What’s a Cowboy Without a Cow? Loneliness and Masculinity in Go West
“Go West, young man. Go West.”
Horace Greeley’s quote on the destiny of American settlers to colonise the American West not only inspires the title of Buster Keaton’s 1925 film — Go West — but also opens the film itself. This masculine idea of one’s own will being master to all that falls under its gaze is typical of the Western genre. Often Native Americans find themselves villainised and relegated to the role of the people who must be subjugated for the greater good of the American people. In a typical Western, this is the point where a John Wayne or Gary Cooper-esque figure appears; strapping men whose masculinity permeates their very being, clad in a Stetson, chaps, boots and — most importantly — the revolvers adorning their hips. Intimidating figures who, with a single look, could break a horse’s will and claim it as their own. In Go West, this pioneering protagonist is Buster Keaton who finds himself with chaps, boots, a Stetson of sorts (Keaton’s iconic flat pork pie hats were fashioned from old Stetsons) and a revolver on his hip and ready to make his mark on a cattle ranch. However, unfortunately for Keaton, his chaps are too long, his boots are ill-fitting, and his revolver is a miniature gun found in a woman’s purse. As such, his first steps as the archetypal Western hero find Keaton bow-legged, falling over his own feet and generally undercutting any hope that Keaton’s character Friendless would have of embodying the intimidating figure we would go on to associate with Westerns. Thus, the masculinity of the genre becomes comical, a gag that one has no choice but to laugh at its ridiculousness. Much like Keaton’s character, all of these men are simply boys dressed in costumes chasing a masculine ideal (figure one).
The hero’s journey starts off like many others, Friendless sells all of his worldly possessions and sets out to make it elsewhere. However, whilst this act of independence is usually met with a sense of personal liberation, Keaton’s character appears to be somewhat dismayed at his position. His selling off of his life is seen as a necessity rather than a choice. A picture of an older woman whom the character keeps close at all times suggests the loss of the person closest to him. And for Friendless this would mean everything; people walk all over and simply ignore his presence whilst even dogs keep their distance from his solitary figure. He is a lone man not out of choice, like the Western heroes that populate the genre, but by chance. In his actions, you can see a man desperate for connections whether that be human or otherwise. Keaton plays this beautifully, with his always-expressive eyes at times seeming to plead with those who surround him to take a chance on this lonely fellow. It is this imposed isolation that appears to drive Keaton’s character on his journey, not on a search for riches or a personal quest, but a desire to go somewhere where no one knows his situation, where he is no longer Friendless. But at his first destination of New York, he is greeted by a phenomenon he knows all too well. Tread on — both literally and figuratively — by the residents of the city, he once again finds himself in a state of imposed isolation. The number of people surrounding Keaton’s character has increased but the sense of loneliness is still the same. The hero dejectedly boards a train, not choosing to go West, but ending up there all the same when he falls out of the train via a barrel. Thus, begins his foray into the West of America, a place where one must have an iron will and nerves of steel to survive (if the genre is anything to go by).
Friendless’ defeat at the hands of New York and his casual happenstance approach to life is indicative of the character’s lack of a pioneering and conquering will. A coloniser’s will does not match with the man’s character; he who seeks companionship and cares for others over his own fate is not typical of the masculinity that exudes from those who have ‘conquered’ the West before him. His time as a ranch hand is defined by the character’s compassion and not by his strength. Even on the ranch, the moniker of Friendless rings true as the other hyper-masculine ranch hands ignore him, leaving him to sleep outside and eat on his own. However, within the confines of the ranch, a kindred spirit exists. Outcast by her own people, her sad eyes weighed down by heavy eyelashes and despair, rival Keaton’s own in displaying a wistful melancholia. This perfect embodiment of Keaton’s other half is not the ranch owner’s daughter nor even a fellow lonely ranch hand but a cow by the name of Brown Eyes (figure two). Upon plucking a stone wedged between her hoof, a kinship forms between the pair and they become inseparable. Brown Eyes nuzzles in at Friendless and shows affection for perhaps the first time in the man’s life. Another creature has reached out and lifted him from the cold, depths of his imposed isolation. Of course, this being a comedy, there exists some hilarity in Keaton’s leading woman and love interest being not a woman at all but a cow, however, Keaton ensures that this relationship is one not entirely defined by its comedic nature. There exist real moments of compassion and affection between the pair. Friendless sits out all night (though he does fall asleep) to protect Brown Eyes from wild dogs and whilst doing so lightly drapes a blanket over her hide to make sure she’s warm enough. For the hero, this is not simply a cow but a being who has shown compassion and affection in a time when he has experienced none, from humans or animals.
It is this idea of compassion’s power that exists to undermine the hyper-masculinity of the West. Friendless stands in direct contrast to the ranch hands that typify the dominant masculine ideology of the West. Where they conquer through brute strength and a domineering will, Friendless conquers through understanding and cooperation. The most glaring example of this appears when the ranch hands demand that Brown Eyes must be branded as property and integrated into the mass of cattle that they command. Keaton, unable to watch his animal soulmate be tortured and tamed, instead shaves the mark into her hide. Ultimately, the same outcome is reached but through a method that puts the sanctity of life before that of capital and ideology. By branding the cattle, the ranch hands are simply using their power and exercising their will to tame that which is deemed to be wild. Just like the original colonisers, it is this conquering ideology that permeates almost every action they take. A battle of wills that is ultimately won by violence; conquering nature through the inherent violence of man. These small actions taken by Friendless are indicative of a man who has experienced an outcast’s life, shunned by seemingly every corner of the world. When one has been broken and hurt so thoroughly in spirit, one becomes more sensitive to the condition of those around them. As such, when Keaton’s character attempts to assimilate into this ideology by following the actions of his counterparts he finds his efforts unrewarded. Mimicking the other ranch hands, Friendless attempts to herd the steers by force but they are unresponsive to his calls. Only when he simply asks them to herd together and enter the pen do they comply. This masculine posturing goes against every fibre of his being. His true nature will not allow this barbaric conquering of wills to succeed and thus he walks the path of least harm.
