MovieChat Forums > The Searchers (1956) Discussion > Ethan's Racism

Ethan's Racism

posted 7 years ago by GeorgeBailey
11 replies | jump to latest

After repeated viewings, Ethan's racism is a bit more complicated than it first seems. First of all let's note these facts:

* Ethan's mother killed by Commanche
* Ethan's brother killed by Commanche
* Ethan's love (Martha) killed by Commanche
* Ethan's nephew killed by Commanche
* Ethan's niece raped and killed by Commanche
* Ethan's other niece taken captive by Commanche, probably raped, and brainwashed

Based on his history, Ethan is little different than Scar would murdered in response to the death of his family members. Of course, we don't talk about Scar as being a racist b/c that would be politically incorrect.

Also note that Ethan doesn't show hatred to other Indian tribes. By all accounts, he seems knowledgeable about their language and culture.

So, is Ethan a racist or he is consumed by hatred towards a specific tribe of people who have caused him so much pain and loss? Or are they the same thing?

Simply calling Ethan a racist and moving on, is being a bit too simplistic in describing a character that has more depth and levels of conflict than appears at first viewing.

[–] cfwente 7 years ago

I couldn't agree more. So many people today have signed onto the "racist obsession" pc mandate. Hard for them to see into the complexities of the human condition generally any more.

[–] vinidici 7 years ago

So, is Ethan a racist or he is consumed by hatred towards a specific tribe of people who have caused him so much pain and loss?

Probably not even toward the entire Comanche tribe, but toward that subset among them who specialized in raiding, pillaging and enslaving those whom they abducted; even the other Native American tribes hated THESE guys' guts!

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[–] PussyCrusher_Principal 7 years ago

You're as badas The PC crybabies too, though, reacting to nonexistent arguments because you just KNOW everybody's thinking "that damned racist Ethan, how could he be so mean towards that nice Chief Cicatriz?!".

First, Cicatriz and the Comanches might have a right to consider the white man encroaching on his native prairies a bad thing. That point aside...

The main idea of he film is to show how useful men like Ethan were ( a more violent and primitive mindset) in fulfilling manifest destiny, but how once the West is settled, they have not much use for them, they don't belong "in the house", as the final shot indcates. P point being, even the whites knew the racism of Ethan (they held it themselves), and that, combined with his violent outlook, made it unlikely that Ethan would fit not society.

I find it a bit ridiculous to try to make a point of the Indians' racism, since they were just fight in whomever showed up in their homeland. But if it blows your skirt up...

[–] cfwente 7 years ago

It may be worth noting that the Comanche weren't "defending their homeland". They were nomadic marauders out of Minnesota and made a living killing tribes who were defending their homeland as the Comanche migrated south. They murdered, stole and sold captives as slaves in Mexico.

[–] [deleted] 4 years ago

Interesting.

[–] vinidici 7 years ago

Ariana_ChochaGrande, for the sake of argument let's just take for a given that all persons of European descent who settled in the New World are completely evil, genocidal monsters and that their modern day descendants are no better (not a difficult point of view to take in some quarters of minority groups and their highly publicized "inherently and irredeemably racist" views.) Got it? Good! Now, forging ahead:

So does this mean that ALL Native American persons who ever lived from 1492 to the 20th Century were a bunch of peace and harmony-loving, warm and fuzzy guys? That tribes DIDN'T war against other tribes? That tribes never raided, pillaged and plundered other tribes? That there never was a branch of the Comanche who were pirates of the plains? All just because all American persons of European descent are "hellspawn" according to sources such as I referred to, above?

Sorry, I don't buy it. The Comanche in this story were the bad guys. Scar and his cronies got what was coming to him. Ethan's hatred was centered on Scar and his band, not toward all Indian tribes with whom it's implied he'd had trade and working relations.

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[–] Otter (24464) 4 years ago

To be fair, Ethan's people were trying to take the Comanche's land and livelihoods away.

[–] liscarkat (16515) 3 years ago

To be fair, that is a naive, simplistic interpretation of history.

[–] Otter (24464) 3 years ago

No, not really. The 19th century history of the western US is pretty straightforward, it was a deliberate campaign of occupation and conquest.

[–] marktayloruk (2378) 3 years ago

Should we have left America to the Indians?

[–] Quasimodo (16388) 3 years ago

But these are my people !