My Darling Clementine comment

Our discussion on My Darling Clementine got shortchanged a bit because of the schedule, so I'd like for you to say something interesting here about one of the important themes of this film -- the conflict between wilderness and civilization. Almost all Westerns deal with this theme somehow because they take place during a time in American history when an old way of life was giving way to a new one, bringing with it welcome progress or more problems, depending on your point of view. You can directly address the question from the viewing guide if you'd like, but there are plenty of other ways to approach this -- you could talk about a specific scene or character that illuminates this theme as well. As always, leave your first name and last initial, plus your hour.

Here are some sub-conflicts that play out under the main conflict of wilderness and civilization that could be topics for you to address. The first word in each pair is for "wilderness," the second is for "civilization":

individual vs. community
freedom vs. restriction
honor vs. institutions
integrity vs. compromise
self-interest vs. social responsibility
nature vs. culture
purity vs. corruption
experience vs. knowledge
pragmatism vs. idealism
brutalization vs. refinement
savagery vs. humanity
The West vs. The East
equality vs. class
agrarianism vs. industrialism
tradition vs. change
the past vs. the future
(list courtesy of "Authorship and Genre: Notes on the Western" by Jim Kitses)