The genre was easy to mass produce, and until the 1940s or so, the western dime novel led the way. The study of western culture catholic education resource. Though basically an american creation, the western had its. What the concept of plot genre offers is a much clearer description of filmic categories and a useful analytical structure. This organic unity of western culture is so strong that even the modern developments of extreme nationalism have been incapable of creating any real cultural and spiritual autarky.
Pdf deconstruction of western genre in the 1950s and 1960s. In general, these characteristics might be grouped into two main themes. The revisionist western was created in hollywood by using tactics such as subversion, selfreflexivity, selfconsciousness, mockery, and cynicism. Then i explain why the western genre has been regarded as a masculine construction. Use scholarly sources gregorian chant plainchant the gregorian chant is considered by experts to be part of the foundations of religious chants, dating back to the first centuries of christianity. Western film iconography western michigan university. Genre characteristics 2 genre definition frequently found elements picture book examples journals and diaries a log written by an author at regular intervals. The western depicts a society organised around codes of honor, rather than. In the 1960s and 1970s, the western was reinvented with the revisionist western. In the following pages i discuss the appearance of the western genre as a counterreaction to the sentimental novel of the 19th century.
The western is arguably the most iconic and influential genre in american cinema. Gregorian chant plainchant include characteristics genre. From lordsburg to big whiskey by john saunders, is based on detailed summaries and analyses of 12 films, grouped around midcentury classics, the cinematic depictions of the outlaw jesse james, the changing status of the indian, the genre revisons of the 1960s70s and the reconsidered genre in the 1990s. There are hundredths of examples that i prove this, one of the best examples would be stagecoach. Western film is a genre that revolves around stories primarily set in the late 19th century in the american old west. Lonesome dove by larry mcmurtry, true grit by charles portis, blood meridian, or the evening redness in the west by corma. There is one thing other than violence that the western genre must have in order for it to be called a western there must be horses, guns and the setting of the story must be a western setting. The films are often set in a small isolated village in the desert. Ultimate list of film sub genres student resources. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Within each category are style subdivisions that you may be familiar with. Western is a genre of fiction which tells stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the american old west, often centering on the life of a nomadic cowboy or gunfighter armed with a revolver and a rifle who rides a horse. A postclassical variation on the western which questions the mythical vision of the old west.
According to this approach certain features would identify the extent to which an. After all, a mysterious fellow cant ride into town without a horse, and he cant ride off into the sunset either. Pages in category western genre the following 14 pages are in this category, out of 14 total. Western genre definition complete list of book genres. An introduction to genre theory university of washington. The author thinks that a good textbook for an introductory course to western literature has to make students familiar with the. Western music celebrates the lifestyle of the cowboy on the open ranges, rocky mountains, and prairies of western north america. Specific settings include lonely isolated forts, ranch houses, the isolated homestead, the saloon, the jail, the livery.
This analysis identifies the codes and conventions used to construct a western film. Genre characteristics chart following is an overview of some genres texttypes that are often read by students and the taskspecific processes a reader uses to read them. Western culture mendy wang s we know, the differences between eastern and western cultures are numerous, because eastern and western people not only live in different environments but also are educated in distinctively different ways. Western musical styles music in western civilzation has undergone several major style phases, but it is perhaps simplest to think of them in this chronological sequence. The hero and villain binary in the western film genre. See more ideas about western movies, westerns and tv westerns. Jun 17, 2017 but what defines the western genre and can it even be described as a genre anyway.
Mar 12, 2012 they are the codes conventionally normally used tomake that type or genre of text. Westerns often stress the harshness of the wilderness and frequently set the action in an arid, desolate landscape. Cowboys and gunslingers typically wear stetson hats, neckerchief bandannas, vests, spurs, cowboy boots, and buckskins alternatively dusters. Western romance refers to any genre romance set in the american west. This movie is a typical mel brooks film, in which the main goal is to make fun of a certain genre or a certain type of movie. You can also add a love genre subplot to your story. Western, a genre of novels and short stories, motion pictures, and television and radio shows that are set in the american west, usually in the period from the 1850s to the end of the 19th century. This happened because the overuse of filmic codes in the western genre eventually led to predictability in the films. What are all the genres of western music and their typical. Genre that started since the discovery of the new world by christopher columbus one of the oldest film genres 1903, which predates film itself the western genre is focused on the good guys keeping law and order within the frontier nostalgic genre of the 1900s dates back to the american west, creating our historical background.
