The Mud Below

How does 'The Mud Below' offer a revisionist interpretation of the mythology of the west and western settlement?

 

Overview

- the story of Diamond Felts - a small time bull rider who has a very troubled family past

- follows his story - from when he first got onto a bull and held on for 8 seconds - described as 'the experience had been exhilarating and unbearably personal' - through his times as a travelling bull rider and a seemingly lonely life that is associated with it.

- story includes the hostile relationship he has with his family - his mother did not want him to go to school to become a bull rider, so resents him for going against her wishes - his father tells Diamond that he isn't his father and then leaves them - Diamonds younger brother looks up to him in some ways as he wants to be a bull rider like him, but seems confused as he wants to stick up for his mum more - a focus on the cowboys family a new concept?

 

Masculinity

- Cowboys/heroic figures were the height of masculinity in Western novels/films

- "Proulx rewrites the genre of the Western from a feminist perspective that deconstructs the figure of the cowboy—an iconic image of US masculinity." - Arosteguy

- "Proulx’s male characters, on the other hand, exhibit constructed and fluid masculinities" - Arosteguy

- "His identification with the bull introduces an important theme in the story as Diamond, for the first time in his life, experienced a sense of power over others" - Rood

- Diamond Felts called derogatory names - 'half pint' and 'shorty' - shows the lack of masculine authority by the main character

     - Mother is the main person to do this - replaces his real name with 'Shorty' - "although    they [mothers] recognise to some extent the problem with dominant culture's strict definition of masculinity and seek ways to remove their sons from this restrictive environment, the mothers do exhibit signs that they too have internalised these ways of judging a man" - "reinforces the underlying anxiety that forces him to pursue bull riding" Arosteguy -

- Shows other weaknesses - the rejection by his father plays an important and destructive role in Diamonds life - "not your father and never was"

- "As a result of this emotional trauma, Diamond is as stunted emotionally as he is physically, his outward appearance mirroring the inner self" - Rood 'Understanding Annie Proulx'

- Diamond gets hurt quite a bit from his bull riding and does suffer from his injuries - something that is not seen in Westerns - the hero recovers quickly

     - tore the ligaments in his knee and dislocates his shoulder, both from bull riding

 

Loneliness - Travelling

- Cowboys usually lead a lonely life - travel mostly by themselves for a long time - The Searchers - Ethan Edwards visits his family after travelling for many years, and then leaves at the end by himself

- Diamond does travel with a couple of different companions - but does not respect them - Was annoyed a Leccil when he went back home to settle down; he rapped his second companion, Myron Sassers wife in the back of his truck; Pake Bitts was a Christian, but Diamond was rude to him because of this - but he must of respected him to some extent as he carried on with Diamond to the end of the tale - westerns did not show this sort of disrespect in the friendship between cowboys

- Didn't stick around for long - felt like they were of no use after they had helped or done their heroic deed - can't stay in his mothers house for more than 4 days when he hurts his knee, may be due to fact that the civilised old life is not what he wants, and he prefers his wild, but lonely, lifestyle

- Proulx makes the point that although some cowboys may talk about their family and how much they miss them, they still choose to lead a lonely life on the road - "You all make a big noise about family, what I hear, wife and kids, ma and pa, sis and bub. But none of you spend much time at home and you never wanted to or you wouldn't be in rodeo"

 

The lifestyle of a rancher/cowboy

- Diamonds mother tried to bring her sons up away from the rancher lifestyle - thinks it would mean that they wouldn't amount to much - "No. You can't. You're going to college. What is this, some kid thing you kept to yourself all this time? I worked life a fool to bring you boys up in a town, get you out of the mud, give you a chance to make something out of yourselves.." - "The mother figure, in Proulx's work, is often plagued by extreme feelings of guilt because she has failed to protect her son from falling victim to the allures of fantasy life" - Arosteguy

