Menage a Blog Author Guest with Jacquie Rogers

Yup you got it, we have wrangled another wonderful author from the Menage A Blog line up to stop by and write a little post for us. Now if you haven't read her book, then you need to go grab a copy now! (check out Monday's post for links to the Menage website) Now on to our guest post for the day, read and enjoy then go comment (vote) for your choice today. Go Here

Cowboys: Knights of the Old West 

By Jacquie Rogers 

Copyright © 2011 Jacquie Rogers 

http://www.jacquierogers.com 

A certain mythos of romance holds a strong place in my heart.  And of course, when I talk about romance, I’m gonna talk about men.  As a woman, and as a romance writer, men fascinate me.  They’re so incredibly complicated but at the same time so basic.  Women are complicated and basic in other ways, leaving the man/woman relationship mystifying as to how or why it ever works.  The romance genre delves into this complexity in every book. 

When a woman looks for a mate, and that’s what romance is all about, she’s hardwired to look for the three Ps in a prospective candidate: Provide, Protect, and Procreate.  Now, nearly all men are ready at any time for the third P (although we’re a bit picky about who fathers our children), but quite a few men aren’t all that keen about the first two. 

And that’s why we women love the whole idea of knights and cowboys.  Yes, I lumped them into the same sentence.  Take a look at the Texas Rangers oath for deputy rangers:  

Be Alert  

Be Obedient  

Defend the Weak  

Never Desert a Friend  

Never Take Unfair Advantage  

Be Neat  

Be Truthful  

Uphold Justice  

Live Cleanly  

Have Faith in God  

Now here’s the Knights Code of Chivalry described in the Song of Roland: 

To fear God and maintain His Church 

To serve the liege lord in valour and faith 

To protect the weak and defenceless 

To give succour to widows and orphans 

To refrain from the wanton giving of offence 

To live by honour and for glory 

To despise pecuniary reward 

To fight for the welfare of all 

To obey those placed in authority 

To guard the honour of fellow knights 

To eschew unfairness, meanness and deceit 

To keep faith  

At all times to speak the truth 

To persevere to the end in any enterprise begun 

To respect the honour of women 

Never to refuse a challenge from an equal 

Never to turn the back upon a foe 

That’s just a longwinded way of saying the same thing as the Texas Rangers did. 

Truth is, people haven’t changed much, if ever.  Our idea of the US Navy SEAL, the 19th Century cowboy, or the 13th Century knight all bring to a woman’s mind the perfect man to give us children, provide for them, and to protect them from harm so they can thrive into adulthood. 

Our ideal romance hero is intelligent, loyal, honest, brave, and oh-s0-sexy.  My cowboy in Much Ado About Marshals (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0058ON1LS) is placed in a situation that tests him, because if he is loyal, he can’t be honest, and if he’s honest, he will betray his best friend.  What a dilemma for a man who lives by the Knight’s Code of Chivalry, even if he’d never heard of such a code, because that’s the way of the good guys in the Old West. 

This same situation could have played out in Medieval England as well as in the American Old West.  It was Sir Lancelot’s dilemma in the days of King Author and the glorious Round Table, and now it’s Cole Richards’ dilemma in Much Ado About Marshals, set in the dusty desert of Owyhee County, Idaho.  The cowboy’s word is his bond.  Honor is everything. 

Men are men.  They’re warriors, hunters, and protectors.  It’s through that tough exterior that women find his core of loyalty, honor, and most of all, love.  The sweetest of women can tame the hearts of the toughest of men.  This is our fantasy—this is what we’ve dreamed about since we were little girls.   

And that’s why men in chaps and spurs melt our hearts.