SECTION 1

Academic Essay Writing

1.Concision and clarity
Concision, you’ll recall, means keeping your writing brief and to the point, and avoiding waffle and the
inclusion of information that’s peripheral to your main discussion and which doesn’t have a direct and
immediate bearing on it. Such information is likely to be seen by the reader as irrelevant and an
unnecessary distraction. Writing that is concise tends to be clear and easy to understand and it can be
achieved by adhering to a few key strategies highlighted in the following list:
Tips for Achieving clarity in your writing
• Make sure that the ideas you wish to express are crystal clear in your own mind. Waffly or
‘woolly’ writing is often the result of trying to clarify ideas as you are writing rather than prior to
doing so. In other words, do not try to formulate fully your ideas through writing them but before
writing them.
• Don’t say in two or three sentences what you can say just as easily in one. Be concise and
economical.
• Keep your language simple and straightforward. Don’t try to use ostentatious language where
simpler, more everyday language will do just as well. Students often struggle, unnecessarily, to
make their language sound more erudite by using complex structures and sophisticated vocabulary.
Remember: avoid making your expression of ideas more difficult than it needs to be.
• Avoid flowery language. It detracts from the serious, academic feel of your work as well as its
clarity and therefore undermines its content, regardless of how well conceived it may be.
• As you proof-read your work, ask yourself whether the language is getting in the way of the
meaning. Is there a way of simplifying what you want to say and making it more readable without
making it feel simplistic.
• Check your writing for instances of ambiguity– where a reader may interpret what you’ve written
in a way that’s different from what you intend.

2 The use of first person singular– ‘I’

The question of whether to use ‘I’ in academic writing tends to cause a lot of angst among students, and it
therefore justifies a short section of its own. The fact is that attitudes to using ‘I’ in written academic
discourse are changing. Traditionally, it was not considered appropriate– probably because it called into
question the objectivity of the writer and their right to (apparently) presume that their opinion mattered or
had any authority. As such, while established scholars in certain disciplines might get away with using it,
undergraduates– who were ‘wet behind the ears’ and had yet to ‘prove’ themselves were very likely to be

1
taken to task for doing so. This, however, has changed quite dramatically in recent years; attitudes have
changed, and the use of first-person singular is becoming more widely accepted in the academic
community, and certainly in linguistics. Yet even today, different disciplines– and even different
lecturers– have different views on whether it’s acceptable, and I would advise, therefore, that you check to
see whether the reared any departmental conventions or rulings on this, and also what the expectations are
of individual lecturers who will be looking at your work and assigning marks to it. If you’re still unclear, I
would suggest playing it safe and avoiding the use of ‘I’ by substituting alternative forms of expression
that depersonalize your language. Here are some ways that you might do this (you will notice that in many
cases it involves substituting active with passive voice):

Strategies for avoiding the use of first person singular: ‘I’

Instead of .. consider using ...

I this writer/the author

I believe/am of the opinion that ... it can be argued that .../there is reason to suppose/believe
I don’t think this argument is valid that...
I disagree (with this claim) I observed this argument is/appears to be invalid
that ... I found the results surprising there is reason to question (this claim) it was observed that ...
because ... the results were surprising in that ...
I noticed/observed that ... I was it was discovered that ... the finding that ...was intriguing there
intrigued to find that ... I think there are reasons to question this this can be taken to mean that
are reasons to question this I take this .../there is reason to suppose/believe that ...
to mean that ...

