wife of the producer Hal Wallis, under a male pen name. John Wayne and Katharine Hepburn exchange verbal bouts at several points, and she not only stands up to the female, but could be seen as an equal after these dialogue sessions. At one point Eula proudly and naturally states, “..I suspect I grew up more forceful and independent…” This doesn’t follow the classic view whatsoever; it would be unimaginable that a female from The Big Trail or even The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance would consider herself forceful and independent.

On an interesting sidenote, there is a remake of the original Rooster Cogburn film True Grit due out this upcoming Christmas.

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In the film Rooster Cogburn, Eula Goodnight shows many qualities that break the mold of classic women in these westerns films. She is a strong woman that can protect herself and even protects Rooster Cogburn when he is fighting Hawk and his men. Eula has also mastered her skill with the gun which is usually only a quality of men in these western films. Women are almost never pictured with a gun or riding a horse by themselves and in this films Eula does both. While all these qualities separate her from other women I think the major factor that breaks the mold of classic women is the fact that she is allowed to travel with Cogburn on his dangerous adventure. The classic woman wouldn’t have even thought about going or wouldn’t have been allowed to go, but Eula on the other hand convinces Rooster to let her tag along. At the beginning of their travels Rooster looks at Eula as weak and unable to protect herself. But as the movie progresses Eula proves to him that she can protect herself and even be a valuable asset in helping to bring Hawk and his goons to justice. Eula is one of the women of western films that began to shift women’s roles in these films.
In the United States during this time women’s roles were also shifting too. Women had successfully merged into the workforce and were now involved in movements that were aimed at social equality. They were trying to prove to society that they were equal to men in skill and knowledge just as Eula was trying to prove to Rooster that she was just as skilled at him. Also during this time women began to have unheard of success in fields such as politics, business, and law. This can be seen in this film because Eula begins to have success in changing Roosters outlook on her from a weak liability to a strong woman capable of assisting him. Eula personified everything that women of this era were trying to be.

Rooster Cogburn MR

In Stuart Miller’s Rooster Cogburn, Eula Goodnight in no way follows the classic view of female characters in Westerns. Although, she may dress properly and use lady-like language, she is a very strong female character. First, she is able to convince Rooster, or Reuben as she always calls him, to allow her and Wolf to go on the excursion to bring their fathers’ killers to justice. This is very strange, first because Rooster Cogburn is a very stubborn character as evidenced by his unwillingness to change the way he goes about his business, namely bringing criminals to justice. Secondly, the normal female character does not wish to be an integral part of bringing anyone to justice even if she does want to come along with the alpha male cowboy, but that is exactly what Eula wishes to do. Next, Eula is an excellent shooter. When she shot the man who was trying to gain position on Rooster, who was yelling to Hawk from the top of a cliff, she was able to shoot him in the back from a very long distance. While the possibility of it being a lucky shot is plausible, it is safe to say that Eula knows what she is doing with a gun, otherwise she probably would have told Wolf to take the shot instead. Also worth noting is the fact that Eula takes on the role of a preacher, a role that would usually be occupied by a man.

The time period in which Rooster Cogburn was made coincides perfectly with the second wave of the United States’ feminist movement, so there is surprise that a film like this would be made to have that kind of commentary within it. Feminists at this time were fighting for equal rights including the illegality of discrimination based on sex and abortion rights. This movie, like many of the other films which feature strong female characters, showed exactly why women should be given the same rights as men. It is not because they are the same, because they are not and it would be foolish to claim that they are. It is because they are different that they complement each other so well. Rooster is able to bring Eula’s father’s killers to justice with her assistance and as a complement, Eula is able to convince the judge to allow Rooster to keep his badge.

Rooster Cogburn CS

In most Western films, women play secondary roles to the alpha male cowboy, normally as merely a love interest who gets left behind by the cowboy when he leaves for a journey. The cowboy is the one who goes off on his horse with gun in hand, to fight the enemy. But, in Rooster Cogburn, Eula Goodnight is a female character who breaks the mold of the stereotypical western woman. After her settlement is ravaged and her father murdered, she stands up to Rooster Cogburn, buys a gun and insists on chasing down the culprits instead of safely waiting at home. Along the journey she shows that she can ride a horse and shoot a gun just as well as any man can. In the beginning, Rooster thought of her as a liability who was merely tagging along. But, she proves her worth after she shoots down one of Hawks posse members with a perfect shot in the back over the pile of explosives, contradicting the directions given by Cogburn to only shoot to be a distraction. In earlier westerns, women are not seen as proficient marksmen, or even part of the battles.

