Why does Harmonica rip up Jill's dress at her farm?

He knew about the value of her property and was 'preparing' her to comfortably stay. Leaving was not the thing to do and he was prepared to protect her.

"gonna throw, my raincoat in the river...gonna toss, my umbrella in the sea"...Sammy Turner.

(here is the best answer from an old post of member rexknobus)


Watch the scene again and pay real close attention to exactly what Harmonica does. He very clinically rips her dress apart, exposing her. He looks at her, not with lust, but with an artist's eye -- he's creating an image. He doesn't take any real pleasure in man-handling her. Look at his hands; he doesn't grab a quick feel. Look at his eyes; he looks away from her and outside. Then he sends her out to the well. He follows, grinning like an idiot, then does a slow turn as he takes off his jacket. The two assassins up on the hill see a beautiful woman with tussled clothing, and grinning fool who is unarmed and off-guard, off-guard because he just had a tumble in the hay with the beautiful women. Looks like a perfect time to ride in and kill them both. Ooops -- Harmonica had his pistol concealed in his hat and guns them down. Jill can only stare at him; not because he's the fastest gun, but because he's the smartest.

The thing is, Harmonica sorta falls into the anti-hero category. He's not a bad guy, but he has no problem doing whatever it takes to get what he wants. Or something, lol.

Could you blame him?