3. Vague and empty language

Vague writing suggests that either: (a) your ideas are themselves vague and ill-formed; (b) you don’t
understand the ideas of other writers that you are citing; or (c) you’re deliberately manipulating or
misleading your reader by being deliberately obtuse or economical with the truth. Whatever the reason,
the impact on your reader is negative. Some particular words that demand caution are listed in the
following table. I’m not suggesting that these should never be used, only that they be used
discriminatingly. Similarly, avoid the temptation to use words that sound good and which you think your
reader will want to hear rather than words that accurately express what you actually mean!
Hedging words to be treated with caution
may rather around usually might fairly about can perhaps seems sometimes
quite could possibly appears generally should probably tends (to) reasonably

2
4. Formatting your work– some dos and don’ts
First impressions are always important, even in academic work, and by following several simple rules you
can give your written work a polished and professional feel.
• Do use headings and sub-headings to indicate the status of sections and make the organization of
your work more transparent and the structure easier to follow.
• Do justify your text so that all the printed lines in a paragraph (except the final line) are of the
same length.
• Do ensure you leave adequate margins (at least 2–3 CMS) on either side of the page. This
improves the look of your work and allows your lecturers to write feedback in the margins, should
they wish to do so.
• Do leave a free line before a section heading or sub-heading.
• Do be consistent in your use of font size. Try to stick with one font and one font size (normally 12)
as far as possible, except for headings, where you may wish to increase the font size to 14, while
keeping it at 12 for sub-headings.
• Do bold your title and headings. You may also wish to bold some sub-headings depending on how
you choose to tier your headings.
• Do number your pages and figures.

Don’t:
• Don’t use casual fonts. Fancy fonts such as this one feel too informal and playful and you are best
off sticking to a more traditional font such as Times New Roman or Arial.
• Don’tuselongorornatetitlesandheadings.Keepthemcrispandensurethat they capture the focus of the
essay or section. If possible, try and keep them to a maximum of twelve words for titles and eight
words for headings.
• Don’t use multiple colors, except where necessary. As with fancy fonts, a kaleidoscopic piece of
work risks making your work feel less serious and academic, even childish. Try to stick with black
and greyscales. Where you find you do need to use other colors–for example in pie charts or other
types of charts and graphs where it can be necessary to differentiate between multiple segments,
bars or lines–try to use subdued colors rather than colors that require your reader to wear
sunglasses!

3
5. Keeping your writing gender-neutral
Nowadays, use of the words he, she, his and her are increasingly discouraged in academic
writing, unless you’re referring to a particular individual of whom you know the sex– for
example a subject in a study, or a particular author. In any other situation it’s best either to
rephrase what you want to say or to use the word they, as a substitute. Look at this
example: Gender-specific Evidence suggests that, even if he receives substantial amounts
of input, a person who lacks integrative and/or instrumental motivation will not be an
effective second-language learner. Gender-neutral (rephrasing) Evidence suggests that, in
the absence of integrative and/or instrumental motivation, input alone is insufficient for
effective second-language learning to occur. Gender-neutral (substituting he with they)
Evidence suggests that, even if they receive substantial amounts of input, people who lack
integrative and/or instrumental motivation will not be effective second-language learners.

4
The parts of an essay:
1.Writing an introduction
Essentially, an introduction frames the discussion that’s to come in the body of your essay; it prepares the
reader by providing a context– reference points or hooks– that helps them to engage better with that
discussion. That context is usually created by making reference to the relevant literature and/or by
discussing a problem or observation that has arisen as a result of your or somebody else’s experience (of
language use, language learning or language teaching, for example). Once a context has been established,
it needs to be made clear to the reader what you plan to discuss in your essay and how it fits into that
context. So, an introduction is a kind of launching vehicle or stepping-off point, which helps the reader get
a contextual fix on your essay and certainly gives an indication of the main focus of the discussion to
come. Often, it will also give a brief indication of the route you’re intending to take in your discussion; it
will, if you like, map out the general direction of the discussion what, in more precise terms, you plan to
discuss, how and in what order. Finally, in performing these functions, an introduction prepares the reader
by (hopefully) building a sense of anticipation and a desire to read on.

