This page is about the novel, for other uses (including film adaptations) see The Virginian (disambiguation).
The Virginian (otherwise titled The Virginian: A Horseman of the Plains) is a pioneering 1902

1902 in literature

The year 1902 in literature involved some significant new books.-Events:* April - Mark Twain purchases a home in Terrytown, New York.* June 4 - Mark Twain receives an honorary doctorate of literature degree from the University of Missouri....

 novel set in the Wild West by the American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 author Owen Wister

Owen Wister

Owen Wister was an American writer and "father" of western fiction.-Early life:Owen Wister was born on July 14, 1860, in Germantown, a well-known neighborhood in the northwestern part of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His father, Owen Jones Wister, was a wealthy physician, one of a long line of...

. Describing the life of the foreman of the Shiloh Ranch in Wyoming, it was the first true western written, aside from the tiny dime novels. It paved the way for many more westerns by famous authors such as Zane Grey

Zane Grey

Zane Grey was an American author best known for his popular adventure novels and stories that presented an idealized image of the Old West. Riders of the Purple Sage was his bestselling book. In addition to the success of his printed works, they later had second lives and continuing influence...

, Louis L'Amour

Louis L'Amour

Louis Dearborn L'Amour was an American author. His books consisted primarily of Western fiction novels , however he also wrote historical fiction , science fiction , nonfiction , as well as poetry and short-story collections. Many of his stories were made into movies...

, and several others.

Plot Summary

Written from the standpoint of the narrator, the book holds strong reflections to Wister's earlier visit to Wyoming. Starting with the authors' arrival in Medicine Bow, WY, the novel describes his encounters with the wild west. He makes friends with the strong minded foreman of the Shiloh Ranch, and discovers the west to be very different from what he had thought. From that point onward, the novel revolves around the foreman, known only as the Virginian, and the life he lives. As well as describing the Virginian's conflict with his enemy, Trampas, and his romance with the pretty schoolteacher, Wister weaves a tale of action, violence, hate, revenge, love and friendship. Wister succeeds in making the Virginian a stern man with a soft side to his personality. The book contains many different stories throughout. In one scene, the Virginian must participate in the hanging of an admitted cattle thief, who had been his close friend. The hanging is represented as a necessary response to the government's corruption and lack of action, but the Virginian feels it to be a horrible duty. He is especially stricken by the bravery with which the thief faces his fate, and the heavy burden that the act places on his heart forms the emotional core of the story. A fatal shootout resolves the ongoing conflict with Trampas, after five years of hate. The Virginian shoots Trampas and leaves to marry his young bride. The next day, they ride off together into the mountains. The book ends with a short description of their later life, and exposition about the Virginian eventually becoming a great man and fathering several children.

Film Adaptions

• The Virginian
  The Virginian (1914 film)
  The Virginian is a 1914 film based upon the novel by Owen Wister, and starring Dustin Farnum as the Virginian. The movie is the first of several versions, including a 1929 movie with Gary Cooper and Walter Huston and a 1960 television series. The 1914 film was directed by Cecil B....
  
   (1914 film) directed by Cecil B. DeMille
  Cecil B. DeMille
  Cecil Blount DeMille was an American film director and Academy Award-winning film producer in both silent and sound films. He was renowned for the flamboyance and showmanship of his movies...
  
  , with Dustin Farnum
  Dustin Farnum
  Dustin Lancy Farnum was an American singer, dancer and an actor in silent movies during the early days of motion pictures. After a great success in a number of stage roles, in 1914 he landed his first film role in the movie 'Soldiers of Fortune', and later in Cecil B. DeMille's The Squaw Man...
  
  
• The Virginian
  The Virginian (1923 film)
  The Virginian is a 1923 silent film based upon the Owen Wister novel, with Kenneth Harlan as the Virginian and Russell Simpson as Trampas. The film was directed by Tom Forman and has been overshadowed by the 1929 movie with Gary Cooper and Walter Huston. There have been several versions of the...
  
   (1923 film) with Kenneth Harlan
  Kenneth Harlan
  Kenneth Harlan was an American leading man of the silent film era, playing mostly romantic leads or adventurer types.-Career:...
  
   and Florence Vidor
  Florence Vidor
  Florence Vidor was an American actress.Born Florence Arto, her father, J. P. Arto, was an important executive and she started working in silent movies thanks to her husband, film director King Vidor. She signed her first contract with Vitagraph Studios in 1916...
  
  
• The Virginian
  The Virginian (1929 film)
  The Virginian is a 1929 western movie starring Gary Cooper as the Virginian and Walter Huston as the villainous Trampas. The early sound film was directed by Victor Fleming....
  
   (1929 film) with Gary Cooper
  Gary Cooper
  Frank James Cooper, known professionally as Gary Cooper, was an American film actor. He was renowned for his quiet, understated acting style and his stoic, but at times intense screen persona, which was particularly well suited to the many Westerns he made...
  
   and Walter Huston
  Walter Huston
  Walter Thomas Huston was a Canadian-born American actor. He was the father of actor and director John Huston and the grandfather of actress Anjelica Huston and actor Danny Huston.-Life and career:...
  
  
• The Virginian
  The Virginian (1946 film)
  The Virginian is a 1946 film based upon the Owen Wister novel, with Joel McCrea as the Virginian and Brian Donlevy as Trampas. The film was directed by Stuart Gilmore and remains widely regarded as an inferior remake of the 1929 movie with Gary Cooper and Walter Huston. There have been several...
  
   (1946 film) with Joel McCrea
  Joel McCrea
  Joel Albert McCrea was an American actor whose career spanned 50 years and appearances in over 90 films.-Early life:...
  
   and Brian Donlevy
  Brian Donlevy
  Brian Donlevy was an Irish-born American film actor, noted for playing tough guys from the 1930s to the 1960s. He usually appeared in supporting roles. Among his best known films are Beau Geste and The Great McGinty...
  
  
• The Virginian
  The Virginian (TV series)
  The Virginian is an American Western television series starring James Drury and Doug McClure, which aired on NBC from 1962 to 1971 for a total of 249 episodes. Filmed in color, The Virginian became television's first 90-minute western series...
  
   (1962 - 1971 TV Series) with James Drury
  James Drury
  James Child Drury, Jr. is an American actor probably best known for his success in playing the title role in the 90-minute weekly Western television series The Virginian, broadcast on NBC from 1962-1971...
  
   and Doug McClure
  Doug McClure
  Douglas Osborne "Doug" McClure was an American actor whose career in film and television extended from the 1950s to the 1990s...
  
  
• The Virginian (2000) (TV movie) with Bill Pullman
  Bill Pullman
  William James "Bill" Pullman is an American film, television, and stage actor. Pullman made his film debut in the supporting role of Earl Mott in the 1986 film Ruthless People. He has since gone on to star in other films, including Spaceballs, Independence Day, Lost Highway, Casper and Scary Movie 4...
  
   and Diane Lane
  Diane Lane
  Diane Lane is an American film actress.Born and raised in New York City, Lane made her screen debut at the age of 13 in George Roy Hill's 1979 film A Little Romance, starring opposite Sir Laurence Olivier. Soon after, she was featured on the cover of Time magazine...