- the mother figure is rarely seen in Westerns - so we never see whether this sort of lifestyle was accepted by them for their sons - adds an extra realistic layer of the story

- living on a ranch is largely seen as a desirable thing to do in western mythology - Proulx puts across the idea that this would not be true for everyone

 

Conclusion

- as a overall, it would seem that Proulx is writing these stories to debunk the mythology of the West - which would make her stories a revisionist reinterpretation of the Western genre

   - not all cowboys were tall, heroic and didn't have emotional issues

   - the lonely life of the cowboy did not make you mysterious, it was quite depressing for these men

   - the life of a rancher was probably not a desired life to lead

- Diamonds mother plays quite a big role in the story - shows how the role of women have a bigger impact on men than represented in Western film/TV shows

- places the role of the hero's family as a whole as a significant reason for the actions of the main character - normally we see the hero as a singular figure with no background to explain his actions

- "revealing the inherent complexities involved in maintaining the successful image of the cowboy—reveals just how implausible and problematic such a masculinity is. In interrogating the cowboy figure’s inability to accommodate complexities of globalization, amid other realities of twenty first- century America, Proulx criticizes the mythology of the cowboy figure" - Katie O. Arosteguy 'Deconstructing the myth of the cowboy'

- "where descriptions of the beautiful but forbidding landscape create a lyrical counterpoint to the violence and tragedy of individual lives" - Rood 'Understanding Annie Proulx'

American Studies Blog Post 11

American Studies Blog Post 11

Post and analyse any TWO websites dealing with contemporary US border issues, one PRO, one ANTI Latino immigration. Compare how they address the issues. Look for advocacy websites, with a strong point of view, not news reports.

Pro: https://www.aclu.org ‘American Civil Liberties Union’ (ACLU)

Anti: http://www.fairus.org ‘Federation for American Immigration Reform’ (FAIR)

Ethnicity and immigration has always been difficult within America. As Campbell and Keane state: “the ethnic mix of America is complex, consisting of indigenous peoples as well as voluntary and involuntary immigrants around whom revolve question of religion, allegiance and national pride.”

The anti immigration group, Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) are a “national, non-profit, public interest, membership organisation” whose focus is to serve national interest on immigration policies. The group has more than 250,000 members, where the group seek to help concerned citizens with raising their voice on “sensible” immigration policies within America. The pro immigration group, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), are a group who work within “courts, legislatures and communities” who are working to achieve the guarantee of individual rights and liberties within the United States. They refer to themselves as the “nation’s guardian of liberty.”

Interestingly, both websites were published within a website called ‘finding dulcinea’. Where the both sources were referred to as “valuable sources of information” however, continues with, “any facts or statistics you read are published to reinforce the group’s agenda.” After taking a brief look at both websites, it is clear both address their views articulately and structurally.

Both groups have a tag line; the pro immigration groups being, ‘because freedom can’t protect itself’ and anti immigration: ‘a policy that serves the interest of the American People.”  Both use emotive language within this to engage with the reader. The pro immigration group plays on the idea of immigrants not being able to support themselves, where as the anti immigration group reinstates that the group is not aggressive and only wishes the best for America. Similarly, looking at the language both groups use within their campaigning, second person pronouns are used throughout, to further engage with the reader. A key example of this within the pro immigration website is ‘Action is where real change starts: with you.” This stresses to the reader that they can have an opinion and be involved within the campaigning. The anti immigration website also use this technique within the question, “what can you do?”

The Federation for American Immigration Reform and American Civil Liberties Union, use their logos as a way of addressing their issues. The FAIR use the Statues of Liberty, which is known for its hope and opportunity to immigrants, implicating why this idea may not be viewed as prominently now. Referring back to Crevecoeur in 1957 who stated, ‘in America individuals are melted into a new race of men’. The ACLU use an image of the world, which has a less instant effect on the reader. Primarily the idea of this could be that this image insinuates how big the world is and how immigration effects everyone. Either way, both use images to convey their address. This is carried on throughout their websites where they portray a range of media ideas.