2. Writing the body of an essay:

As its name suggests, the body of a piece of writing is the main part, where you present and develop your
main ideas; put crudely, it’s all the stuff that appears between the introduction and the conclusion– the
‘middle bit’ ... which is why, even in our early years of secondary school, we’re taught that a piece of
writing should consist of a beginning, a middle and an end. Remember that? So, although, as we’ve seen,
the introduction plays an important framing role in your writing, and the conclusion similarly serves a
clear and necessary function, it’s in the body that the great bulk of your discussion takes place.
The body of your essay is everything that appears between the introduction and the conclusion. It should:
• typically account for around 70–80 per cent of the entire essay, although this can vary.
• consist of a series of main ideas and more detailed supporting ideas that together form the core of your
discussion and demonstrate a coherent argument structure.
• be well laid out and presented and include: sections and sub-sections/titles and sub-titles, where
necessary; a systematic numbering/lettering system for headings; correct line spacing; adequate
margins; footnotes, if appropriate; page numbers, figures, where necessary and where they serve to
elucidate ideas; and examples to illustrate points in your discussion.

5
3. What is a summary and how’s it different from a conclusion?
A summary is a brief restatement– or recap– of the main points you’ve presented in your discussion.
Although it will often precede the conclusion, it’s also sometimes presented as part of the conclusion. In
either case, though, it’s a way of reminding your reader of the main ideas you discussed so that the
conclusion can be read and understood more easily with those ideas fresh in their mind.
A summary, because it’s merely a restatement of ideas already mentioned, adds no new information. A
conclusion, on the other hand, does add new information: it takes the ideas discussed in the body of your
writing and then implicitly asks (and explicitly answers) the question, ‘What general observations can we
make about those ideas? What do we learn from them? What do they tell us?’ In other words, a conclusion
makes general statements about the ideas presented in your main discussion; statements containing ideas
that will most likely not have appeared elsewhere in your writing. The new information comes not from
adding to those ideas but by commenting on them.

Tips for more effective conclusions

• Say something new! Do not merely summarize what you’ve already said in the body of your work.
• Make certain that any new information you introduce has a direct bearing on the foregoing
discussion and offers enlightenment on it with a view to bringing resolution.
• Avoid entering long and complex discussions that would be more appropriately located in the body
of your essay.
• Try to link your conclusion back to the introduction of your essay and ensure that it’s addressing
the original question. By doing this you create a kind of natural closure by bringing things full
circle.
• Consider offering your view of how you see a particular issue or field of research developing.
Alternatively, consider making some suggestions for productive areas of future research. This
latter option typically appears at the end of reports on empirical studies; however, there is no
reason why it cannot occasionally be used in a regular course assignment provided the context is
suitable.

6
 Samples: Opening Paragraph
1. Consider this assignment:
‘Many American and British movies are too violent. Censorship controls should be
strengthened to decrease the level of violence represented in contemporary films.’
Discuss this question using specific examples from contemporary cinema films.

The key words and phrases that would need to be underlined are: ‘American and British movies’, ‘too
violent’, ‘censorship controls’, ‘strengthened’, ‘decrease violence’, ‘specific examples’, ‘contemporary’.
Here is a possible opening sentence to an essay in response to this assignment:
The issue of censorship has been debated throughout the existence of commercial cinema from its
very beginnings at the start of the twentieth century to the present day.

This opening sentence addresses the question of censorship and makes the point that the issue in relation
to the cinema has been a subject of debate for as long as cinema has existed. The sentence addresses the
question immediately and makes a specific point. It is a brisk opening and is likely to grab the attention of
the readers and reassure them that the subject of the assignment is going to be addressed.
Second sentence:
Two major areas of debate have centered round the representation of sex and the portrayal of
violence.

This second sentence follows on naturally from the opening sentence and pinpoints the two major areas of
debate as far as censorship in the cinema is concerned.
Third sentence:
However, whereas the debate about the representation of sexual scenes has largely decreased

because of changes in public and official attitudes, the question of violence in the cinema is
continuously raised.

This third sentence makes a further point about how public attitudes to sex in the cinema have
apparently changed but the issue of violence is still very much current. Readers could reasonably
expect the writer to return to this point later in the essay.

