Westerns: A Women's History

Women writers have been instrumental in the development of the western, but the myth that the genre is male-authored persists. Westerns: A Womens History debunks this myth by recovering the work of women writers who were active in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries when the western genre emerged. These authors used classic western conventions while placing women characters at the center of their adventures and improvising with them in surprising and ingenious ways. Original archival analysis also overturns the long-standing myth of the western as a male-dominated genre.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 214 pages
Publication date: 01 June 2024
Publisher: University of Nebraska Press

Westerns have been a significant part of literature, but the myth that they are solely male-authored persists. This is despite the fact that women writers have played a crucial role in the development of the genre. In her book, Westerns: A Womens History, Victoria Lamont aims to debunk this myth by highlighting the contributions of women writers to popular westerns during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Lamont provides detailed studies of several women who played significant roles in shaping the western genre. These women authors created novels that featured classic western elements such as cowboys, schoolmarms, gun violence, lynchings, and cattle branding, but they also placed women characters at the center of their adventures and innovated with western conventions in surprising and ingenious ways.

One example is Emma Ghent Curtiss' novel, The Administratrix, in which a widow disguises herself as a cowboy to infiltrate the cowboy gang responsible for lynching her husband. Another is Muriel Newhall's pulp serial character Sheriff Minnie, who comes to the rescue of numerous defenseless women victims. B. M. Bower, Katharine Newlin Burt, and Frances McElrath also used cattle branding as a metaphor for their feminist critiques of patriarchy in their works.

Lamont's book not only reclaims the work of these and other women authors of popular westerns but also uses original archival analysis to challenge the long-standing myth of the western as a male-dominated genre. She sheds light on the publishing scene of western fiction during this period and demonstrates how women writers were actively involved in shaping the genre and contributing to its popularity.

In conclusion, Westerns: A Womens History is a valuable contribution to literature and history, as it debunks the myth that the western is solely male-authored and highlights the significant contributions of women writers to the genre. By recovering the work of these and other women authors and providing original archival analysis, Lamont offers a fresh perspective on the western genre and its evolution.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781496238955