The Western genre has long been associated with right-wing and libertarian politics, and is said to promote individualism and free-market economics. In a new look at the Western, however, Ryan McMaken shows that the Western is in fact often anti-capitalist, and in many ways, the genre attacks the dominant ideology of nineteenth-century America: classical liberalism.
The classical Westerns of the mid-twentieth century often feature wealthy capitalist villains who oppress the cowardly and defenseless shopkeepers and farmers of the frontier. The gunfighter, a representative of the law and order provided by the nation-state, intervenes to provide safety and justice. In addition to attacks on capitalism, the Western attacks other prized values of the bourgeois middle classes including Christianity, education and urbanization.
McMaken examines these themes as used in the films of John Ford, Anthony Mann, and Howard Hawks. These pioneers of the classical Westerns are then contrasted with later innovators such as Sergio Leone, Sam Peckinpah, and Clint Eastwood. Also included are discussions of the role of the Little House On The Prairie series, Victorian literature, and the nature of crime on the historical frontier. With a foreword by Paul A. Cantor.
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Ryan McMaken (@ryanmcmaken) is editor-in-chief at the Mises Institute, a former economist for the State of Colorado, and the author of two books: Breaking Away: The Case of Secession, Radical Decentralization, and Smaller Polities and Commie Cowboys: The Bourgeoisie and the Nation-State in the Western Genre. Ryan has a bachelor’s degree in economics and a master’s degree in public policy, finance, and international relations from the University of Colorado.
On this episode of Radio Rothbard, Jonathan Newman joins Ryan and Tho to discuss this week's Fed rate cut, and to breakdown down Jerome Powell's most recent press conference.
During Mises University, Ryan McMaken interviewed Dr. Joseph Salerno on a live episode of Radio Rothbard. The topic was “What Makes the Austrian School Different?” This article is a selection from the 30-minute interview with Dr. Salerno.
In this issue of The Misesian, we want to give readers a sense of what happens at Mises University by featuring lectures and photos from the event, as well as testimonials from students.