7
 Fourth sentence:
The films of Quentin Tarantino, for example, with their extremely violent content, or the violence
shown in some contemporary horror movies, alarm many people, causing them to wonder what
the long-term effects on cinemagoers, especially the young, are as a result of watching such
graphic depictions.

This sentence gives some specific examples, as requested in the assignment question, of violent
movies and it also raises the issue what the effect of screen violence is on spectators.
Fifth sentence:
There is a wide range of opinions about the need for censorship of violence in the cinema, ranging
from those who argue for no controls at all to those who believe that the depiction of violence on
film encourages violent propensities in society and who want the authorities to impose censorship.

This final sentence of the paragraph mentions the differing views on censorship and describes the parameters
of those views. It is again an issue that clearly will have to be dealt with in greater detail later in the essay.
It also rounds off this opening paragraph neatly and relevantly.
Thus, this opening paragraph consists of this:
The issue of censorship has been debated throughout the existence of commercial cinema from its
very beginnings at the start of the twentieth century to the present day. Two major areas of
debate center round the representation of sex and the portrayal of violence. However, whereas the
debate about the representation of sexual scenes has largely decreased because of changes in
public and official attitudes, the question of violence in the cinema is continuously raised. The
films of Quentin Tarantino, for example, with their extremely violent content, or the violence shown
in some contemporary horror movies, alarm many people, causing them to wonder what the long-
term effects on cinemagoers, especially the young, are as a result of watching such graphic
depictions. There is a wide range of opinions about the need for censorship of violence in the
cinema, ranging from those who argue for no controls at all to those who believe that the depiction
of violence on film encourages violent propensities in society and who want the authorities to
impose censorship.

Questions:
How effective is the opening sentence of this paragraph in relation to the specific assignment that has
been set?
Is the topic of the question addressed sufficiently in the paragraph with specific points made?
Is there a danger that the paragraph goes into too much detail at this stage in the essay or is the
amount of detail just about, right?

8
Is there a continuity to the paragraph with each sentence following from the previous one?
Does the paragraph as a whole map out the territory that the rest of the essay is going to cover?

Samples: The body

2. Consider this assignment:
Below is a paragraph from an essay which is discussing whether or not the BBC should no longer be
funded by the money raised by television and radio licenses.
Those who profit from working and owning shares in commercial television and radio argue that
the BBC enjoys unfair advantages compared to its rivals. The BBC, they say, does not have to
operate in the open market like commercial operators do. Unlike them, the BBC is insulated
against failure. Whereas commercial television and radio must attract audiences so that they
can charge appropriate rates to their advertisers, the BBC need not worry about ratings quite so
much because its revenues are guaranteed because of the license fees paid by the public. The BBC,
however, argues that it has a ‘public good’ mandate which demands that the organization makes
programs that serves the public interest: educational programs, documentaries, serious news
bulletins and the televising of important public events.

Sentence one makes the key point of the paragraph that the BBC enjoys unfair advantages over its
commercial rivals. This point is expanded on in sentences two and three. Sentence four puts the counter
argument on behalf of the BBC and points the way to the next paragraph where this point about the BBC
can be discussed further.

Samples: The closing paragraph

3. Consider this assignment:
Here is a closing paragraph from an essay that is discussing whether or not there has been a tendency
to ‘dumbing down’ in the media and mass culture as a whole:
Thus, there does seem to be considerable evidence to support the proposition that a widespread
‘dumbing down’ process has been taking place in the mass media and entertainment. The
television schedules, as has been shown, are awash with programs that scarcely trouble the brain
cells of the nation. Equally, the tabloid newspapers appeal more and more to the lowest common
denominator, concentrating on sensationalism, celebrity culture and lurid gossip. Most
Hollywood movies, which, after all, dominate the world film market, are ‘no-brainers’ and devoid
of any artistic merit. This essay has demonstrated that this has not always been the case in
these three spheres. How this downward trend towards mindlessness in mass culture can be

9
reversed is difficult to say. However, unless something is done to raise cultural standards, it is
certain that our society will be the poorer for it.

