Thesis on "Dances With Wolves"

Thesis 4 pages (1195 words) Sources: 1

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Dances With Wolves

From the early ages of film, directors were keen on providing their viewers with movies that could entertain, thrill, fascinate and transport them into a different world. Several genres of film have entered and left the spotlight as being favorites for the public, and some actually managed to keep the audience interested. Westerns are known to have been a hit until the late twentieth century. However, as time passed, people have started to lose interest in them and they became outmoded. Some movie producers haven't abandoned the production of Westerns and the genre has had some successful come-backs in the recent years. Kevin Costner's Dances with Wolves is a typical western that follows most of the rules that such a movie should.

Most westerns have their action set in the second half of the nineteenth century, subsequent to the American Civil War. The west of the U.S. during the time had been a place filled with all sorts of people from thieves and miners searching for gold to sheriffs and bankers. Weapons had been a common sight during the period as everyone needed them in order to protect themselves. Most Native-Americans that initially lived in the east had been pushed back to the west. As a result, clashes often broke out between new-comers and angry Indian tribes.

The director of Dances with Wolves follows an episode from the life of a former lieutenant in the Union army, John J. Dunbar. The lieutenant is played by the director himself, Kevin Costner. Because of the accidental act of bravery that he commits during the war, Dunbar is rewarded with medical help for the problem that he has with his leg, and, with the chance to choose where next post is going to be.

Dunbar chooses to serve on the western frontier, but he is followed by bad luck, as the only people that know where he is have perished and he is alone in the middle of nowhere. He starts to arrange his posts accompanied only by his horse and a wolf. He is stopped by a group of Sioux Indians wanting to steal his horse. Dunbar and the Sioux band eventually end up becoming friends and learning things from one another.

The white man joins the Sioux tribe and begins spending more time with them than at his garrison post. He ties a friendship with Kicking Bird, played by Graham Greene, and with Wind in His Hair, played by Rodney Grant. After several days spent with the tribe, Dunbar gains the trust of the tribe's leader.

The most forceful connection that Dunbar has with a member of the tribe is that between him and Stands With a Fist, who he earlier saved. Stands With a Fist is a white women that has lived among the Sioux tribe since she was stolen from her parents. The woman makes the bond between Dunbar and the tribe members even stronger as she acts as an interpreter for him.

As Dunbar returns to his garrison, he finds an aggressive group of soldiers unwilling to admit his statute as a soldier in the U.S. army. Both his horse and wolf are shot and killed and Dunbar is being captured and taken to Fort Hayes where he is supposed to be executed. A party of Indians intercepts the convoy, murder every U.S. soldier, and save Dunbar. As the movie ends, Dunbar takes Stand With a Fist and leaves the tribe because he is aware that his staying in the group of Indians will pose a threat for them.

Costner managed to… READ MORE

How to Reference "Dances With Wolves" Thesis in a Bibliography

Related Thesis Papers:

Dances With Wolves Term Paper

Dances With Wolves directed by Kevin Costner. Specifically it will contain an analysis of the film and how it uses the western frontier to serve a cultural and political purpose.… read more

Term Paper 6 pages (2128 words) Sources: 4 Topic: Film / Movies / Television

---

Dances With Wolves and City Slickers Research Proposal

City Slickers and Dances With Wolves

Seen as Western Films

City Slickers does follow the western genre in that it portrays the main characters in the West and presents them… read more

Research Proposal 3 pages (874 words) Sources: 0 Style: MLA Topic: Film / Movies / Television

---

Western Genre Thesis

cowboy gets on his horse and rides off alone into the distance. The music picks up. Thus, the typical Western ends. Through the years since the Western first hit the… read more

Thesis 2 pages (640 words) Sources: 0 Topic: Native American Indians

---

Life and Works of John Barry Research Paper

John Barry

"…Though much of his most famous music was written to accompany the outlandish adventures of 007, his work covered a huge variety of moods and styles…" (the Guardian,… read more

Research Paper 3 pages (1172 words) Sources: 7 Topic: Music / Musicians / Instruments

---

Pigs and Wolves Thesis

Pigs and Wolves

Bedtime stories have always made their listeners think that there could have been more events involved in the story, and, that it could have a different plot.… read more

Thesis 1 pages (357 words) Sources: 0 Style: MLA Topic: Native American Indians

---

View 100+ more related papers  >>