In Screening Cowboys, the contemporary issue of masculinity is considered at the intersection of cultural analysis and cultural history. The western genre is a notable case to discuss a range of questions: Why can the cowboy not tell his own story in flash-back? Why is the cowboy’s father an impossible figure in westerns? Why is the encounter between cowboy and Indian constitutely missed? Why is the scenario of inter-male rivalry and friendship thwarted by the possibility of homosexual masculinity? These questions are explored to argue how any form of tough, white masculinity exacts a necessary sacrifice.