In this paragraph, the last two sentences round off the essay neatly by considering how this trend can
be reversed and making a judgement about how important it is to do so. These sentences leave the
reader with something to think about and bring the essay to a meaningful conclusion.

10
 Types of Essay
1. The Narrative
A narrative is an account of an incident or a series of incidents that make up a complete and significant
action. A narrative can be as short as a joke, as long as a novel, or anything between, including a
paragraph or an essay. It can function as the major framework for a piece of writing or as a support
element. Narration is writing that tells a story. A narrative paragraph begins with a topic sentence that
tells readers why you are telling a particular story. For example, you could be telling how an
experience you had as a child changed you, or that the Battle of Gettysburg was the turning point in
the Civil War. Effective narrative paragraphs include only those events that tell the story and avoid
irrelevant information. The more specific the details you include, the better your narrative paragraph
will be. Narrative paragraphs present events in time order, the order in which events occurred. A
summary statement sums up the paragraph’s main idea. Each narrative has five properties: situation,
conflict, struggle, outcome and meaning.
A. Situation is the background for the action. The situation may be described only briefly, or it may
even be implied. (“To celebrate my seventeenth birthday, I went to the Department of Motor Vehicles
to take my practical test for my driver’s license.”).

B. Conflict is friction, such as a problem in the surroundings, with another person, or within the
individual. The conflict, which is at the heart of each narrative, produces struggle. (“It was raining,
and my appointment was the last one of the day. The examiner was a serious, weary-looking man
who reminded me of a bad boss I once had, and I was nervous.”).

C. Struggle, which need not be physical, is the manner of dealing with conflict. The struggle adds action
or engagement and generates the plot. (“After grinding on the ignition because the engine was already
on, I had trouble finding the windshield wiper control.

D. Outcome is the result of the struggle. (“After I parked the car, the examiner told me to relax, and then
he talked to me about school. When we continued, somehow, I didn’t make any errors, and I got my
license.”)

E. Meaning is the significance of the story, which may be deeply philosophical or simple, stated or
implied.

11
 Overnight Success
Chloe Dao traveled a difficult road to become a successful fashion designer. When Dao was a baby, her
parents decided to leave her native country, Laos, and come to the United States. Unfortunately, the Viet
Cong captured her and her family as they tried to cross the border. They were sent to a refugee camp, where
they stayed for four years. In 1979, when she was eight, Dao and her family were allowed to come to the
United States. Then, they had to earn enough money to live on. Dao’s mother worked three jobs. On the
weekends, the entire family ran the snack bar at a flea market. Finally, they saved enough money to open a
dry-cleaning business. When she was twenty, Dao moved to New York to attend school. After she graduated,
she got a challenging job as production manager for designer Melinda Eng. Eventually, she opened a
boutique, where she featured clothes that she designed. Her big break came in 2006 when she was chosen
as a finalist on the reality show Project Runway. Although Chloe Dao may appear to be an “overnight
success,” she had to struggle to get where she is today.

2. The Descriptive:

Description is the use of words to represent the appearance or nature of something. It

is not merely the work of an indifferent camera: Instead, often going beyond sight, it
includes details that will convey a good representation. Just what details the
descriptive writer selects will depend on several factors, especially the type of
description and the dominant impression the writer is trying to convey.

A House Left Behind

Right in the middle of my block is a house that looks sad and deserted. Black with
mildew, the tan roof shingles curl in the hot sun. Two broken windows on the second
floor have been patched with pieces of wood, and the other windows are grey with
dirt. On the side of the house dangles a battered basketball hoop. The front door
was once bright yellow; now, the paint is cracked and peeling, and underneath, bare
wood is visible. In the past, evergreen shrubs were planted around the house, but no
one has trimmed them for a long time. They are straggly, with long, thin branches
blocking some of the first-floor windows. The front yard shows what happens when
no one fertilizes the grass: it keeps growing but gets thinner and more yellow. In the
back yard, tomato plants from an old garden have receded themselves. They grow

12
tall and narrow but do not produce any tomatoes. No one seems to care about this
house anymore.

