This website will take a deep dive into several core pillars of the Western genre. The role of the film genre is to shape the landscape of films. Influenced by its industry, viewership and criticism, genre lays boundaries between different film types through an informal system of categorisation. Exploring the conventions which define the Western genre help narrow the plethora of meanings which can be generated from Western film contents (Pye 30-32). Defining genre also helps recognise emerging conventions which challenge preconceived assumptions about the Western, pathing a course for growth and evolution.