Is Woodrow F. Call a hero?

You should probably read Streets of Laredo to help draw that conclusion.

It certainly does stand on it's own. I referred to the other book because a lot more gets revealed about his character in the next book.

He hates rude behavior in a man and won't abide it.

Seriously though, he was a human being with some very good attributes and some that were kind of shitty. Most heroes were probably the same.

No. Neither was Augustus.

They were men who had a job and did it. Nothing they did was heroic. It just was.

That's the brilliance of the novel.

quote:

---

They were Texas fricking Rangers. They cleared the southern plains of murdering savages and made it inhabitable. They took the first herd of cattle in history from Texas to Montana, lynching outlaws as they went. They whacked surly bartenders when it was necessary, stole hearts of whores, led men in combat and were general badasses. Heroes, by God

---

Bravo!!

BUT, the thing is, Call LIKED doing all those things. Gus made that point continuously in various ways.
When Call was given 17 years of chances to face something he didn’t like, he chickened out. That’s why Gus wouldn’t leave him alone about it. He knew how wrong, cowardly, and unlike his friend it was.

I don’t know that all of the heroic things he did offset that one failure, when you take stock of his life (up to the end of Lonesome Dove).

Gus was a flat-out hero, shying from nothing save work, but even doing that well when necessary.

I think Gus and Woodrow together make one near perfect man, at least for those times. Gus had the tender heart and the kindness and Woodrow had the ambition and drive. Both had great fighting abilities.

Sometimes I wonder which of them was the better man of action. Gus was off the charts when he took out those comencheros and in the books at least he has excellent eyesight and aim. Call seemed better in a one on one fight going by the way he almost killed that army guy that was whipping Newt. And I think he had better leadership qualities.

You’re in way over your head gump.

quote:

---

they stole cattle from other owners ...

---

They “stole” cattle from that piece of shite mexican Pedro Flores who had previously stolen the cattle from Texas. So they were actually recovering cattle

quote:

---

i would assume many of the indians they killed weren't necessarily 'savages' so much as people defending their land

---

Awe wee, how sweet. You’re living in the greatest civilization in the history of the world thanks to men like Cpt. Woodrow F Call and Augustas McCray. Your kind can even marry now. You could practice a little more gratitude.

quote:

---

and he did not claim newt as his own when he probably would've married the woman had she not been a whor

---

Well Maggy WAS a whore. And she slung the poon to Jake Spoon and every other jingling spur on the trail. For money. Should Call have done right by Newt? Absolutely. That was his main flaw in character. But as previously mentioned heroes have flaws.

The definition of hero:

quote:

---

he·ro 'hiro/Submit noun 1. a person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities. "a war hero" synonyms: brave person, brave man/woman, man/woman of courage, man/woman of the hour, lionheart,

---

quote:

---

. i simply prefer to use some rational thinking when analyzing the characters, instead of blindly bowing down to them ... but i see you prefer the latter

---

I appreciate and identify with both perspectives.

Funnily enough, Gus and Call kind of overtly give us both of those perspectives in the book.

quote:

---

ive read the book a few times and have watched the film probably twice as many times as you

---

Lol. Keep thinking that.

quote:

---

i simply prefer to use some rational thinking when analyzing the characters,

---

You simply prefer to ignore the literal definition of the word hero and are apparently clueless about the characters who personify it. If Call and Gus aren’t the heroes of Lonesome Dove who is? Lippy? Rosco? The poor, oppressed Blue Duck?

Newt? Clara? dumbass Bob? Jake Spoon? Who is the hero of the novel?