What are the motifs in Bless the Beasts and Children by Glendon Swarthout?

Myth versus reality is a recurring idea. The Box Canyon Boys' Camp perpetuates the rather macho myth of the Old American West. This same myth is the one portrayed by Hollywood movies, particularly during the middle years of the twentieth century. The boys in the story have grown up on these myths. The idea of the mythological cowboy permeates their psyches. Indeed, the boys are so eager to view a Western movie that they break all the rules of the camp to sneak out to see one at the local drive-in.