America and the Space Cowboy

Photo Source: telegraph.co.uk

In the past few weeks there has been a lot of talk about space. NASA found water on Mars and The Martian came out in theaters, though, to be honest, this sparked more discussion over Matt Damon’s acting than it did of surviving in space. The trailer for the new Star Wars film has come out bringing with it nostalgia and debate over casting choices. Also, for the first time in my life, I met two people who didn’t think that humans should explore the universe and I realized I’d never considered this as an issue up for debate. Mankind would someday, inevitably find itself amongst the stars. I have never doubted this. I still do not, nor do I now think that it would be a bad idea for us to go.

However, my encounter with these individuals has caused me to call into question certain elements of the American narrative of space travel. One thing in particular that I have noticed is the increasing westernization of space. Star Trek has deemed space “the final frontier.” Han Solo with his vest and holster and loyal Chewbacca is an intergalactic version of the Lone Ranger. Joss Whedon’s Firefly  has created an acknowledged space western genre. The comparison is even drawn in our children’s movies. In Toy Story, Buzz the space ranger is introduced to us as the replacement and foil to Woody’s cowboy.

It is easy to see how and why this narrative has been constructed and continued so frequently. The tale of the cowboy has always been a narrative space into which we could displace the anxieties we face while struggling for the American Dream. A handsome loner ekes out his existence on the margins of society, fighting for justice in an unequal world. He struggles against corrupt governments, a hostile, untamed environment, villains who want to deprive him or those he protects of their rightful property.  Most of the time, our hero the cowboy, successfully defeats these things, leaving the audience with the idea that success and happiness  created using hard work and strong morals is not at all impossible.

However, we have since built up the west and a space that was once open for us to dump our fears into is now gone unless we set the stories in the past. However, this begins to feel cliché and less relevant, while, unfortunately, we still have many of the same or similar anxieties to contend with. Today we not only fear corruption in the government, but in the gigantic corporation while our environment grows dangerous from manmade causes. What story book hero protects us from all this?

The space ranger.

Placing the narrative in space makes it new and viable again. But as we move closer to realizing existence in space, should we continue this narrative? As heroic as he may seem the cowboy is a highly romanticized figure. He is emblematic of as many of our problems as he solves. He is a gun slinging vigilante acting outside of the law, he has a tendency to support outdated colonial or racist attitudes, he is very macho, and there is little diversity in his character. Should we continue to laud him, recreate him, and send him to space? And if we do still need the cowboy to help us deal with our fears shouldn’t we at least update him along with his environment? Space is a relatively untouched, unknown region. We can create whatever narrative we want there. Why continue with an old one?

I feel that these questions become especially relevant as America is about to be revisited by its all-time favorite space cowboy, Han Solo, in the continuation of the Star Wars saga. I look forward to seeing if and how the American narrative of space evolves along with the expansion of an old, but beloved story.