The west also rises: an exploration of the westerns of Cormac McCarthy, Larry McMurtry and Edward Abbey in their historical context

Abstract

This thesis aims to demonstrate the importance of the American Western in its past and its present form to the American psyche. The work of three modern Western authors are compared with those of the original Westerns. Much of the original ideology remains but a number of aspects have been developed such as the portrayal of character, of violence and the concept of conservation. Much of what makes America the country it is has been vested in the Western genre. These three modern authors demonstrate that the vision of the West still reverberates.