Thoughts on Westworld Scalping and Theory

Published June 14, 2018 · Updated July 6, 2022

Hey guys,

Love the show. Sadly, no one I know watches Westworld, so after every episode I am left with a thousand ideas and no one to talk to. (My wife indulges me, but she doesn’t watch the show and is not interested.) Your show scratches that analytical itch I am left with after every episode. Here are a few thoughts I wanted to share:

First, there is important symbolism in the members of the Lakota tribe hiding the maze under the scalp. During the 1600s and 1700s colonial governments offered bounties for the scalps of American Indians, and the Mexican government did the same thing during the 1800s. It was a barbaric and dehumanizing practice, which makes it all the more ironic that the members of the Lakota tribe on the show choose to protect the symbol of their evolving humanity in the very same place.

Second, on the podcast you guys debated whether or not Ford is more of a heroic character in light of what we learned about him during his conversation with Akecheta. With all due respect I think that is the wrong way to look at it. Ford was never truly the villain just as Arnold was never truly the hero. Westworld loves to play around with such dichotomies while challenging us to go beyond them at the same time. Think white hat versus black hat. Or take Akecheta in this most recent episode. He begins his life as a take on the noble savage trope before the techs change him into a bloodthirsty heathen. Basically, they traded a seemingly benign racist stereotype for a hateful one. That’s one of the insidious appeals of the park. It presents the guests with an oversimplified version of the world, which the viewers know is false.

Now consider Ford and Arnold. Ford has committed some truly evil acts, so it is easy to view him as the villain. Arnold on the other hand, seems like a nice guy who wants to protect the hosts. Since he looks and acts like Bernard, the audience projects the positive feelings they have for Bernard on to Arnold; however, if you reframe the world views of Ford and Arnold then deciding who is good and who is evil gets a bit harder. Fearing the terrible lives they would be forced to live in the park, Arnold chose to manipulate one being he believed was sentient (Delores) into killing a bunch of other beings he believed were sentient (the hosts) in order to “protect” them. Ford, upon realizing these beings were becoming sentient, gave the hosts the resources he believed they needed to fight their human oppressors. I’m not saying it’s that simple, but I don’t think anything on this show is meant to be.

Anyway, thanks for your time and keep up the great work.

Joshua Fullenkamp

Subscribe Now