South their notions of social respectability and sta-
tus. Thus, as the film begins in Tonto, they enter
the stagecoach in the descending order of their
apparent importance within the film’s social scale:
Gatewood, the banker, is a highly respected
social pillar of Tonto.
Lucy, the transient army wife, is a respected
Southern aristocrat.
Hatfield, the transient gambler, seems to be a
gentleman.
Peacock, the transient whiskey salesman, is
barely acceptable.
Dr. Boone has been run out of town by the
Law and Order League.
Dallas, a prostitute, has also been run out of
town.
Ringo, an escaped convict, has no social
status.However, after the challenges and conflicts of
the two-day trip, Ford reverses this order of
importance as the characters leave the coach in
Lordsburg:
Ringo becomes the hero through his heroic
defense of the stagecoach.
Dallas becomes the heroine by showing dig-
nity in the face of humiliation and compassion
in helping to deliver Lucy’s baby.
Dr. Boone is redeemed when he sobers up and
delivers Lucy’s baby.
Peacock does not change.
Hatfield is redeemed by chivalrously dying to
defend Lucy.
Lucy, still aloof, nonetheless acknowledges
Dallas’s kindness.
Gatewood is apprehended as a bank thief.1234Settings in Stagecoach [1] The main street of Tonto,
where the horses are being attached to the stagecoach
before the journey begins. [2] The stagecoach, with its
cavalry escort, entering the first phase of the journey. [3] The
Apache attack on the stagecoach. [4] The main street of
Lordsburg, where residents watch the stagecoach arrive.
LOOKING AT NARRATIVE: JOHN FORD’S STAGECOACH 165