THE VIRGINIAN: THEMES AND THE FRONTIER LIFE

1. Distribute the Student Handout: The Virginian: Novel of the Frontier. (Advanced students may read additional excerpts from Frederick Jackson Turner's "Frontier Thesis," available online at http://xroads.virginia.edu/~HYPER/TURNER/.) Turner's piece presents some of the most commonly held beliefs about the West-in his time and in our own. As students watch THE VIRGINIAN, have them look for some of the following elements of Turner's thesis:
   
   
   • the frontier as "the meeting point between savagery and civilization"
     
     
   • the various waves of European settlement on the frontier
     
     
   • the frontier's "promotion of democracy"
     
     
   • Eastern fear of the "unregulated advance of the frontier"
     
     
   • distrust for the federal government on the frontier
     
     
   • American traits of "the intellect" (e.g.: "coarseness and strength," "practical, inventive turn of mind," "restless, nervous energy")
   
   
   Can they feel the sense of loss of the frontier in TNT's THE VIRGINIAN? What forms and symbols does this notion take? How do your students feel about the loss of wilderness? Is it an inevitable progression? What is the relationship between the loss of land and the loss of personal responsibility and integrity? Extension: Have students write a brief essay exploring one of the above frontier themes as it plays out in THE VIRGINIAN.
   
   
   
2. One of the themes of Owen Wister's novel The Virginian is equality and inequality; in fact, he titled one of his chapters, Quality and Equality. This theme is played out in TNT's THE VIRGINIAN in several scenes. For example, in one scene, Molly gives her students a lesson on the Declaration of Independence, in another, the Virginian tells Molly, "You believe all men are equal... could be, some men are better and some men are worse. Some good, some bad. Some deserve a queen's hand, and some never will." How does the Virginian's view on equality differ from Molly's? Have students write a journal entry on "What does equality mean to me?" With whom do students agree, Molly or the Virginian?"
   
   
3. How is the traditional notion of "good guys and bad guys" played out in THE VIRGINIAN? How is this conflict portrayed in the western frontier as opposed to the east? Have students identify the dialogue in the film that provides insight as to how Wister may have felt about the line between good and bad.
   
   
4. Distribute the Student Handout: The Virginian: Novel of the Frontier. Have students discuss the meaning and significance of "the frontier" in a traditional western. What are today's frontiers? In what ways are stories set in frontiers different from those in more conventional settings? Have students choose a frontier to research and write about in terms of their significance in literature and/or film.

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