Tuesday, February 9, 2010

The Man who shot liberty Valance

In the movie The Man who shot liberty Valance there are two alpha male cowboys, one representing good and the other representing evil. Liberty Valance is the typical western villain, unshaven and perpetually covered in a layer of dirt. As Matheson states “One can usually determine how aberrant the characters are by their layers of grime-the dirtier the faces the darker their hearts.” Valance is a notorious criminal that most people in the town of Shinbone fear. Tom Donifon the classic “hardboiled” western hero, as Matheson would describe him, is the first one to stand up to Valance. Tom is not afraid of danger and is driven by duty. The traits of a “hardboiled” western hero are amplified through the contrasting character traits of Tom Donifon and Rance Stoddard. Stoddard is a well educated, well spoken man of the Law. He brings education to the town of Shinbone by creating the first school. When Tom returns to town he is angry at the fact that people have stopped working and are wasting their time with education. Another difference between Rance and Tom is shown at the end of the movie. When Rance almost refused the nomination because he killed a man Tom told him that he had killed Valance because he knew he could live with it. In the end good wins over when Tom Donifon kills Liberty Valance.

1 comment:

  1. In the movie The Man who shot liberty Valance there are two dominant male cowboys, one representing good and the other representing evil. Valance is a notorious criminal that most people in the town of Shinbone fear. Valance fits the description of a psychopath as defined by Matheson. Tom Donifon the classic “hardboiled” western hero, as Matheson would describe him, is the first one to stand up to Valance. Tom is not afraid of danger and is driven by duty. The traits of a “hardboiled” western hero are amplified through the contrasting character traits of Tom Donifon and Rance Stoddard. Stoddard is a well educated, well spoken man of the Law. He brings education to the town of Shinbone by creating the first school. When Tom returns to town he is angry at the fact that people have stopped working and are wasting their time with education. Another difference between Rance and Tom is shown at the end of the movie. When Rance almost refused the nomination because he killed a man Tom told him that he had killed Valance because he knew he could live with it. In the end good wins over when Tom Donifon kills Liberty Valance.

    ReplyDelete