3. The Exemplification
means using examples to explain, convince, or amuse. Lending interest and
information to writing, exemplification is one of the most common and effective
ways of developing ideas. Examples may be developed in a sentence or more, or
they may be only phrases or even single words, as in the following sentence:
“Children like packaged breakfast foods, such as Wheaties, Cheerios, and Rice
Krispies.”
Writing a good paragraph or essay of exemplification begins, as always, with
prewriting. The techniques you use will depend on what you are writing about. If
you were writing about cheating at school, you might work effectively with a list,
perhaps including a few insights into your topic if you have not already formulated
your controlling statement.

Writer’s Guidelines: Exemplification

• Use examples to explain, convince, or amuse.
• Vivid examples attract attention.
• Specific examples are identifiable.
• Draw your examples from what you have read, heard, and experienced.
• Brainstorm a list or cluster of possible examples before you write.
• The order and number of your examples will depend on the purpose stated in
your topic sentence or thesis.

13
 Visiting Philadelphia
If you know where to go, Philadelphia can be an exciting city to visit. For example, Philadelphia is a city
of museums. Within walking distance of each other are the Art Museum, the Rodin Museum, the Academy
of Natural Sciences, and the Franklin Institute Science Museum. There are also less well-known museums,
such as the Mutter Medical Museum, the Polish American Cultural Center Museum, and the Please Touch
Museum. In addition to museums, Philadelphia has a number of world-class sports teams. If you are lucky,
you might be able to get tickets to see the Eagles play football at Lincoln Financial Field or the 76ers play
basketball at The Wachovia Center. You can also see other professional sports teams, such as the Phillies,
the Flyers, and the Wings, Philadelphia's professional lacrosse team. Finally, you can visit some of
Philadelphia's historic sites, such as the Betsy Ross House, Independence Hall, the National Constitution
Center, and the Liberty Bell. It is no wonder that many people who visit Philadelphia for the first time say
that they can’t wait to come back.

4. A discursive Essay (Argumentative):

Discursive essays, sometimes referred to as ‘argumentative’ essays, involve you in putting forward
arguments for and against a particular point of view. The skills you are being assessed on include clarity
and conciseness of expression, organization of the facts/relevant points, the ability to balance arguments
for and against, and overall structure. Essays of this type can often be rambling and unfocused. To avoid
those faults, it is necessary to keep a tight hold on the development of the argument you are making and to
back up the points you are making with detailed examples. Allow for the counterarguments to the thesis
you are supporting and deal with them.

The essay below has been written in response to this topic:

‘Watching professional sport has become far too important for many people, especially men,
and this obsession usually is a sign that something is missing from their lives.’ Discuss this
statement, making your own point of view clear.

There is no doubt that the sports industry in this country has grown massively over the last
twenty years. (1) This growth is linked with the development of cable and satellite television
channels, many of which supply continual sports coverage to subscribers. These channels earn
huge revenues not only from subscriptions but also from advertisers who rush to advertise
their goods and services when important sports events occur. The governing bodies of the
various major sports in Britain, such as football, cricket, rugby and tennis, have cooperated
with the television companies in signing agreements to allow the televising of their ‘products’.
(2) Thus, the amazing hype that surrounds major, or even run-of- the-mill, sporting events
stems from the pooled and vested interests of the owners of the media outlets and the
groups who control the sports themselves. This continual high-intensity marketing of sport