To reach to a younger audience, the intention to draw them in by social media is prominent throughout. On both homepages of the website, there is the option to be directed to the organisations social media pages. This helps to address their issues to a larger audience and to keep members and followers updated with relevant news. In addition, there are options to become a member on both homepages, to sign up and demonstrate your support.

As previously mentioned, both websites use a clear and accessible structure, which offers a break down of their issues. By using this technique the issues are easy to follow. Both website have a section for “issues”, “about”, “action” and “donate”. Which covers all information essentially needed to convey their arguments. However, the main differences within this structure are two headings. In the American Civil Liberties Union, there is a section named “stories” where there are a variety of videos, which portray an emotional engagement as to why this help is needed for immigrants. https://www.aclu.org/multimedia (Here is the web link needed to watch some of these videos). In contrast to this, the Federation for American Immigration Reform convey their following and support under the section “press”. Here the organisation state a variety of big newspapers, magazines and television which conveys how broad their audience is, from CNN, NBS, the New York Times and USA today – all very established.

A common technique further used by both organisations is the use of statistics, as a way of supporting their arguments. As a reader, factual evidence helps support a claim.

Both websites deal with two different issues with the border of the U.S. Despite having completely different arguments in both, they use a variety of the same techniques to address their issues. Interestingly, unlike many other campaigners, their page features a lot of information other than news reports. This helps gives a further insight on the campaigners themselves and what personally, they wish to achieve. Conclusively, both are non-profit organisations, which implicate that what they wish to achieve is more neutral and for the good of what they want, rather than the money they could make from this.

Sources:

https://www.aclu.org

http://www.fairus.org

http://www.findingdulcinea.com

American Studies Blog Post 10

American Studies Blog Post 11

How does “job history” offer a revisionist interpretation of the mythology of the west and western settlement?

Introduction

The Wild West has given rise to immensely influential national myths. Annie Prolux’s short story “Job history” uses the mid-western setting to explore various aspects of theme and characterisation.

Summary

It follows a man named Leeland Lee’s life from birth to fifty and his adventure, set against the harsh backdrop of Wyoming life in mid-western America.

·     Prolux’s character Leeland Lee is typical of her narrative, with critic Katie Arosteguy stating, “Prolux rewrites the genre of the Western from a feminist perspective that deconstructs the figure of the cowboy – an iconic image of US masculinity.”

·       Leeland Lee is no acceptation to this. Prolux challenges this and criticizes this typical representation of the west and western settlement, throughout her narrative.

Point One

·       The west presented a myth where you could be anyone from anywhere and be able to achieve.

·   As French critic Giles Deueuze argued, like D.H. Lawrence and many others, America was concerned with “de-territorialisation”, or the movement across lines and boundaries, with being unafraid to flee to new lands or leave new ones behind.

·     This myth is presented as a failure through Leeland Lee’s character as he spends his whole life moving his family across America in search of jobs to support his family. Lee states, “it seemed like a good time to try another place.” As stated before, Lee has thirteen jobs throughout this short story, which reinstates how hard it was to hold a job within the 1950-1960’s economy.

·    CONTEXT - This comes to no shock as after World War Two the efficiency and productivity of the US economy had    dramatically improved and John F Kennedy made a promise in his 1960’s campaign to “get America moving again.”

·      Leeland Lee has to work many different jobs, ranging from carpenter work, raising hogs and pumping gas. Unlike the myth of work always being there within the west, Lee struggles with business. Once it seems like the family has settled, there is always something usually getting in the way. At the beginning of the novel, Lee manages to get a job at the Egge’s Service Station, where the road is initially on the main tourist road to Yellowstone. However, one day there is “a hundred cars stop for gas and oil, hamburgers, cold soda.” But business can change so quickly, which demonstrates how the west does not offer security. Within a few months, “there is a for sale sign on the inside window of the service station.” The harsh reality Prolux presents is that this idea of the west changing someone is not always evident. Completed with Ed Egge getting drunk and “driving at speed, hits two steers on the country road.” Katie Arosteguy again presents the idea that Prolux suggests that cowboy masculinity is anything but permanent, stable or easily defined.