In this film, Eula Goodnight is a very strong, outspoken woman who does not back down to Cogburn and even has a profound influence on him. This is a direct reflection of the cultural movement occurring in 1975, the year in which the film was made. During the 1970s, the women’s movement was in full force. Women were speaking out for equal rights to men and fighting for their place in society. In Rooster Cogburn, Eula proves her equality to Cogburn, in both intellect and skill. In one scene while speaking to Cogburn, she stands on a rock to make herself appear as large and important as Cogburn. She also brings out a sensitive side to Rooster and he allows her to call him Ruben. Katherine Hepburn’s character goes against the classic view of women because she is an assertive, strong willed character in a male dominated genre.

Rooster Cogburn AP

In Rooster Cogburn, the alpha male cowboy is not the center of attention the whole time. John Wayne's spotlight is shared with Katharine Hepburn, or Eula Goodnight in the movie. She is a strong female character who displays male characteristics. Eula Goodnight actually wants to accompany John Wayne, but not because she wants to be his wife or lover, but because she wants revenge for her father's death. She doesn't give up; she is as stubborn as Rooster. This sense of revenge and duty that Eula talks about in the movie, is usually associated with the alpha male cowboy, not the woman. She also knows how to shoot a gun. This is not common at all in the traditional Western movies. Usually, only men know how to shoot and women usually don't even hold a gun. She also drinks some of Rooster Cogburn's whiskey at the end of the movie. All of these aspects just prove that Eula Goodnight could be just as stubborn as a man, a good shooter as any man, and driven by duty like any man.

This movie was made in 1975; right in the middle of the second wave of the feminist movement. Women were just getting their voices heard. The women were rallying for equality; they wanted an end to discrimination. Eula Goodnight is a perfect example of what women were rallying for in these decades. Rooster Cogburn is a Western that completely takes a different turn because for once, a woman can have male characteristics and actually be more equal to a man. This is a big step for women at the time. They still weren't completely seen as equal to men, which one can still see in the movie. For example, Eula Goodnight still talks a lot and sometimes lets her talking get her in trouble, especially with Hawk. However, the fact that she can follow the harsh trail that Cogburn travels and does not give up or give in from being tired, makes her an extremely important female character. Katharine Hepburn depicts the women who believe that they can do what men have done all their lives. They can be like an alpha male cowboy who travels in the West, ready to accomplish their duty.

NH Rooster Cogburn

In this film, John Wayne plays the character of Rooster Cogburn who has just lost his badge due to his reckless behavior. He is given the opportunity to earn it back by catching the outlaws who killed an elderly preacher, Reverend Goodnight. This adventure is when Eula Goodnight comes into play. She is the daughter of the late reverend and she is also seeking revenge against the outlaws.
During the time period when this fil was created the Vietnam War was goin on and the United States was going through many changes. It was not only changing economically but the rights of the common person were changing. It was a very rebellious point in this country's history for the people of America. In particular women. Women were fighting for the rights that they long time deserved and were finally getting the chance to have those rights.
The "other" factor in this film is quite clear. Eula Goodnight is the other factor. She is a rebellious female who tags along with John Wayne on his Journey to catch the men who murdered her father. Not only is it out of the ordinary for a woman in westerns to want to seek revenge on men, but it is also extremely strange for John Wayne's Alpha Male Cowboy character to allow a woman to travel along with him on an adventure. The qualities that Goodnight possesses are also pout of the ordinary for the typical woman in a western film. She is an extremely agressive woman and is in no way afraid to speak her mind, especially to Rooster Cogburn. In most of the films we have seen the women are always left behind with the family or are given no opportunity at all to speak. Wayne's character typically considers himself a one man show and does not allow anyone else to tag along.
In this film and also in America at the time that this film was created, times were changing and the role of women was becoming more profound.

