FART APACHE

The years following the American Civil War were difficult, no matter where one was in the nation. From the east coast to the west, the era of Reconstruction was one marked by work and effort to replace what was lost. John Ford’s Fort Apache quintessentially summarizes this time’s struggle in the American Southwest -- between the environment, the native Apaches, and associated internal struggle that the people who faced them felt.
	Lieutenant Colonel Owen Thursday is the centerpiece of the movie; his actions define its story. A foolhardy, arrogant man, he doesn’t believe the Apaches to be a significant threat to the U.S. Army. As a result, his holier-than-thou attitude puts him at odds with most of the other important officers: Lieutenant Michael O’Rourke, who pursues Thursday’s daughter; Sergeant Major O’Rourke, his father; and Captain York, who objects to many of Thursday’s orders, considering his judgment flawed.
The Lt. Col. opposes O’Rourke’s courting of his daughter primary because of his ethnicity -- he believes that both he and his father are of lesser status due to their Irish heritage (drunkenness and Catholicism aside!) This bigotry is expressed insofar as to separate his daughter, Philadelphia, from the other women in the fort. He puts forth the concept of class division in Fort Apache more than anyone else. It is perhaps this attitude that I disagree with the most -- O’Rourke Senior won the Congressional Medal of Honor; his son, therefore, was personally admitted by the President to West Point. Thursday refused to acknowledge both of these valorous efforts. This mindset is especially prevalent in regard to delegation with Cochise, the Apache leader. Cochise was not the mongrel Thursday had envisioned -- he was well-dressed (as were all of the Apache) and perfectly eloquent in Spanish, which made translation no issue thanks to the help of Sergeant Beauford. BLAH BLAH I HATE THIS SO MUCH but hey this is the second page 8D I just have to finish it~