It is conventional for the western genre to identify a race other than whites as the villains of the plot. A western novel is shaped and driven by the main characteristic of the genre. Western culture is a pretty fluid and loose term because it encompasses so much. To answer your immediate question, the best thing to do is to go through a wellestablished music database and listen to representative tracks from each genre. I analyze the characteristics of the westerner as a warrior with examples from some of the bestknown western films.
Although dead man is a western, it brings in many elements from the comedy and the thriller. A western romance can be either contemporary or historical set. Characteristics of the western genre by chelsea wortman on. The western genre, particularly in films, often portrays the conquest of the wilderness and the subordination of nature in the name of civilization or the confiscation of the territorial rights of the original inhabitants of the frontier. Characteristics of a dystopian society propaganda is used to control the citizens of society. History of the western film genre in the twentieth century. For the main strands of western civilization are so closely interwoven that all of them are represented in each of its several parts. If you are writing a traditional western, consider the status genre. As you introduce a genre to kids, develop such lists of characteristics with your students.
Western music is a form of country and hillbilly music composed by and about the people who settled and worked throughout the western united states and western canada. Before john wayne and clint eastwood were household names for starring in western films, readers ventured into the wild west a different. While not all western novels are necessarily set during this time period, they all involve elements of the period and rely on the characteristics of the american frontier era, like. Plots generally center around traditionally western activities such as ranching and rodeo. By the 1980s, the american western film had long since stopped attracting crowds of moviegoers, becoming a point of nostalgia in homagepieces such as lawrence kasdans silverado in 1985 and tombstone in 1993, both met with modest acclaim as homages to a bygone era of genre filmmaking. Information, independent thought, and freedom are restricted. Primarily action films at heart, these early efforts contained copious if bloodless gunplay but often reinforced stereotypes of american indians as savages or were otherwise rather. Western literature that makes the book only an outline introduction. Most westerns are set between the american civil war 1865 and the early 1900s. What are common themes and characteristics in western movies. The expected characters,settings, storylines and themes of a particular type or genre ofmedia text.
Over time, westerns have been redefined, reinvented and expanded, dismissed, rediscovered, and spoofed. Elements of western, comedy and thriller in jarmuschs film dead man released in 1995, the film dead man is set in the west in the latter half of the 19th century. The film foundations story of movies presents the american west and the western film genre in association with the harrington school of communication and media, university of rhode island with additional support from the national endowment for the humanities a free professional development seminar for educators and librarians. Location and plot common locations included ranches, small towns, saloons, and railways characteristics of the western genre common plots included. Other iconic elements in westerns include the hanging tree, stetsons and spurs, saddles. It also aims to show how and to what extent the western genre proved to be a. Mar 28, 2018 western genre definition book genre definitions and examples for all book genres, including the western genre and all other fiction genres. There are many different characteristics of the western genre, as the genre itself is very distinct.
If youre a student at film school or simply a movie aficionado looking for a new genre. The history of the western genre by emily glover on prezi. In this way, one can argue that all scripted television. Quality writing and quality stories were hard to come by though as youll find below, a few gems did make their way out into the public sphere. In a way it is forced for the western genre to include horse in movies because it was a convention of the western to travel by horse. The earliest types of opera were highly experimental, such as this scene from monteverdis opera lorfeo from 1607, which retells the famous greek tragedy of.
All the ingredients you need to make an effective western lasagne. I analyze the characteristics of the westerner as a warrior with examples from some of the bestknown western. The western genre itself has subgenres, such as the epic western, the shoot em up, singing cowboy westerns, and a few comedy westerns. There are the precivil war westerns which started with louis and clark or daniel boone and davey crockett. But your protagonist might have an internal worldview genre instead. A figurehead or concept is worshipped by the citizens of the society. The western is often paired with the internal genre of morality. At least 300 words in length, and should be continue reading the western genre. Introduction at its heyday of popular film genre, the 1950s westerns could be divided into two tendencies. First, the main characters allegorize nation building. Mar 25, 2020 westerns take place in the american west, and are usually set between the 1850s and 1900.
