| Mavericks on the Border Contributor(s): Canfield, J. Douglas (Author) |
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ISBN: 0813121809 ISBN-13: 9780813121802 Publisher: University Press of Kentucky OUR PRICE: $28.50 Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats Published: November 2000 Annotation: The American southwest, especially as it existed from the time of the Mexican-American War to World War I, has long fascinated audiences. Twentieth-century authors and filmmakers have created a pantheon of mavericks -- some macho, others angstridden -- who often cross a metaphorical boundary among the literal ones of Anglo, Native American, and Hispanic cultures. Douglas Canfield focuses on these border crossings as a key feature of novels and films about the region. Alongside such works as The Wild Bunch, Broken Arrow, Gringo viejo, Blood Meridian, and Go Down, Moses, Canfield discusses lesser-known novels and films that tell equally compelling stories of the region. He analyzes unfamiliar mavericks as well as familiar ones, including Geronimo, Doc Holliday, and Billy the Kid, as they struggle for identity, purpose, and justice. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Literary Criticism | American - Regional - Performing Arts | Film - History & Criticism |
| Dewey: 813.009 |
| LCCN: 00028310 |
| Physical Information: 0.69" H x 6" W x 9" (1.18 lbs) 256 pages |
| Themes: - Cultural Region - Western U.S. |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Twentieth-century authors and filmmakers have created a pantheon of mavericks -- some macho, others angst-ridden -- who often cross a metaphorical boundary among the literal ones of Anglo, Native American, and Hispanic cultures. Douglas Canfield examines the concept of borders, defining them as the space between states and cultures and ideologies, and focuses on these border crossings as a key feature of novels and films about the region. Canfield begins in the Old Southwest of Faulkner's Mississippi, addressing the problem of slavery; travels west to North Texas and the infamous Gainesville Hanging of Unionists during the Civil War; and then follows scalpers into the Southwest Borderlands. He then turns to the area of the Gadsden Purchase, known for its outlaws and Indian wars, before heading south of the border for the Yaqui persecution and the Mexican Revolution. Alongside such well-known works as Go Down Moses, The Wild Bunch, Broken Arrow, Gringo Viejo, and Blood Meridian, Canfield discusses novels and films that tell equally compelling stories of the region. Protagonists face various identity crises as they attempt border crossings into other cultures or mindsets -- some complete successful crossings, some go native, and some fail. He analyzes figures such as Geronimo, Doc Holliday, and Billy the Kid alongside less familiar mavericks as they struggle for identity, purpose, and justice. |