·    This supported with the quote “departure, becoming and passage” by Deueuze who, supports identity as not fixed. Again reiterated through in Cultural Identity and Diaspora, with cultural identity being stated: “but, like everything which is historical, they undergo constant transformation. Far from being eternally fixed in some essentialised past, they are subject to the continuous “play” of history, culture and power.” Prolux again could be indicating through her narrative that as Leeland moves around so much with his family, they aren’t settled in one place enough to personally undergo this “constant transformation.” However they do see this transformation within moving around.

Point Two

·    Prolux questions the idea of isolation as the news features throughout the story. Leeland Lee’s life is chronologically presented through major events in America in the later half of the twentieth century, such as the Super Bowl and Vietnam. However, the opening and final paragraphs are closed with “There is no news on the radio” “nobody has time to listen to the news” The idea that although the news does not directly effect them, it still is a part of their life.

Point Three

·      The iconic representation of the cowboy figure as romanticized has been mythologized throughout the western history. As critic Elizabeth Abele described a cowboy as “romatacise[d] and residen[t] of the Western territory.”

·      Where the cowboy is a rugged individualist who is all but seen as the definition of masculine. He is the ideology of freedom, power, usually handsome and a true American identity. In contrast to this stereotype, Prolux describes Leeland Lee as a face with “heavy bone” a “thick neck” and “red-gold hair plastered down in his bangs.” With ”His nose lying broad and close to his face.”

·     In addition, to his looks, his personality is not of the romanticized. Leeland Lee’s story is an account of his day-to-day struggles however, there is little emotion expressed within the narrative, with everything being expressed matter of fact. The use of Prolux’s short sentences adds to the harshness of the west that she is trying to present. There is not even emotion used when Leeland Lee’s wife dies, it is simply put “Lori dies”. Although it is noted that Leeland Lee sits with her at the hospital everyday. The only hint of emotion, despite this, is through the youngest child who is stated to “cry inconsolably.” Again within the narrative, the only emotion used to describe Leeland Lee himself is when he returns from war which when he comes back to Wyoming is just seen as “heavier and moodier”.

Point Four

·      Violence against women is demonstrated within the short story “job history”. Prolux demonstrates that the western men are not all kind and gentle, and men use female bodies as another way for them to show dominant masculinity. There are two examples of this.

·      The first by Leeland Lee who despite is out of town a lot, “seems but back often enough for what he calls “a good ride” and so makes Lori pregnant again.” The implications of this are that Leeland Lee impregnates Lori without any thoughts of what she wants.

·      The second example is more obvious with Leeland Lee’s daughter. As Katie Arosteguy states, “here the women’s body is an object upon which the disenfranchised male can act out his fears and frustrations for perceived lacks of cowboy masculinity.” The encounter happens due to the youngest daughter of Leeland Lee’s eating the piece of cake he had been saving.

Point Five

·     In addition to Annie Prolux presenting women within her short story “job history”, Lori’s character is remarked as intelligent, hard working and supportive. Leeland Lee can also be viewed as having to depend on Lori at times. Her intelligence is shown through her money saving skills, “Lori is good at saving money and she has put aside a small nest egg” and again “Lori has saved a little money.” Lori is always the one who is able to make the journeys between jobs possible.

·     CRITIC - Katie Arosteguy states’ “the social and cultural constructions of female gendered subjectivity are fast becoming old.” This is again reinstated when Lori is one of the two who passes the first aid course on her first time. Furthermore, when Lori dies at the end of the short story, Leeland Lee is left with no family and it is not until a woman employs him to work for her that he seems to pick up the pieces and carry on with his life.

