PHALLIC SHADOWS
Queer Symbolism and the Cowboy Movie
Professor Claude McNab
University of Connectthedots
Recent media coverage has suggested that the film Brokeback Mountain is in some way a “gay cowboy movie.” I have not seen it myself, but I find this a surprising claim, given that it seems to imply that a gay cowboy movie is a departure from the norms of the genre, when in fact homosexuellergeschlectunpfunkpt is a feature of every cowboy movie ever made. I happen in fact to be preparing a paper on this very subject, the first draft of which I present below.
Cacti shimmer in a heat haze phallicly, lassoes encircle man and beast, dragging them into a sweaty embrace, hunky square jawed men stare into the camera, and “howdy partner” is an ill disguised come-on.
Welcome to the world of the gay cowboy movie. Welcome, in fact, to the world of cowboy movies. “Go West” was a gay anthem, and it’s easy to see why. All “westerns” throb with homoerotic subtexts, as my deep and penetrating analysis will show. There are those who decry my analysis as nothing more than an oversensitive deconstruction of a slightly camp but ultimately harmless cinematic genre. I advise them to look harder.
From the very beginnings of the ‘western’ cinematic genre, homoeroticism and homosexueller symbolismus has been woven into the characters’ linguistic subjectivity. A complex netz of meanings and sub meanings was devised, with hidden implications which both provide succour to secret initiates to the gay symbolism, and induce subconscious homosexuality in the unsuspecting viewers. For example, cowboys have tended to call each other “partner,” a clear reference to the favoured term of address between homosexual men.
The visual and spatial landscape in which the cowboy movie takes place is awash with phalli, both real and imagined. The classic western takes place in a sparse, macho environment, (ein ma-cholandschaft) the horizon of which is interrupted only by thick cacti, standing aufgerichtet, and by the tall peaks of Monument Valley. The cowboy takes upon the role of phallus-extremis, manfully penetrating this landscape thanks to his manly virtues.
Now let us consider the cowboy himself in greater detail. Picture the classic cowboy, as depicted by Gary Cooper in High Noon. He stands, a slightly knowing smile playing around the edge of his lips. What secrets does that smile conceal? Note that his face is obscured by shadow, signifying the hidden nature of his homosexuality. He faces the screen, his hips pushed slightly forward, forcing his penis upon the viewer. He fires from the hip. He carries two guns, signifying his two testicles. Note also that the guns are identical, signifying the ideal homosexual union between two individuals of the same sex. The phallic nature of the guns themselves of course needs no elucidation. Furthermore, the dip in the top of the cowboy’s hat subtlely but obviously recalls the division between the two halves of a bell end (The rest of Prof McNab’s paper can be read online through www.gaystor.org - Ed.