The Western isn't just about the past — it's a mirror reflecting America's ongoing struggle with freedom, violence, and belonging. It’s America's foundational mythology - a genre where rugged individualism, frontier justice, and the clash between civilization and wilderness define national identity. This lecture explores how Western films mythologize history, creating enduring archetypes like the cowboy, the outlaw, and the settler. We’ll trace the Western’s roots from early silent classics, to John Ford's masterpieces like “Stagecoach” and “The Searchers”, to Sergio Leone’s 'Spaghetti Westerns' like “A Fistful of Dollars", “The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly”, and “Once Upon a Time in the West”, and examine its evolution through modern revisionist takes like Clint Eastwood’s "Unforgiven” the Coen Brother’s and “No Country for Old Men", discussing its symbolic role in shaping American ideals and anxieties.