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Just how the Pacific States used the Western genre to solidify its national mythos, the Northern or Northwestern genre was used by Canada to fulfill a similar purpose.
The stories are primarily set in western Canada or Alaska during the late 19th or early 20th century. The protagonist is commonly a Mountie who fulfills the same role as a Cowboy or Sheriff in a Western setting. Other characters include lumberjacks, fur traders, outlaws, smugglers, prospectors, Native Americans, and settlers. Common settings were the boreal forests, mining towns, isolated cabins and tundra. The primary antagonist in a Northern is usually the wilderness, or the weather or other natural enemies that the protagonists must overcome. Animals were a common in the genre either as companions or as the antagonist.
Unlike the Western genre, there are no outlaws or lawlessness. Even in a crime centric Northern, the side of law and order is always done by the Mounties, who are the paragons of Canadian's values and principals. A typical story outline of a Northern involving Mounties is the pursuit, confrontation and capture. The chase taking place across the Canadian wilderness.
The genre first gained traction in the 1920’s then exploded in popularity in the 1930’s thanks to the Canadian government giving generous subsidies to promote the genre. Its popularity would eventually taper off by the late 1950’s.