Easy Rider - Marc Dunham
The ideals represented by Captain America (Wyatt) and Billy in Easy Rider are partially indicative of the ideals expressed by Donald Costello in “From Counterculture to Anticulture,” but not perfectly. Costello writes that “the young of the 60’s had contended that their culture was based not on exploitation but on love, not on violence but on peace, not on restraints but on freedom” (187). All of these ideals appear to apply to Easy Rider at first glance, but only the idea of peace over violence is really consistent throughout the movie.
At the brothel in New Orleans, it appears that the protagonists do choose love over exploitation, as they do not opt immediately for sex with the prostitutes, but rather take them out to experience the atmosphere of Mardi Gras. However, earlier in the film at the hippie commune, the characters (primarily Billy, but also Wyatt) take a more lax approach to sex and exploit the nature of the hippies.
With the premise of the movie, two men biking cross country with no time schedule or real plan for how to survive along the way, it is surprising that the freedom argument doesn’t hold up. The fact is that the whole excursion was made possible by a large drug sale to a wealthy American at the beginning of the movie. Their “freedom” was made possible only by this large amount of money, which was made possible only through those who represented the ideals of capitalist America. Billy’s exclamation about retiring in Florida is also very non-counterculture, as we know it as the stereotypical goal of those who play by the rules and look for a relaxing retirement after a lifetime of servitude to a society that has done them well.
Although there is a considerable amount of violence portrayed in the film, the protagonists are always the targets. When the townspeople in the café threaten them, Billy, Wyatt, and George avoid confrontation and leave peacefully, only to be found and beaten later. It is also notable that when Billy is shot by the man in the truck, revenge does not seem to enter into Wyatt’s mind. He rather attempts to find help, and is cut down by the same men who killed his friend.