KLR The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

In The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, there is a distinct paradox in the idea of the law of the book and the law of the gun. Because Rance Stoddard is from the city, and happens to be a lawyer, his life is defined by gaining justice through the law. On the other hand, Tom Doniphon is a typical alpha male cowboy. He knows that out West, the only way one can truly find justice is by using his gun.

In Sue Matheson’s article, The West-Hardboiled: Adaptations of Film Noir Elements, Existentialism, and Ethics in John Wayne’s Westerns, she describes the movie as being a prime example of “moral individualism and pervasive corruption” (896). The only way that Rance Stoddard can get revenge is to join the locals of the Shinbone Cowboys in living outside the law, one of the traits of a real alpha male.

John Wayne’s character, Tom Doniphon, also acts with typical alpha male qualities. As Matheson points out, Doniphon “could have secured his relationship with Hallie by standing aside and letting Valance kill Stoddard…but he does not. Doniphon destroys his personal happiness by acting in good faith” (897). Having strong moral values is considered to be one of the core values in any alpha male qualities. However, Matheson brings about a good point stating that although Tom Doniphon seemed to be the strong brave man of the town, he is essentially the “existential antihero” who doesn’t feel guilty for cold-bloodedly killing Liberty Valance (897).

Overall, I agree with Matheson’s ideas about the alpha male cowboys in the West. When someone who isn’t from the West wants to do things the way he does back home, he will fail. As she says in her article, “to retrieve what is his, he must break the law” (898). This is one of the fundamental themes of the Western genre: you must abide by the cowboy’s rules in order to get what one wants. The expectations are already set established; anything but will put you in a place you don’t want to be.