14
has led to a nation of obsessive watchers, most of whom are male. However, (3) it is not only
the people who watch most of their sport on television that are the fanatics. (4) The real
committed fans are those who follow their team week in, week out, as they play around the
country. What, it could be asked, is wrong with that? Is this not a harmless pastime that
causes no one any problems? Yes, it can be, but too often this obsession with ‘your team’ can
take over from a proper concern with other important issues of employment, family,
relationships and even money. We all probably know of some ‘sports nut’, to whom the success
or failure of their chosen team or individual sporting god matters too much. It can be
argued, then, (5) that young men are less ‘socialized’ than young women. (6) This means they
find social occasions more difficult than young women and forming lasting relationships
more problematical. Boys too often are taught not to show feelings or ‘weakness’ so that
there is a danger that they become guarded and withdrawn. Expressing their emotions
becomes difficult as they mature. Becoming a fan, then, can make up for that lack
because in the male group it is acceptable to show intense emotions on behalf of your team
whether it be joy, disappointment, anger or enthusiasm. You are allowed to cry tears when
your team does well or is defeated, because it is safely within the context of being a fan.
However, outside that context, too often such a show of emotion would be dismissed as ‘Cissy’.
(7) Watching professional sport can be an outlet for male emotions that are frowned upon
in other situations. In conclusion, then, (1) I would argue that there is a distinct danger of
too many people becoming over-obsessed with watching professional sport. (2) Statistics show
that the number of young people playing sport has diminished, as the nation becomes
largely watchers rather than players. We do not want a situation where the country is
divided into two main groupings: professional sportsmen and women on the one hand and
the spectators on the other. It is primarily a male problem, but the number of women who
are obsessive sports fans is growing. There is the issue of the nation’s health as well, with an
increasing number of young people reaching obese proportions because they do not take
enough exercise and eat too much junk food. The government must take responsibility for
providing more sports facilities and offering wider cultural opportunities for young people
especially. (3) Measures like those might stem the remorseless tide towards our becoming a
nation of sporting couch-potatoes.

15
5. A MEDIA STUDIES ESSAY:
A media studies essay involves you in analyzing aspects of the mass media such as the press, films,
television, the internet, and other means of mass communication. One of the keys to writing successful
essays on this subject area is detailed analysis. That means it is very important to back up general
assertions about the media with relevant, specific examples. Media studies is often accused of
encouraging superficial and ‘waffly’ writing, so indulge in some close detailed analysis to ward off that
criticism.

Below is another sample essay written in response to this media or film studies assignment:

‘The western film with its use of the myths and legends associated with the settlement of the American
West has helped to shape America’s view of itself.’ Discuss.

There is no doubt that the western as a film genre is central to the way America sees itself and how
Americans think of themselves. The settlement of the American West during the second half of the
nineteenth century was a defining period in American history, around which many myths were created
that have continued to shape American thinking right up to the present day. Westerns, then, deal with
the legends associated with the settlement of the western territories, but not necessarily and not usually,
with accurate historical facts. Myths are born not out of historical accuracy but emerge from values
and beliefs that grow round historical events. In the western movie, ‘Shane’, for example, the hero is a
professional gunfighter who is trying to leave gun-fighting behind him, but who is drawn
back into his profession by his wish to help a community of homesteaders against a tyrannical
cattle baron. At the end of the movie, the gunfighter leaves the community after defeating the bad guys
because he knows there is no place for him in the community as the brand of the gunfighter will
always stick to him. The film endorses the idea that the settlers’ way of life has to be defended with
the gun in the hands of a professional. The western film, then, has inevitably perpetuated
the myths of the American west. Western films are entertainment, but they also carry messages about
America as a country that found its true identity through the settling of the west. In these films and
the myths they propagate, historical reality becomes shrouded in myth. Unpalatable facts about the
treatment of Native Americans are largely ignored or glossed over. Even though America’s
population has changed dramatically over the last decades, particularly with the growth in numbers
of citizens with Hispanic origins, for many Americans the myths of the west as portrayed in western
movies still hold sway and affect the way Americans think of themselves and their country.

16