Ethics, Masculinity Define Ringo’s Character in Classic Movie Stagecoach (1939)

That Ringo is ethical is also clear. He is determined to restore family honor by facing the Plummers (“There’s some things a man can’t run away from”). He resolves to stay with the travelers once they are truly in danger even when he could escape. And, even his readiness to return to jail because he gave his word to Curley shows a strong ethical grounding. In each case, he subverts his own desires for a greater good. Even his goal to fight the Plummers, with their history as territorial bullies, carries the cache of righteous justice.

There also is no doubt of Ringo’s abilities as a man. He was a “good cow hand” and Buck, Curley, and Chris, as friends of his dad, all think Ringo a “fine boy.” His skill with a gun is clear from the first twirl of his rifle to re-cock. His courage is evident as he climbs atop the moving stagecoach during the Apache attack, leaps onto the runaway horses to gather the loose leads (a move brilliantly doubled by stuntman Yakima Canutt), and walks away from Dallas toward a shootout confident that, despite the odds of only three bullets against three Plummers, he will return. It helps too that his winning smile and handsome features, together with his actions, exude strength, honor, and a comfortable masculinity.

By the time credits roll, it’s clear that the disreputable jailbird who appeared on the road to Dry Fork is a brave, sensitive man with the capacity for selflessness, honor, and love. He is the archetype of what McBride (2001) calls Ford’s noble outlaw—a model of Ford’s code of honor that thrives even in the face of the pseudo-respectability of class prejudice.