It is the story of jane withersteen, a utah rancher whose livelihood is threatened by a proposed marriage she does not want, until a lone cowboy named lassiter comes to town. Western films created now are not considered classic western, but are instead categorized in the postwestern form. Historical periods, musical styles, and principal genres in western music students are encouraged to listen to several examples of each style at online sources available through classical, naxos, or other online sites and to listen for the characteristics given below. I analyze the characteristic relationship of the western hero to the western landscape and i discuss the westerns relationship to women. Western literature, also known as european literature, is the literature written in the context of western culture in the languages of europe, including the ones belonging to the indoeuropean language family as well as several geographically or historically related languages such as basque and hungarian. The western began as a uniquely american genre of film, extoling the heroic virtues of cowboys and settlers pioneering the western frontier in the 1800s. Gregorian chant plainchant include characteristics genre, history, developed forms chant polyphonic gregorian chanting, influence western music a. Historical periods, musical styles, and principal genres. Such previously genre defying films as brokeback mountain, eternal sunshine of the spotless mind, and memento are instantly recognizable according to their plot genres the first two are romances, the third a detective story. The western parody in 1974, mel brooks helped write, direct, and play two roles in the movie blazing saddles. Nov 15, 2012 the western genre often portrays how desolate and hard life was for frontier families. The first western film was the 1903 film the great train robbery, a silent film. I hope that all of these genre worksheets are helping somebody.
Mar 26, 2011 western film is a genre that revolves around stories primarily set in the late 19th century in the american old west. There are dozens of different themes which have developed in the over one hundred years since the first western was made. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the american old west, but there are also a number of works about western type characters in contemporary settings. Other characters include native americans, bandits, lawmen, bounty hunters. Westerns are the major defining genre of the american film industry. As such, works created in this style are typically known for action and adventure. Baron landscapes, macho dialogue, shootouts in saloons and the occasional mexican standoff. Though basically an american creation, the western had its counterparts in the gaucho literature of. In classical western this role belong to native american characters. A film that shows the early herovillain binary is buffalo bill 1944, which gives an historical interpretation of the life of a reallife western hero, william cody. A nostalgic eulogy to the early days of the expansive, untamed american frontier. The western was a major defining genre of the american film industry.
According to this approach, some texts would be widely regarded as being more typical members of a genre than others. Commonly theres always a scene of the protagonist or the antagonist in the saloon, drinking or playing poker. The cluster of images and conventions that we call the western genre is used by. May 04, 2011 historical basis the western is an american genre, which interprets and represents its history to itself set approximately between 1860 1910 period of american western expansion popular characters based on actual individuals.
A late example of postimpressionist painting, fauvism was the first real avantgarde art of the 20th century, although it had no agenda, no manifesto, no agreed set of aesthetics. But what defines the western genre and can it even be described as a genre anyway. This is the tenth genre worksheet that i have posted to this site. The west and the western as grounds for reconciliation in the.
Western genre western genre conventions historical. The borderline between civilisation and the wilderness. Characteristics of a typical western 506 words 123 help me. Students read the story descriptions, identify the genre and subgenre, and explain their answers. The western genre year 12 english exam revision guide. Though basically an american creation, the western had its counterparts in the gaucho literature of argentina and in tales of the settlement of the australian outback. The western film genre often portrays the conquest of the wilderness and the subordination of nature, in the name of civilization, or the confiscation of the territorial rights of the original inhabitants of the frontier. Historical periods, musical styles, and principal genres in. The western film genre has portrayed much about americas past, glorifying the pastfading values and aspirations of the mythical bygone age of the west. Westerns take place in the untamed frontier, an open landscape of mountain ranges, rugged lands and vast plains. Westerns take place in the american west, and are usually set between the 1850s and 1900. If youve ever seen a western film, you know how integral horses are to the plot, and you know how critical they are to the western heros mobility and success. This genre includes all plays or anything meant to be performed. Characteristics of the western genre by chelsea wortman on prezi.
Any of the three internal genres could be paired with any of the subgenres of the western. The diary of a young girlby opal whiteley, selected and adapted by jane boulton, illustrations by barbara cooney. Citizens are perceived to be under constant surveillance. Historical basis the western is an american genre, which interprets and represents its history to itself set approximately between 1860 1910 period of american western expansion popular characters based on actual individuals. How does shanes survival or not affect our understanding of the films themes. This book can be used as a textbook for any course designed to give western literature a general introduction. Western novels mixed reallife detail with largerthanlife drama, as all great mythologies do.
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