Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Semester of Degree Completion
1981
Thesis Director
M. Lee Steinmetz
Abstract
Vardis Fisher, a writer who wrote about the early west, uses his life experiences and extensive historical research as a basis for his western novels. With his background in the Antelope region and his historical research, Fisher presents both women in the Antelope hills and women in the hazardous far west surroundings. He instills in the reader a panoramic view of the pioneer women as they experience life in the old west.
The Antelope women are isolated in their environment with little social contact. They are effected physically, psychologically, and economically in this remote area. Most of the women overcome the obsticles of the environment and work physically to make economic progress to enable their children to experience a better life than they have known. Their greatest dilemma is the loneliness in their surroundings.
The far west women are effected physically, psychologically, and economically, but they suffer greater devastation than the Antelope women. They experience extensive journeys into the unknown and are confronted with many hazards. These women often experience the pain of death of loved ones and some are forced to animal-like existence to enable their family to survive.
Both the Antelope Hills and the far west women undergo unique changes with the majority attaining new levels of competence. The women endure in Antelope and the far west, but survival is more difficult in the far west. The women in both areas emerge as the bed-rock of the spirit of the old west.
Recommended Citation
Alderton, Sylvia L., "The Influence of Women in Vardis Fisher’s Western Literature" (1981). Masters Theses. 3008.
https://thekeep.eiu.edu/theses/3008
