The Searchers: Ethan's Role as a Negative Example

 John Ford’s The Searchers is named to be a pivotal movie in American cinema history. Its influence can be traced very widespread, through movies inside and outside of the western genre. While making strides in a lot of areas, one reason for its influence is the protagonist, Ethan. 

Ethan is a problematic protagonist who can best be described by the phrase “confederate pride”. He is a racist, a misogynist, a criminal, and overall a really bad person. If I had a dollar for every time Ethan said or did something that was egotistical, rude, or nasty I’d be rich by the end of act two. Exaggerations aside, Ethan’s problematic character serves as a start point for a deep commentary on society. Much like Natural Born Killers, The Searchers shows how we as a society can idolize our more problematic members. Ethan is framed as a troubled hero who cannot be tamed many times throughout this movie. His negative actions are simply dismissed as a cool guy attitude instead of showing the true nature of his toxic masculinity. He is shown as heroic, with a bravado and brains to boot, as he hunts down the antagonists of the movie. Speaking of our stereotyped Native American antagonists, they are portrayed horribly. They are all completely one dimensional and only serve as the audience’s racist fears of savagery and criminality. Similarly, Touch of Evil also shows this fear of POC, however, it goes about the portrayal of Hank Quinlan very differently. In Touch of Evil, Hank is the antagonist. There is zero doubt about it. We as the audience see his horrific acts and they are framed as just that. In the end, Hank also gets a comeuppance in the form of his death at the end of the movie. Contrast this with The Searchers, and we lose that sense of wrong and it is up to the audience to say to themselves “Hmmm. Maybe Ethan is just a really terrible guy.” How exactly is Ethan a terrible guy you might ask? Well, let’s look a little closer into him.

Terrible person trait number one: Ethan is racist. He blatantly shows his disrespect and hate for the Native Americans throughout the film in many ways. He calls Martin slang terms, destroys Native Americans and their culture, shows constant disrespect for anyone who isn’t 100% white, and even attempts to murder his own niece because of circumstances beyond her control. He served in the civil war as a confederate soldier and even after the war has ended, sticks to his confederate oath and pride like glue. Terrible person trait number two: Ethan is a criminal. It’s heavily implied that Ethan robbed “Yankee dollars” to pay his brother, due to the coins mint condition and large quantity. Terrible person trait number three: Ethan is a misogynist. This isn't much of a surprise, as everyone in this movie is misogynist, but Ethan is part of the group nonetheless. Terrible person trait number four: Ethan is severely egotistical. If there’s one thing John Wayne wants you to learn about Ethan, it’s his self-absorption. Almost everything he does is for only his own personal benefit and leaves a negative effect on others. The number of lines that Ethan speaks that are kind is very few. Even the way he walks shows that his self-image is shot into space. There’s much more wrong with Ethan and it all plays into the movie’s function; to show us how we are wrong so we can correct ourselves. When this movie came out in 1956, many of Ethan’s actions might not have been seen as too bad by an audience. The movie’s turning point (when he attempts to kill Debby) would have been magnified to the audience at the time, and most likely then would they start to consider Ethan to be as problematic as we see him now. Ethan’s lack-luster redemption can be seen as how the audience should go about correcting themselves. Ethan’s acceptance of love and his acknowledgment of his wrongdoings is the true message that John Ford shares in this film.

While The Searchers is a standout film in American cinema for many reasons, it’s the portrayal of Ethan is surely one of the highlights. John Ford and John Wayne collaborate to create a timeless western with a lesson for all audiences. In the end, we, the audience, become the true searchers, looking into ourselves to avoid Ethan’s mistakes and find a better path to follow.