Visual Studies Commons^™

The Cowboy Conundrum: An Examination Of Representation Within The Western Film Genre, Madelynn E. Woodard

Honors College Theses

Despite historical demographic data indicating otherwise, much of the Western Film Genre depicts The Cowboy as a white male individual. Previous research has demonstrated that filmmakers often tell and depict stories within which they identify themselves, and with the predominant population of directors within the Western Genre being that of white men, the narrative of the West being portrayed on screen has shifted public perception to an inaccurate portrayal of the history of the West. From Vaqueros to liberated slaves, much of the Cowboy community was comprised of Black, Spanish, Mexican, and Indigenous people of color. This study employed a …