The Searchers - HMB

There is a strong relationship between the land, and the cowboy that travels upon it. This relationship is shown clearly by the characters Ethan Edwards and Martin Pawley in the western movie The Searchers. Ethan (played by John Wayne) is a man portrayed as being from the landscape from beginning to end. The opeing of The Searchers is a shot from the front porch of a house looking out upon the desert and John Wayne is riding into view, while the end is of John Wayne riding back into the desert. Wayne is shown here as being one with the landscape, he doesn't stick out, he isn't wearing flashy colors, or being overly loud or boastful, he is quiet reserved and hard. This fits in with the idea presented by Jane Tompkins that "to be a man in the Western is to seem to grow out of the environment" (Tompkins 73). Ethan is shown as being the cowboy, the one who disappears for years upon end and isn't tied down. His life is out on the land. He knows the limits the land can put on both him and those around him (including the horses). This is shown when he knows that there is going to be a raid on his brother and his brother's family but waits for his horse to rest and recover before riding back into town. On the other hand Martin (a new man to the land) heads off right away and ends up losing his horse to exhaustion without making it back. Ethan's ruggedness and years of experience proves that "a person (of a certain kind) can remain alone and complete and in control of himself, while controling the external world through physical strength and force of will" (Tompkins 75). In order to have control over the harsh land of the desert a strong relationship must be present. On the other hand Martin is portrayed as being a new man to the desert by his rookie mistakes and overzealous personality and ideas. Througout the movie Martin's relationship with the land is growing, "he courts it, struggles with it, defies it, conquers it, and lies down with it at night" (Tompkins 81). Both characters read the desert finding signs that help lead them on their journey, from trails left by the Indians, to the sudden flurry of birds that yeilds to the idea that something bad is coming. The Searchers is all about two individuals in search for a purpose, and their interactions with the land that both aids them (rivers to escape across) and holds them back (snow storms that cause them to turn back).