Riders of the Purple Sage

Lassiter was once a respected Texas Ranger, but has a reputation as a gunslinger who targets Mormons. Lassiter’s story is slowly revealed through the plot of the novel. Lassiter has been seeking revenge for his sister after she disappeared from her home and was forced to have a child, only to die from her grief. In telling his story, Lassiter shows that he was a moral man forced into immorality by men who hurt his family, fulfilling the common western archetype of the haunted gunslinger.

Lassiter is a gentle man who falls in love with Jane. Her religion doesn’t matter to him except for the fact that it prevents her from falling in love with him. Lassiter never had a problem with Mormons; he had a problem with Mormons who hurt his sister. Lassiter has an issue with men like Tull and Dyer, as he doesn’t like seeing men take advantage of a woman on her own.

Lassiter finds joy in Fay and Jane because they offer the possibility of a life he has been denied. However, Lassiter refuses to take advantage of this possibility until he believes that Jane truly loves him, a fact that shows the depth of his morality. Where men like Tull and Dyer are expected to have high morals, characters like Lassiter show that high morals don’t necessarily belong only to men of religion but can be part of the fabric of men without religious convictions.

Venters is not Mormon, and therefore the Mormons see him as an outsider in their community and they dislike his closeness with an independently wealthy Mormon woman. Venters’s relationship with Jane is the initial motive for Tull enlisting the help of Oldring to steal Jane’s cattle and horses. Venters initially came west to join the gold rush in California but found himself struggling to survive in Utah. Venters has a poor view of the Mormon leaders in Cottonwoods, but because of Jane, has never acted on his views.

While Venters is portrayed as a gentle person who would not resort to violence to solve conflicts, his love for Bess changes this side of him. Venters grows a hatred of Oldring for what he perceives the rustler has done to Bess. However, after Venters discovers Oldring’s relationship to Bess, he learns to refrain from violence when making assumptions of others. Venters’s internal struggle underscores the effects of the Religious Conflict as he enacts the behavior the Mormon church already believes him to be capable of. Ironically, his circumstances have been spurred by the church leaders themselves.

Bess is revealed to be the mysterious masked rider who travels with Oldring’s rustler gang. Bess’s reputation is that of a man who kidnapped women, stole cattle, and killed ruthlessly. However, as Venters gets to know Bess, it becomes clear that Bess is as innocent as a child, hidden away her whole life, and that she has never hurt a soul.

Bess’s romance with Venters parallels the romance between Jane and Lassiter, both showcasing the chaste nature of romance in novels written during the time. Bess has no reason to doubt Venters and never wavers in her affection for him.

Bess is revealed to be the missing daughter of Milly Erne at the end of the novel. This frees Venters of his guilt for killing Oldring and allows Jane to know that her half-sister is alive and safe. Finally, Bess is the only family Lassiter has left, so her survival is a victory for his 18 years of seeking revenge for his sister.