The Six-Gun Mystique Sequel

by John G. Cawelti

The Six-Gun Mystique Sequel is a revised and considerably expanded edition of The Six-Gun Mystique , a pioneering study of the Western as a popular genre that has been widely influential since its original publication in 1970.
    In this expanded version, Cawelti revises his analysis of the structural characteristics of the Western novel and film, synthesizing much of the rich discussion of the Western genre that has appeared since The Six-Gun Mystique 's original publication. To this structural analysis he adds a new account of the genre's history and its relationship to the myths of the West that have played such an influential role in American history. The Six-Gun Mystique Sequel concludes with an exploration of the continuing influence of Western themes and symbols on many aspects of postmodern American culture, and an assessment of the critical tradition that has developed around the Western genre. The appendices of the book are also revised and expanded to include useful lists of the most important Western novels and films, as well as the best critical and historical studies of different aspects of the genre.

Genres: Film, Westerns, Literary Criticism, American History

215 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1984

Reviews

[A. Bowdoin Van Riper · Rating 3 out of 5]

There was a time when Westerns – in print, on film, on television – were dismissed, offhandedly, as simplistic, formula-bound trash. They were suitable for the twirling wire papeback racks and the bottom halves of movie double-features, but no more. Entertaining? Well, yes . . . if you were a small boy, or an undemanding adult. Vehicles for exploring on Big Themes and Significant Issues? Preposterous. Now, of course, it’s that attitude that seems preposterous. Larry McMurtry has a Pulitzer for Lonesome Dove, Clint Eastwood has an Oscar for Unforgiven, and Tombstone, with its scruffy characters and baroque dialogue, has a well-deserved reputation as a television classic.

John Cawelti’s The Six-Gun Mystique was on the leading edge of the intellectual revolution that separates Then from Now. It’s an earnest, impassioned argument for the idea that Westerns are worthy of serious study by literature scholars and cultural historians, a model for how such a study might be conducted, and a guide to the literary and cinematic landscape of Westerns for scholars who might not have grown up with The Virginian, Shane, and Gunsmoke. Cawelti takes pains to show his seriousness and his literature-scholar chops, invoking critics like Northrop Frye, and discussing Max Brand and Zane Grey in terms of heroic archetypes. The Westerns, he argues, are part of our national mythology. Our Hercules carries a Colt revolver and rides a chestnut mare; our King Arthur wears a marshal’s star.

Everyone who now writes about Westerns – me included – rides down trails that The Six-Gun Mystique helped, decades ago, to open. Much of what Cawelti argued for so carefully then is taken as read, now, because he made the case, and got others to take it, and the Western, seriously. For students and serious fans of the genre, his work is still well worth reading – not just as an homage to an intellectual ancestor, but as an education.

[Ruairi Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Got me through my dissertation, lovely

[Drew Powell · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the foundational studies of the western genre. As an overview work it's pretty good. There's not a lot of close textual analysis or case studies, and there's more emphasis placed on literary works as opposed to filmic. This makes sense considering the author is an English professor and also because the western was a fruitful, well established genre even before the first western film was made. The last chapter is essentially a literary review, covering all the ways to analyze the western and the various writers and scholars that have done so. It's very useful. It's a little dated overall but that's to be expected.

[Laurel Bethany Davis-van Luit · Rating 4 out of 5]

excellent resource for a paper on the traditional cowboy hero trope.

[Mitch · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

Fantastic overview and breakdown of the western genre.

[Cat · Rating 1 out of 5]

Only book I've abandoned reading this year. Now that Jacques Derrida is dead, does that mean we can stop reading stuff like this? By "this" I mean over analyzed, incomprehensible post-structuralist gobbeldy gook. Seriously, I could barely understand what Cawelti was trying to say.

Style and vocabulary aside, the over determined analysis is enough to turn you away from theory forever. I have a high threshold for academic jargon, but this put me over the edge.

Avoid. Hopefully work like this will be sent to the dustbin of history.

[Birch · Rating 1 out of 5]

strange