Assimilation in an attempt to stave off encroaching isolation is an idea that was attempted not only by Friendless himself but Brown Eyes. Upon noticing that the cow is being bullied by the other cattle, Friendless takes down some mounted deer horns and attaches them to the head of Brown Eyes. The resulting combination is a Frankenstein’s monster of a creature. One that diminishes the compassion found within Keaton and the cow — through inadvertently covering their soulful eyes — attempting to graft on a physical manifestation of a dominant will. It is apparent, however, that the cow is uncomfortable with this disguise, squirming under the weight of the horns in an attempt to displace its power. Shedding this unnecessary appendage, the cow looks much more comfortable and is once again able to nuzzle Keaton without fear of harming the makeshift cowboy. The makeshift cowboy himself has this literalisation of his domineering will in the shape of the small gun that he found prior to his Western pilgrimage. Guns have often been associated as a way to reclaim a masculinity one has felt stripped from them, a phallic symbol that often erupts into a pissing contest of bullets where no man comes out on top. The obvious comic imagery of the tiny gun lost not only in its holster but also in Keaton’s hands does not remove the power that comes from Friendless embracing this as an extension of his conflicting methods. Acceptance of a stereotypically feminine gun undercuts the toxically masculine traits of his colleagues. Never is this more apparent than when Friendless takes part in a game of cards against some of his fellow ranch hands (figure three). Noticing that his rival has been cheating, he calls him out only to find himself facing down the barrel of his gun (considerably larger than Keaton’s own). Using an imitation of Lillian Gish’s forced smile to distract the man, he outsmarts him and pulls the string allowing for him to point his own gun in response. Using intelligence and strategy, Friendless overcomes a cocky rival who, in previously going unchallenged, relied solely on the power of his domineering will. Friendless, however, does not bend to his will like others before him and thus earns the man’s respect and his gun. Even at this moment when Keaton could shed his ideals and figuratively adopt the ideals of the ranch hands through acceptance of the man’s gun, he sticks with his own methods. The small gun shall remain the tool of his ideals contrasting the roughness of his colleagues.
Unlike those who bend others to their will, Friendless goes along with the wills of others and not until the end of the film does he dare to go against another’s will. And it is this development that marks the destination of Friendless’ hero journey. Entering financial hardship, the ranch owner must sell all of his cattle including Brown Eyes. Friendless desperately begs for the release of his kin but is turned down at every attempt. However, despite his lack of success, Friendless’ defiant spirit highlights how far he has come throughout his journey. Before he was a bystander, simply being walked over by all who make his acquaintance and yet, through his connection with Brown Eyes, he has solidified his will and become the Western hero he was destined to be. Ruling the West through compassion and not the violence that has come before him. And he is allowed to showcase his heroics when the cattle find themselves disrupted on the way to their destination. Seizing this opportunity to both save Brown Eyes whilst also saving the ranch owner from financial ruin, Friendless leads the thousand-strong herd through the city streets to deliver them to the buyer. Of course, in typical Keaton fashion, this is not an entirely straightforward handover. The cattle disperse along the streets, disrupting barbers and department stores alike. This allows for some great gags to emerge in a film that has been light on gags for a Keaton film of this period. Friendless parks Brown Eyes at a car park and receives a ticket to collect his ‘trusty steed’, a costume change into a red devil to lure the cattle forward prompts a lengthy contemplation on whether or not Keaton loses his iconic hat (he of course cannot part with it, for a cowboy never forgets his hat) and cops run amok in the streets providing Keaton the chance to poke fun at law enforcement once again. However, despite the hijinks and the difficulties Friendless does eventually manage to deliver the cattle to the buyer — sans Brown Eyes — saving both his love and the ranch as a hero would.
In thanks for saving the ranch, the owner grants Friendless one request for whatever he desires amongst his possessions. The ranch hand’s daughter, believing that she will be chosen, blushes at the thought of her new life. Much like Brown Eyes, Friendless has plucked a source of pain from her paw, removing a splinter from her hand. Obviously for Keaton his approach to courting does not differ regardless of whether it is a woman or a cow. Again, the opportunity presents itself for Keaton to fulfil a traditional romantic ending and ride off into the sunset with the ranch owner’s daughter and Brown Eyes remains a comical companion. However, this choice would not be in keeping with Friendless and his journey. He points off in the direction of the daughter upon the ranch owner’s request and from behind the woman comes Brown Eyes. Friendless has chosen the companionship with Brown Eyes over the chance of romance. In true, Western hero fashion the cowboy can never end up in the arms of a woman (he does, however, end up on the receiving end of a cow’s nuzzle). In remembrance of the loneliness experienced over the course of his life, Friendless cannot abandon Brown Eyes, the first living creature to show him affection; compassion is apparent in every decision made by the makeshift hero. At his introduction into the Western plains, Friendless found himself imitating a Western hero in his ill-fitting garments but at the film’s end, he cuts a contrasting figure to the stereotypical Western heroes and becomes his own hero. And every Western hero must have their ride off into the sunset. In Go West’s case, Friendless rides off in a truck with the ranch owner and his daughter in the front seats and himself shoulder-to-chuck with his loving companion, Brown Eyes the cow.