Rooster Cogburn DG

The film Rooster Cogburn is an excellent representation of the "other". By looking into the relationship between Cogburn and Eula Goodnight throughout the film it is easy to see that the film does not follow the classic view of women. In the scene where Eula tries to claim Cogburn's salvation we hear the opinion on women from the alpha male cowboy: Cogburn asks Goodnight what kind of church would let a woman speak out. When Goodnight's father was killed, instead of staying home she insists on going with Rooster. Many things in the film show Goodnight having the qualities of bravery and fearlessness. Both of those qualities are typically only seen in the alpha male cowboy and are never seen to be possessed by a woman in the classic Western.

Looking at the film Rooster Cogburn from a cultural studies point of view we can see why the woman plays a much different role than in earlier westerns. The film was shot in 1975 which was a time where the push for womans rights was still in full swing. This is the reason we see a woman playing a prominent role in the western. Goodnight proves to Rooster that she is just as good as any other cowboy by killing one of Jordan's posse when he told her to only shoot as a distraction. Also in many scenes Goodnight is physically above or the same height as Rooster in the shot showing her physical presence also brings her to the alpha male cowboy level.

Johnny Guitar / Sister Sarah SH

In both Johnny Guitar (1954) and Two Mules for Sister Sarah (1970), we see an attitude towards non-traditional female roles that reflects those of that time. Johnny Guitar is a unique western from the classical era in that the main character is not only a woman, but one of power. Vienna is a woman running her own saloon and casino outside of town. She orders the men around in her bar, wears pants, and carries a gun. Her own bartender says “Never seen a woman more a man. She thinks like one, acts like one...sometimes like me feel like a nut.” The elements of a ‘witch hunt’ are seen from Emma’s desire to hang her without any evidence. The townspeople reject her being different. She’s only accepted by other outlaws and strangers.

This idea of rejection of the different reflects America’s feelings towards Communists during the McCarthyism era in the United States. Many people, including people in government positions and in the film industry, were taken in custody and questioned by the House Committee on Un-American Activities with little or no evidence of any wrongdoing, or even of their political affiliations.

The attitude towards women in a non-traditional role changed drastically between 1954 and 1970, as this is seen in the movie Two Mules for Sister Sarah. Sarah, ironically dressed as a nun, drinks and smokes. She curses. She seems stronger than him. Garrison treats her unlike a nun, he makes advances on her. When he finds out she is not a nun but instead a prostitute, he is not repelled by her. The Mexicans also accept her. She tells them what to do, how to infiltrate the fort, and risks herself to help out the cause.

The contrast in acceptance towards women in a non-traditional role in Two Mules for Sister Sarah can be attributed to the women’s and civil rights movements of the 1960’s. Women and minorities made great strides in gaining equal rights in the 16 years between the movies. Women held positions of power outside the home. Men viewed women more as equals. Although the cold war continued, the communist witch hunts that occurred during the 40’s and 50’s had stopped.

