A Fistful of Icons - by Sue Matheson (Paperback)

About the Book

"In this collection of new essays, 21 contributors from around the globe examine the "cowboy cool" iconography of film and television Westerns--from bounty hunters in buckskin jackets to the seedy saloons and lonely deserts"--

Book Synopsis

After a century of reinvention and, frequently, reinterpretation, Western movies continue to contribute to the cultural understanding of the United States. And Western archetypes remain as important emblems of the American experience, relating a complex and coded narrative about heroism and morality, masculinity and femininity, westward expansion and technological progress, and assimilation and settlement.

In this collection of new essays, 21 contributors from around the globe examine the "cowboy cool" iconography of film and television Westerns--from bounty hunters in buckskin jackets to denizens of seedy saloons and lonely deserts, from Cecil B. DeMille and John Ford to Steve McQueen and Budd Boetticher, Jr.

About the Author

Sue Matheson is a professor of English at the University College of the North in Manitoba, Canada. She is the author, editor, or co-editor of more than a dozen scholarly volumes, specializing in American popular culture and film.