{"product_id":"west-of-everything-the-inner-life-of-westerns","title":"West of Everything: The Inner Life of Westerns","description":"\u003cp\u003eA leading figure in the debate over the literary canon  Jane Tompkins was one of the first to point to the ongoing relevance of popular womens fiction in the 19th century  long overlooked or scorned by literary critics. Now  in West of Everything  Tompkins shows how popular novels and films of the American west have shaped the emotional lives of people in our time. Into this world full of violence and manly courage  the world of John Wayne and Louis LAmour  Tompkins takes her readers  letting them feel what the hero feels  endure what he endures. Writing with sympathy  insight  and respect  she probes the main elements of the Western--its preoccupation with death  its barren landscapes  galloping horses  hard-bitten men and marginalized women--revealing the view of reality and code of behavior these features contain. She considers the Western heros attraction to pain  his fear of women and language  his desire to dominate the environment--and to merge with it. In fact  Tompkins argues  for better or worse Westerns have taught us all--men especially--how to behave. It was as a reaction against popular womens novels and womens invasion of the public sphere that Westerns originated  Tompkins maintains. With Westerns  men were reclaiming cultural territory  countering the inwardness  spirituality  and domesticity of the sentimental writers  with a rough and tumble  secular  man-centered world. Tompkins brings these insights to bear in considering film classics such as Red River and Lonely Are the Brave  and novels such as Louis LAmours Last of the Breed and Owen Wisters The Virginian. In one of the most moving chapters (chosen for Best American Essays of 1991)  Ttompkins shows how the life of Buffalo Bill Cody  killer of Native Americans and charismatic star of the Wild West show  evokes the contradictory feelings which the Western typically elicits--horror and fascination with violence  but also love and respect for the romantic ideal of the cowboy. Whether interpreting a photograph of John Wayne of meditating on the slaughter of cattle  Jane Tompkins writes with humor  compassion  and a provocative intellect. Her book will appeak to many Americans who read or watch Westerns  and to all those interested in a serious approach to popular culture.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44984628510773,"sku":"ByrdShop_0195073053","price":45.24,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780195073058.jpg?v=1770839833","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/west-of-everything-the-inner-life-of-westerns","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}