The Iconography of John Ford's Westerns

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Published: Dec 10, 2020
DOI: https://doi.org/10.47743/lincu-2020-2-0176
Keywords:
American West cultural icon frontier patriotic landscape John Wayne

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Irina Chirica
Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iași, Romania

Abstract

This paper follows the way in which the filmography of the movie director John Ford presents cultural icons. We discuss the symbolism of these images and their cultural significance in the larger context of the West as a cultural area and American culture in general. Ford’s sensibility had one foot in 19th century American thought and feeling, and the other in the 20th century. We argue in favor of the idea that John Ford is a myth-builder and a visual image-maker whose contribution provided the foundation of a romantic, heroic America and the forging of American national character.

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How to Cite
Chirica, I. “The Iconography of John Ford’s Westerns”. Linguaculture, vol. 11, no. 2, Dec. 2020, pp. 113-24, doi:10.47743/lincu-2020-2-0176.
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Vol. 11 No. 2 (2020)
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Articles
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Author Biography

Irina Chirica, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iași, Romania

Irina Chirica is specialized in American Studies - history, ethnicity, visual arts history of the United States. She holds a PhD with the research paper - Aspects of Time in 20th Century American Novel. She has visited the US on several occasions - one of these was a Senior Fulbright Scholarship. She teaches American History, American Regionalism (The West of Imagination), the American Short Story, Native American history and culture, Ethnic History and Literature. Her publications include articles and books devoted to aspects of these areas of study.

References

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