Myth and heroes : How far does cowboys can be considered as Heroes? How does cowboys embody Ameriacain Values?

Myth and heroes

A hero is an ordinary man or woman who has done extraordinary things. They do not need to be tall or strong. It is the way they have behaved to save someone or to make a difference that makes them heroes. A myth can be defined as a story about gods or heroes. I am going to speak about an American figure wich is the cowboy. And the questions that we are going to ask is How far does cowboys can be considered as Heroes? How does cowboys embody Ameriacain Values?

I/ The cowboy’s lifestyle

First of all The cowboy is an American figure who has multiple faces. A cowboy is a rancher / someone who raises cattle. A cowboy may also be a gunfighter, who rides his horse in the Wild West in search of adventure. Even if the cowboy is often perceived as an outlaw, first and foremost he is the one who went west, and had to adapt to a hostile land to set up a ranch.

To answer our questions we have studied a video named “The Texas Longhorn ranch”.

The Texas Longhorn is a breed of cattle known for its very long horns. They are descendants of the first cattle brought by the Spanish settlers. They are Drought-resistant.

When I saw the video, I was immediately seduced by the beauty of the landscape. Then I was attracted by the farmers’ genuine lifestyle. However, I am not sure I would be able to cope with the ranch’s hard labour. Ranchers have to get up very early in the morning to take care of the cattle.

II/ The frontier

Then we have seen another video named “The horse patrol unit”. This video is about a patrol that protect the border from drug smugglers and illegal entrants. And they use horses because the horse is stealthy and it can go everywhere even in inaccessible places. And this group is composed of 20 people and 35 horses.

Those people can be considered as heroes because the Frontier has always been a risky place. It was a wild, hostile place that the settlers had to go through. First, the cowboy was a settler who had to protect his family against wild animals and Indian tribes. Now the cowboy still defends the border against drug smugglers and illegal immigration.

The cowboy is a beloved figure in the USA because he symbolizes the values of America such as freedom and determination. The cowboy contributed to the building of America. He was the settler who went west and took part in the construction of the nation. He is the beloved ancestor that enabled the USA to be the way it is today.

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