Conclusion

Prolux’s narrative constantly rejects traditionally held beliefs about the western settlement, primarily through her main character Leeland Lee, who portrays the west and the image of the successful cowboy as a failure.

Latino Immigration

Pro-immigration: American Civil Liberties Union

The website I have chosen is for the American Civil Liberties Union (ALCU) who call themselves their 'nation's guardians of liberty'. The organisation was founded in 1920, along with the Immigrants' Rights Project. It was founded at this time because of the 'Red Scare', which meant that millions of immigrants were unlawfully and unconstitutionally detained and deported because of their political views. The group founded so that people in this situation were not alone and had support when fighting difficult legal battles. It is clear that this organisation are pro-immigration, as there is a whole section of the organisation called the Immigrants' Rights Project. They state how they believe that 'When the government has the power to deny legal rights and due process to one vulnerable group, everyone’s rights are at risk.  The ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project is dedicated to expanding and enforcing the civil liberties and civil rights of immigrants and to combating public and private discrimination against them.' The ALCU IRP have been at the forefront of almost every major legal struggle on behalf of immigrants' rights through class action lawsuits, law reform litigation, judicial rulings and legal advocacy. 

They justify their dedication towards rights for immigrants on the basis of the American Constitution and Bill of Rights, which state that the rulings of these apply to all 'persons', which is not discriminating against whether said 'persons' are citizens or illegal immigrants. The ALCU are there to make sure that immigrants, whether legal or not, have access to lawyers and courts and any legal help they need in order to fight their battles to become a citizen. They are committed to challenging any discriminatory immigration enforcement acts wherever they occur. 
One of the key articles I noticed on this website is called 'Know Your Rights: What To Do If You're Stopped By Police, Immigration Agents, or the FBI'. This article shows that the ALCU are about helping immigrants wherever possible. Regardless of their legal status, the ALCU are committed to ensuring that the constitutional rights of any person are upheld by the law enforcement agencies. 

Anti-immigration: Americans for Immigration Control Inc.

This organisation is advocating increased immigration control, however, it is not a website which is strongly anti-immigration as such. On the website homepage one of the first things you see is that the 'AIC is an American non-partisan grassroots activist organization with more than a quarter of a million members – citizens of all races, creeds, and colors'. I think that it is evident here that the AIC want to emphasise the diversity of race groups involved in this organisation, as this can be seen to show that they are not against Latino immigration in general, but are merely 'about stopping the millions of illegal aliens who sneak across our border from Mexico every year'. However, the very fact that they openly call illegal immigrants 'aliens' shows that they can't be completely tolerant of Latino immigrants, illegal or not. This is further shown by their want for legal immigration rates to be reduced as well. 

The AIC are completely against the government granting amnesty to any illegal immigrants, and are continually campaigning to try and improve the security of the US-Mexico borders to try and prevent anymore 'alien' immigrants entering the US. The websites reports on its active involvement in campaigning for secure borders and they seemingly prides themselves on the reputation they have earned in Congress for their commitment to this issue. 
This organisation released a statement which, essentially, says how unhappy they are with President Obama's executive order granting amnesty to almost one million illegal immigrants:'how can the president justify allowing these illegal immigrants to work in the United States when millions of American remain unemployed or who have stopped looking for work?” Kent said. “Obama has put partisan politics and illegal immigrants ahead of the rule of law and the American people.'

However, whilst it is evident that the AIC are very much active in the process of tightening US border control, there is not a lot on their website to show what their actual mission is. Obviously, they want to reduce immigration to a supposedly 'more manageable rate', it is not clear how they plan to go about doing this, and they also do not make it clear why they think that the work they have done and are doing will be of benefit for a majority of Americans. 

Overall, it is clear that this organisation are active in their field, but despite their supposed tolerance of legal Latino immigrants in the US, a lot of their campaigning seems to be about reducing immigration rates in general, showing that they are, perhaps, more anti-immigration than they want to appear to be.