How does Rusty change over the course of the story in the novel, Genesis?

At first Rusty yearns for an opportunity to do something heroic, so that the other men will accept him as a fullfledged cowboy. He is self-centered, easily annoyed, and eager for a respect that he does not realize cannot be easily earned. As he matures, he realizes that heroic acts are everyday experiences for cowboys. If they fail to look out for each other, they will not be able to do their jobs. When Rusty falls from his pony and is charged by a longhorn steer, he is saved by another rider. He feels humiliated by this, because he thinks he has looked unmanly in front of the others. Eventually, he learns that danger is always present and that helping or needing help is not a matter of concern to cowboys.