Explored the close connection between individual life processes and the natural environment, emphasizing the importance of place in the writing of life. By analyzing the letters and travelogues of 19th century women, this study reveals the different experiences and literary representation strategies of people with different identities towards the same place in Wyoming. The different interpretations of the American West by traditional Western historiography and the New Western perspective have influenced the representation of places in literary writing. Letters and travelogues, as direct samples of individual experience, are associated with life and political issues. By analyzing Eleanor Pruitt Stewart's letters and Mrs. Pender's travelogues, we can better understand the mechanism of the relationship between place, emotional representation, and identity.

Life experiences in letters from rural women

Literary research after the 1980s revealed the influence of natural geographic conditions in the western United States on women's lifestyles, gender roles, and gender relationships. During the Westward Movement, approximately 75000 women immigrated to the western United States, among whom landlady, as an independent status type, enjoyed Western life alone without male assistance. Stuart, as a landlady, applied for a homestead on her own and settled in Bentford, Wyoming. She recorded her life experiences through letters, which were later published and compiled. Stuart's writing emphasizes the importance of place and showcases the life experiences and historical significance of Wyoming under harsh natural conditions. Her letters were filled with optimism, firmly believing that women could run ranches, which was in line with the thriving Western development movement in American society at the time. In Stuart's letters, the natural landscapes of Wyoming create a multisensory impact, infused with beautiful life experiences. Her portrayal of Wyoming in her writing is not simply a record, but rather determined by her attitude and perspective while observing the landscape, which determines the content and emotions of the letter. Stuart's writing differs from the unpredictable dangers of the wilderness during the early pioneering period, likening the experiences of life in the natural environment to those of early pioneers. She recorded in detail her experiences such as strolling in the mountains with her daughter and shooting wild rabbits, discussing them in a relaxed narrative tone, giving a sense of reverence for natural laws, and forming an identity with early male pioneering heroes. In Stuart's letters, the Wyoming community is filled with positive interactions, creating a positive and optimistic multicultural atmosphere. Her writing records her life experiences as a rural woman, reflecting the spirit of the times to achieve self-sufficiency through labor. Stuart highly praised the homestead policy, and her letter was soon published in The Atlantic, with the underlying reasons being self-evident. Her writing seems to confirm Emerson's admiration for the infinite potential of human beings, and the recorded homestead life has a core homogeneity with Thoreau's experience of living alone by Walden Pond. Stuart achieved his life ideal of self-reliance through his homestead, which aligned with the political aspirations of the United States to break free from European colonial powers and represented the realization of the country's demand for comprehensive independence in the daily life practice of ordinary individuals. Stuart's writing on women's participation in social practice expanded the traditional gender division of labor in society. Her letters were written to her former employer from a first person perspective, focusing on special rather than everyday matters, and emphasizing outings rather than home activities. Her writings on homestead labor and outdoor activities record the alternative lifestyle of women in the American West, reflecting the wider participation of women in social production during the Westward Movement and their pursuit of equal development opportunities with men. Stuart deliberately highlights the independent identity of rural women, and the content presented in his life writing adds new dimensions to the representation and meaning production of Western American literature. In the process of highly praising the natural scenery and cultural landscape of Wyoming, there may be some exaggeration, but her Wyoming writing has both personal and social significance, as it is not only a record of an individual's pursuit of independent living, but also a typical social and historical dimension. The mirror world formed by the emotions inspired by natural geography and her attitude towards the place not only records the life journey of an ordinary rural woman, but also presents the unique themes that Western American women's writing focuses on.

The Life Experience in the Travels of British Businessmen

Explored the life experiences and emotional expressions of British merchants in Wyoming during their expansion into the western United States in the 19th century. Mrs. Pender, a British merchant, visited the western United States in 1883 and recorded her travel experiences, viewing the west as a wilderness in opposition to the east, reflecting her cultural superiority. She used the term 'picturesque' to describe the natural scenery of Wyoming, incorporating the natural environment of the New World into the aesthetic standards and cultural significance of Britain. Mrs. Peng's travelogue not only recorded her personal experiences, but also indirectly served the political and economic goals of imperial expansion. Her negative evaluation of American cowboys reveals the misalignment of cultural imagination in two aspects: on the one hand, the difference between the romanticized image of American cowboys in literature and the hardships of real life; On the other hand, there is a difference between her imagination of male heroes and the actual living conditions of American cowboys. Mrs. Peng's travelogue showcases her physical and mental independence, but is also limited by her cultural identity as an investor, which prevents her from developing deep interpersonal relationships with the locals. By comparing the life stories of rural women Stuart and Mrs. Pender, it can be seen that cultural identity, knowledge background, and cognitive structure can lead to different experiences and emotional types in the same place, and individual experiences have a restrictive relationship with literary discourse construction.