Johnny Guitar/Two Mules for Sister Sara SP

Both the films Johnny Guitar and Two Mules for Sister Sara present strong depictions of the “other” characters – women. Johnny Guitar, filmed during the 1950s, reflects the ongoing circumstances that the Red Scare caused in America with regards to the threat of communism. Similarly, Two Mules for Sister Sara highlights the rising impact of the Women’s Rights Movement of the 1960s and the Immigration Act of 1965, both of which revealed women and immigrants as steadily pressuring a society that did not want to adjust its values. Due to the major roles that these “other” characters played in both films, much of the attention is drawn away from the alpha male cowboy, and his power and authority is jeopardized as well.
In Johnny Guitar, Vienna not only plays a strong female who possesses as much power, if not more, as an alpha male cowboy, but she represents the power that the threat of communism had over Americans during the 1950s. Vienna’s depiction in Johnny Guitar is unlike that of any female’s in past Western films; she is portrayed as a fiercely strong gunwoman and has a significant amount of control over the alpha male cowboys in the film. Just like the typical alpha male cowboy, Vienna sets out on a goal to build and run her own saloon. However, unlike the usual male, Vienna becomes public enemies with Emma, her female rival and the ring-leader of the town’s men. Just as Joseph McCarthy set out on a hunt to find and punish all communists, Emma is determined to label Vienna a “tramp” and have her hanged, regardless of any legitimate evidence. All of the town’s men mindlessly follow Emma in her plot against Vienna, not realizing until the end of the movie that they really have no motive for running Vienna’s life, as Emma does. The destruction of Vienna’s achievements implies that while Vienna may be able to act like an alpha male cowboy, she will never have the same success as one. Instead, she falls to the fate that most typical Westerns have of women – falling in love with the alpha male cowboy, and fulfilling his desires. This fate is reflected in American society during the 1950s when women desired to have the same abilities as men, but inevitably could only succeed if permitted by the world of men. Overall, Johnny Guitar illustrates the beginning of women’s struggle to succeed in male dominated American society and the impact that the fear of communism had on the actions of people during the 1950s.
In Two Mules for Sister Sara, Sister Sara is as much a central character as Hogan is, which reflects how women in the 1960s were beginning to assert their equality to men. This female assertion of power in Western films is unprecedented in the earlier films, such as The Searchers and Red River, in which women had little to no effect on the plot of the film. This female character development signifies that the status of women in American culture has shifted from its position in the early twentieth century to its position in the 1960s. What’s more, is that Two Mules for Sister Sara suggests that women are even more capable than society has ever credited them to be; the entirety of the film, Sara plays Hogan for a fool, using him in order to accomplish her agenda by masquerading as an innocent nun, while in reality, she is a prostitute. These circumstances suggest women have been underplaying their capabilities because it furthers them in American society; by not outwardly displaying it, they cannot be put down. However, these conditions started to change in the 1960s when women were tired of not having the same social rights as men, as reflected in the film when Sara removes her habit. The conclusion of the film, however, suggests that women are doomed to be subjected by men, as shown when Hogan succeeds in getting Sara to abandon her whorehouse and follow him on his quest for San Francisco. Ultimately, Two Mules for Sister Sara illustrates the rising power of women in society, but the prevailing dominance of men.

NC Johnny Guitar/Two Mules

Otherness, or alterity, allows viewers of both films to see the idea of the alpha male cowboy demonstrated through a unique way. Each of the main character's is a woman and take the lead roles throughout the films and has a male counterpart that works with them as a woman would traditionally serve a man in the Western genre.

In Johnny Guitar, Vienna manages a saloon and becomes involved with The Dancin Kid. As she seems to be the only one, the other townspeople suspect her to be part of the bank robbery plot and go after her. Emma Small, someone who hated her even before The Dancin Kid, leads the group against her, burning down the saloon and trying to get Vienna hanged. Vienna runs to The Dancin' Kids fort, which results in the Kid's and his groups deaths. Emma and Vienna duel with Vienna being the victor.

The way this film is designed, the men support the women, not the other way around. Women truly serve in the alpha 'male' roles as much as is possible during this film even though men still hold important key roles, as Johnny saves her as a good cowboy should and The Dancin' Kid still plays the traditional villain. The problem is that Emma seems to be a bigger villain yet because tradition is stretched in this film, new situations and conflicts arrive that may put Vienna in new situations yet must deal with them as a cowboy would. This film was made during early feminism.

In Two Mules for Sister Sara, Sister Sara poses as a nun but is in fact a prostitute. As Tompkins discusses, Christianity represents the feminine, so to symbolically pose as the feminine, it can be seen that the real Sara can be compared to John Wayne in the respect that she is hard-boiled. As a woman, she asks Hogan to protect her and bring her to a Mexican Camp and help fight the French. He obliges, but they make it to the Mexican holdout working together; each helps the other on the way. She reveals the truth to Hogan at the end of the film, which separates her in some respects from the male cowboy by being more expressive than the norm, but it is done out of necessity so it does not necessarily take from her given masculinity.

PG Two Mules, Johnny Guitar

In the two movies, the idea of the others is challenged. Neither of the women ultimately follows the patterns set by Jane Tompkins. Although Vienna portrays a strong female character much more obviously than Sarah does, both prove to be strong independent women, something we rarely see in the Western. Where we normally see the female other need saving from the Alpha Male Cowboy, both Vienna and Sarah are able to hold their own, either saving themselves or their male counterpart

In Two Mules for Sister Sarah, We first see Hogan, an obvious alpha male cowboy, rescue Sister Sarah, who at first seems to be a run of the mill Western female. And at first, this is all we see of her. However, as the movie progresses we see hints here and there that perhaps there is more to her than meets the eye. She smokes, drinks, and swears, for the most part in secrecy or under the guise of stress and special circumstances. She is so good at hiding her true identity that we as the viewer honestly believe that her increasing boldness and bravery are actually character development, rather than her disguise falling apart as she increasingly needs to use her true habits to get by. Sarah challenges our idea of the other in a roundabout way, showing us a direct example of what we expect her to be, then slowly turning the tables on us.

