Never-aging stories: age, masculinity and the western myth in Sydney Pollack's "The electric horseman"

According to Gabriela Spector-Mersel there are no cultural models for old men, in comparison to the easily available scripts in early and middle adulthood. As such, this is a considerably unsettling phase of negotiation for men as they need to (re)define their identity and their sense of masculinity...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor: Pelayo Sañudo, Eva
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2020
País:España
Institución:Universidad de Cantabria (UC)
Repositorio:UCrea Repositorio Abierto de la Universidad de Cantabria
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:repositorio.unican.es:10902/23925
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10902/23925
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Aging
Masculinity
Western
Cowboy
Envejecer
Masculinidad
id ES_129cb47b2d1ec0efaee3575598d91cd3
oai_identifier_str oai:repositorio.unican.es:10902/23925
network_acronym_str ES
network_name_str España
repository_id_str
spelling Never-aging stories: age, masculinity and the western myth in Sydney Pollack's "The electric horseman"Pelayo Sañudo, EvaAgingMasculinityWesternCowboyEnvejecerMasculinidadAccording to Gabriela Spector-Mersel there are no cultural models for old men, in comparison to the easily available scripts in early and middle adulthood. As such, this is a considerably unsettling phase of negotiation for men as they need to (re)define their identity and their sense of masculinity particularly when aging. The masculinity embodied by the cowboy prototype certainly fits this model that sees masculinities as a "temporal script" (67). In the classic 1979 movie "The Electric Horseman", directed by Sydney Pollack, the factor of age runs as a subtext that not only informs masculine identity but also takes on a broader significance to express an important cultural transformation. Instead of simply focusing on the effects of the passing of time for an individual man, the film explores the changes in US society through one of its most celebrated cultural icons, the cowboy. To analyze Sonny Steele's distinctiveness within hegemonic ageless narratives in "The Electric Horseman", this article will set him alongside two archetypal figures of the genre of the western: the cowboy and the horse, which serves as a key vehicle of the character's own exalted masculinity. This critical approach shows how the prevailing model of youthful or ageless masculinity in cowboy stories can thus be challenged.Según Gabriela Spector-Mersel, no existen modelos culturales para los hombres en la etapa de la vejez, en comparación con las representaciones ampliamente disponibles en la juventud o en la edad adulta. Por ello, se trata de una difícil fase de negociación para los hombres que necesitan (re)definir su identidad y su sentido de la masculinidad al envejecer. La masculinidad encarnada por el prototipo del vaquero se ajusta especialmente a este modelo que considera las masculinidades sujetas a un "guión temporal" (67). En la clásica película "The Electric Horseman", dirigida por Sydney Pollack en 1979, el factor edad funciona como un subtexto que no solo informa la identidad masculina sino que también expresa una transformación cultural más amplia. En lugar de centrarse simplemente en los efectos del paso del tiempo para un hombre individual, la película explora los cambios en la sociedad estadounidense a través de uno de sus iconos más reconocidos, el vaquero. Para analizar el carácter distintivo de Sonny Steele dentro de las narrativas hegemónicas sobre la edad en "The Electric Horseman", el artículo lo examina a través de dos figuras arquetípicas del género western: el vaquero y el caballo, el cual sirve fundamentalmente como mecanismo de expresión de la masculinidad del personaje. Esta aproximación crítica muestra la posibilidad de cuestionar el modelo predominante de esa masculinidad anclada en una juventud eterna en las historias de vaqueros.Universidad de SevillaUniversidad de Cantabria20202020-01-01journal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501NAhttp://purl.org/coar/version/c_be7fb7dd8ff6fe43info:eu-repo/semantics/articlehttp://hdl.handle.net/10902/23925Revista de Estudios Norteamericanos, 2020, 24, 181-201reponame:UCrea Repositorio Abierto de la Universidad de Cantabriainstname:Universidad de Cantabria (UC)Inglésengopen accesshttp://purl.org/coar/access_right/c_abf2Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 Internationalhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessoai:repositorio.unican.es:10902/239252026-06-02T12:39:31Z
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Never-aging stories: age, masculinity and the western myth in Sydney Pollack's "The electric horseman"
title Never-aging stories: age, masculinity and the western myth in Sydney Pollack's "The electric horseman"
spellingShingle Never-aging stories: age, masculinity and the western myth in Sydney Pollack's "The electric horseman"
Pelayo Sañudo, Eva
Aging
Masculinity
Western
Cowboy
Envejecer
Masculinidad
title_short Never-aging stories: age, masculinity and the western myth in Sydney Pollack's "The electric horseman"
title_full Never-aging stories: age, masculinity and the western myth in Sydney Pollack's "The electric horseman"
title_fullStr Never-aging stories: age, masculinity and the western myth in Sydney Pollack's "The electric horseman"
title_full_unstemmed Never-aging stories: age, masculinity and the western myth in Sydney Pollack's "The electric horseman"
title_sort Never-aging stories: age, masculinity and the western myth in Sydney Pollack's "The electric horseman"
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Pelayo Sañudo, Eva
author Pelayo Sañudo, Eva
author_facet Pelayo Sañudo, Eva
author_role author
dc.contributor.none.fl_str_mv Universidad de Cantabria
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Aging
Masculinity
Western
Cowboy
Envejecer
Masculinidad
topic Aging
Masculinity
Western
Cowboy
Envejecer
Masculinidad
description According to Gabriela Spector-Mersel there are no cultural models for old men, in comparison to the easily available scripts in early and middle adulthood. As such, this is a considerably unsettling phase of negotiation for men as they need to (re)define their identity and their sense of masculinity particularly when aging. The masculinity embodied by the cowboy prototype certainly fits this model that sees masculinities as a "temporal script" (67). In the classic 1979 movie "The Electric Horseman", directed by Sydney Pollack, the factor of age runs as a subtext that not only informs masculine identity but also takes on a broader significance to express an important cultural transformation. Instead of simply focusing on the effects of the passing of time for an individual man, the film explores the changes in US society through one of its most celebrated cultural icons, the cowboy. To analyze Sonny Steele's distinctiveness within hegemonic ageless narratives in "The Electric Horseman", this article will set him alongside two archetypal figures of the genre of the western: the cowboy and the horse, which serves as a key vehicle of the character's own exalted masculinity. This critical approach shows how the prevailing model of youthful or ageless masculinity in cowboy stories can thus be challenged.
publishDate 2020
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2020
2020-01-01
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv journal article
http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501
NA
http://purl.org/coar/version/c_be7fb7dd8ff6fe43
dc.type.openaire.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
format article
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv http://hdl.handle.net/10902/23925
url http://hdl.handle.net/10902/23925
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv Inglés
eng
language_invalid_str_mv Inglés
language eng
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv open access
http://purl.org/coar/access_right/c_abf2
Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
dc.rights.openaire.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
rights_invalid_str_mv open access
http://purl.org/coar/access_right/c_abf2
Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv Universidad de Sevilla
publisher.none.fl_str_mv Universidad de Sevilla
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv Revista de Estudios Norteamericanos, 2020, 24, 181-201
reponame:UCrea Repositorio Abierto de la Universidad de Cantabria
instname:Universidad de Cantabria (UC)
instname_str Universidad de Cantabria (UC)
reponame_str UCrea Repositorio Abierto de la Universidad de Cantabria
collection UCrea Repositorio Abierto de la Universidad de Cantabria
repository.name.fl_str_mv
repository.mail.fl_str_mv
_version_ 1869403628153864192
score 15,300719

Similares en LA Referencia