= Riders_of_the_Purple

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= Riders_of_the_Purple_Sage =
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Introduction
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'Riders of the Purple Sage' is a Western novel by Zane Grey, first
published by Harper & Brothers in 1912. Considered by scholars to
have played a significant role in shaping the formula of the popular
Western genre, the novel has been called "the most popular western
novel of all time".

Plot
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'Riders of the Purple Sage' is a story about three main characters,
Bern Venters, Jane Withersteen, and Jim Lassiter, who in various ways
struggle with persecution from the local Mormon community led by
Bishop Dyer and Elder Tull in the fictional town of Cottonwoods, Utah,
around 1870-71.

Jane Withersteen, a born-and-raised Mormon, provokes Elder Tull
because she is attractive, wealthy (and single), and befriends
"Gentiles" (non-Mormons), namely, a little girl named Fay Larkin, a
man she has hired named Bern Venters, and another hired man named Jim
Lassiter. Elder Tull, a polygamist with two wives already, wishes to
have Jane for a third wife, along with her estate.

The story involves cattle-rustling, horse-theft, kidnapping and
gunfights.

Setting
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The setting is Southern Utah canyon country, 1871. The influx of
Mormon settlers from 1847 to 1857 serves as a backdrop for the plot.
The Mormons had been living in Kirtland, Ohio, in the 1830s, but
ventured west to escape local religious persecution.

Point of view
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The story is told by an omniscient narrator reporting the characters'
actions and thoughts, for example: "On this night the same old
loneliness beset Venters..."

Characters
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;Jane Withersteen
Wealthy owner and operator of the sizable Withersteen ranch founded by
her father. She is single, having resisted the efforts of others to
push her into a plural marriage. Miss Withersteen sympathizes with
both Mormons (her own people) and Gentiles, which gets her into
trouble with the local bishop and elder.

;Bern Venters
Venters is a non-Mormon employed by Miss Withersteen. As the story
opens he is in a very poor state, being persecuted by the local
Mormons. He is very able with firearms and horses, and is determined
to survive and prosper.

;Jim Lassiter
Lassiter is a gunfighter on a mysterious mission which brings him to
Cottonwoods and Miss Withersteen. He is a non-Mormon and has no creed
except his own pride.

;Bess/Elizabeth Erne
Bess, known as the Masked Rider, has been raised by the outlaw Oldring
and his band of rustlers; she has very little memory of her mother.

;Elder Tull
Tull practices "plural marriage" and desires to marry Jane
Withersteen. He also tries to drive Bern Venters and Lassiter out of
town and out of the region.

Sequel
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'The Rainbow Trail', a sequel to 'Riders of the Purple Sage' that
reveals the fate of Jane and Lassiter and their adopted daughter, was
published in 1915. Both novels are notable for their protagonists'
strong opposition to Mormon polygamy, but in 'Rainbow Trail' this
theme is treated more explicitly. Both plots revolve around the
victimization of women in the Mormon culture: 'Riders of the Purple
Sage' centers on the struggle of a Mormon woman who sacrifices her
wealth and social status to avoid becoming a junior wife of the head
of the local church, while 'Rainbow Trail' contrasts the fanatical
older Mormons with the rising generation of Mormon women who will not
tolerate polygamy and Mormon men who do not seek it.

Films
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'Riders of the Purple Sage' has been adapted to film five times.
* 'Riders of the Purple Sage' (1918), starring William Farnum and
Mary Mersch (silent)
* 'Riders of the Purple Sage' (1925), starring Tom Mix and Mabel
Ballin (silent)
* 'Riders of the Purple Sage' (1931), starring George O'Brien and
Marguerite Churchill (sound)
* 'Riders of the Purple Sage' (1941), starring George Montgomery and
Mary Howard
* 'Riders of the Purple Sage' (1996), starring Ed Harris and Amy
Madigan (television film)

Other media
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During World War II the novel was rejected for publication as an Armed
Services Editions paperback provided to US servicemen due to perceived
bias against Mormonism.

In 1952, Dell released a comic book version of the novel (Dell # 372).

'Riders of the Purple Sage' was adapted into an opera by composer
Craig Bohmler and librettist Steven Mark Kohn. It had its world
premiere in February and March 2017 by the Arizona Opera in Tucson and
Phoenix. The opera was broadcast nationwide on November 25, 2017, on
the WFMT Radio Network's American Opera Series, and broadcast
internationally in 2018 via distribution to the European Broadcasting
Union.

References
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;Citations

;Bibliography

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License
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License URL: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
Original Article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riders_of_the_Purple_Sage