In contrast, Vienna challenges our perceptions directly, from the very beginning of the film. She runs her saloon on her own, managing her own team of men who answer only to her. She condones drinking and gambling, two things that are usually frowned upon by the religiously driven females we are used to seeing. We see Johnny Guitar chasing her, rather than the other way around. He exhibits strange motivations for an alpha male cowboy, wanting to win Vienna more than anything, when she really doesn’t mind one way or the other. Ending up together at the end of the movie is something she is glad about, but we know that she would have been fine alone in the end. She is a strong independent woman first, and a love interest second. She is never anything but brave, intelligent and driven throughout the entire movie. Even her way of dressing depicts this.

These movies go a long way towards challenging our expectations of females in the Western. While doing so in different ways, both give us a look into the life of a character we do not normally see in these movies as anything more than a bit character. Hogan tells Sarah about how he prefers being able to get his women when he is in town, and able to move on from them. This is a common mentality, one that places the prostitute in a very minor dismissed role. This increases the surprise when we find that the most important woman in the movie is one of those women who would be an extra in any other film. The other in these movies are more than the title that is placed upon them, due to their own actions. Both movies made a very interesting case for Women in Westerns, allowing them to be more than talkative, religious shackles for the Alpha Male.

Johnny Guitar/Two Mules MR

Both Nicholas Ray’s Johnny Guitar and Don Siegel’s Two Mules for Sister Sara feature something that is particularly strange for the Western genre. Both of them feature someone other than the alpha-male cowboy as the top billing. Instead, these films feature Joan Crawford and Shirley MacLane, the films’ leading ladies in the top position, and deservedly so.

In Two Mules for Sister Sara, Shirley MacLane plays Sara, a prostitute who poses as a nun for almost the entire movie. As the “other” in this movie, Sara has Hogan, Clint Eastwood’s character fooled the entire time. She manipulates him into helping her get to Mexico and does not reveal her true identity to him until she deems it absolutely necessary to use a friend’s whore house to sneak into the French camp in the area. She has to do this because if she were to reveal her true identity to him he would have left her on her own trying and she would have been captured by French soldiers that were in the area. She is clearly very resourceful as she is able to keep this act up without Hogan becoming very suspicious although he does notice some strange things, such as her heavy drinking. Sara is clearly a strong character who knows how to get what she wants.

In Johnny Guitar, Joan Crawford plays Vienna who is also a strong character, but not in the same way as Sara. Although Vienna needs to be saved by Johnny from being hanged, she is a very smart woman who owns a saloon and knows how to use a gun. Vienna and Emma Small also had what had to have been the first woman vs. woman gunfight in the history of the Western. This was a groundbreaking film for women who at the time were just beginning to be able to do the same jobs as men. Both of these films were obviously made with the idea of showing what women can do. Women of the time could be just as cunning as men as Sara is and could be just as successful as business owners as Vienna is.

Sister Sara/Johnny Guitar CS

In most Westerns, the alpha male cowboy is the source of power and dominance in the film. But, movies such as Johnny Guitar and Two Mules for Sister Sara break out of this western stereotype and portray women as strong characters in leading roles. In the previous movies we have watched, the rough, loner alpha male solves his own problems and leaves the women to be merely objects of his affection. In Two Mules for Sister Sara Hogan rescues Sara, damsel in distress, this shows his strength and devotion to duty. But, he then allows her to travel with him and help plot an attack on a French fort. Later in the film, Sara saves Hogan’s life after he has been shot by an arrow. If it weren’t for Sara, Hogan may not have survived. The weakness shown by Hogan and his reliance on Sara in this scene directly contrasts the typical alpha male in other Westerns. Filmed in 1970 during the feminist movement, it shows Sara as an equal to Hogan. This “otherness” is seen when she helps him aim his gun to shoot the dynamite as well as when she is drinking hard liquor, smoking cigars and speaking in a less than “lady-like” manor.

The film Johnny Guitar also has a strong female presence seen in the characters Vienna and Emma. Vienna is a powerful female who owns her own saloon outside of town, who Emma accuses of having a hand in killing her brother and robbing a bank. The way in which Emma accuses Vienna of wrongdoing is very similar to the events of the communist scare during the Mid 20^th Century. Emma has little evidence to prove Vienna has done wrong, yet puts all her energy into bringing her down. Another allusion to the Red Scare is seen when Emma also forces Turkey to wrongly confess that Vienna is guilty, similar to communist “witch hunts”. During the 1950s, Women were beginning to take more of a leading role in the household and become more empowered while the men went off to fight in the war. This is similar to how Emma and Vienna are seen as strong and dominant whereas Johnny is portrayed as a “former gunslinger” who is no longer an alpha male. It was very uncommon for a woman to own her own business, never mind having hopes of owning her own town. One of Vienna’s employees even describes her as “more of a man than a woman”. Vienna can also handle shooting a gun without hesitation and confront a posse of her enemies without any male support. All of these women represent the revolutionist females of the 20^th century.

Johnny Guitar & Two Mules BCG

Johnny Guitar was filmed during the 1950’s, a time when the red scare, the fear of communism, ran rampant in the United States. Throughout the film, Vienna is seen as an isolated figure, with the townsfolk very wary around her in their presence. Even her saloon is outside of the town’s limits, further separating her from society. Her vision, of her saloon, the town and the railroad, were different than the rest of the town. Her ideals became a threat to the way of life of the people in town who had been there more than five years. This ideal, different from the majority, could be compared to communism during the 1950’s. The way Emma was accusing Vienna of being guilty of one thing or another throughout the movie, without any real evidence, is all too similar to how people were accused of being communists. It is further symbolized that Vienna is this ‘other’ by attire she wears, from the red shirt, red scarf, and even the bold red lipstick.

Both Vienna and Emma play prominent roles throughout the entire movie, something we haven’t seen in the previous westerns. They were the main characters. By being the only women in this film, and pitting one against the other, it further emphasizes this idea of otherness in the female characters.

Two Mules for Sister Sara is a product of 1970, part of a decade that will be remembered for the Vietnam War, Women’s Rights Movement and lava lamps. Sara plays a dynamic character, which the viewer discovers in the film, isn’t actually a Catholic nun, but runs the self-proclaimed “best whorehouse.”

Regardless, in representing either a nun, or a whore, she is still considered an ‘other.’ By acting as a nun, Shirley MacLaine’s character separates herself by religion. She states, that through Mexican territory, she does not need protection against Mexican bandits, as they will not harm her. In representing a whore, or even running a whorehouse, Sara is an ‘other’ compared to other women, who aren’t living in a cathouse. Shirley’s character is also the only white female, which only continues to isolate herself as the ‘other.’

She is a well-known figure in the small Mexican town, taking pride in her debauchery of drinking, swearing, and smoking. Even the French general, as he is pouring her a drink admits, “None of us can keep up with her.” In showing relevance with the time period, Sara is a progressive, dominant and independent thinking woman compared to early 1930 western films. When Hogan and Sara initially meet, it is clear he is the dominant figure by his direct commands, and her obedience without question. As the film progresses, she takes on more of a leadership role, such as planning the final attack on the French quarters at the end of the film.

Johnny Guitar/ Two Mules AP

In both Johnny Guitar and Two Mules for Sister Sara, women are the others. They are depicted as highly important characters, who sort of take away the fame from the famous alpha male cowboys.

In Johnny Guitar, the alpha male cowboy is shadowed by the main characters, who happen to be women. Both Vienna and Emma seem to lead their own pack of men. Vienna is an independent woman who takes care of a saloon and casino. She also clearly stands up to anyone who tries to get in her way. Vienna uses not only her words, but also her gun when necessary. She threatens the people who come into her saloon with wrong intentions and bosses all the men around. Vienna is a true strong woman, who clearly needs no man to continue with life. Emma, who is jealous of Vienna, also depicts a strong woman. She bosses the men on her side around and is not hesitant when it comes to pulling out a gun. She seems to start all of the trouble and fights for what she wants. Emma doesn’t even think twice when she has a chance to shoot Vienna. Both these women represent women of the time. In 1954, when this movie was made, women were beginning the women’s movement. It was a time when women started to feel more important and independent. There were more women in the labor force even though men came back from war and took their jobs back. Women were standing up for their right to work, and that can evidently be seen in Vienna’s character. She wants to keep her saloon, and fights for that.

In Two Mules for Sister Sara, both the alpha male cowboy and the female character play equally important roles. Sister Sara is saved by Hogan, the alpha male cowboy, but she also saves him. It comes to a point where it seems like the alpha male cowboy may actually not survive without Sara. Sister Sara depicts a very independent woman also. She goes riding out into the west with a mission. While on this journey with Hogan, she demonstrates male characteristics. For instance, she drinks whiskey and smokes. She also does not seem afraid to stand up against enemies. Sister Sara is an important part of this movie, because without her Hogan would have been killed. This movie comes at a time when women were already getting more rights. The women’s rights movement had been around for a while. However, laws were recently passed that granted women equal pay and that tried to get rid of discrimination. These laws were put in effect in order to let women have more rights, like the men in those times. Sister Sara is an obvious representation of this, since she seems to depend on Hogan just as much as he depends on her. The women of that time were becoming more equal, and one can see that through this movie.

Blog Johnny Guitar/Two Mules JY

In early westerns the “others” (women and immigrants) were considered below the alpha male cowboy and not as important to the film as the alpha male cowboy. But as we enter the new generation of western films we see the “others” in these films rising to more important roles and the alpha male cowboy slowly fading into the background. For example in the film Johnny Guitar both Vienna and Emma play important roles in the film. In earlier western films these women wouldn’t have been put in these major roles. Also in this film there is no clear cut alpha male cowboy. The closest characters to an alpha male cowboy are Johnny Guitar and the Dancin’ Kid, but even they are not true alpha male cowboys. In watching this film I saw that women such a Vienna and Emma have become more like an alpha male than earlier women. They are better with guns and Vienna even owns her own saloon which would have never happened in western before this time. I credit this to the time period and what was going on during that time in the United States. Women had been introduced into the workforce during the war and now in the post war era men were coming home and wanting their jobs back. These women though had become accustomed to working and were fighting to keep their jobs. Vienna personifies these women because she had to fight to keep her saloon going when the cattlemen tried to shut her down.

The movie Two Mules for Sister Sara introduced another group of “others” into the westerns films; Mexican-Americans. In this film you can see that the alpha male cowboy (Hogan) respects the Mexican group but does not feel part of them. The Mexicans are portrayed as a weak group that needs the help of Hogan to defeat the French garrison. Hogan on the other hand is only helping this group because he was promised gold if he could overtake the French garrison. When Sara asks him if he is one of the Mexicans he says “till I get paid, yeah.” This film portrays the Mexican group as weaker than the French because in the time period in which this film was made Mexicans were starting to immigrate to the states and were being discriminated against. But as the 1960’s and 1970’s went on Mexican culture began to assimilate itself into the American mainstream. Americans began to welcome Mexican culture into the United States but did not feel part of it. Just as Hogan helped the Mexicans but did not feel like he was one of them.

Two Mules/Johnny Guitar DG

In the films Two Mules for Sister Sara and Johnny Guitar the concept of otherness is seen in the characters, Hogan and Johnny Guitar.

In Johnny Guitar we see Mr. Logan as the alpha male cowboy but his role as the macho and powerful character in the movie is shadowed by the role of Vienna. Vienna is a very fierce and strong woman character with a deathly glare that inimidates many in the film. This is a very differen portrayal of characters compared to the other films we have watched. While watching the movie it is easy to make sense of this new concept of the woman being the character in complete control. It has a lot to do with the time period the film was made in. In the 1950's women had a new found importance in the country. While the men were off fighting in WW2 we see women take steps in being more independent and taking on jobs that men would normally do. Vienna shows a Rosie the Riveter type attitude when she insists she can run her own casino and saloon and will do whatever she needs to to do so.

In the film Two Mules we see the concept of otherness when Sara saves Hogan when she helps him shoot his gun while he's wounded. This is very untraditional and different when talking about Western film. We normally see the alpha male as brave and to a certain extent, bulletproof. When a woman helps the alpha male cowboy it becomes obvious that there is a reflection of the time period the movie was shot in the film. Two Mules for Sister Sara came out in 1970 which was the end of a time period where women officially established themselves in society, so when Sara helps Hogan we see this reflection. Also, Hogan the alpha male cowboy being wounded, reflects the fact that America isn't as bulletproof as they thought they were after going through the worst years of the Vietnam war.