Cooper has created a world of freedom and adventure which has never lost its appeal for the modern reader.

An exploration into the elements that make Westerns so appealing even today will offer a valuable approach to the novels, their attitude — and ours — towards the myths of open space, wilderness and independence. That the westward expansion also led to bloody and tragic conflicts with the native Americans would later be rationalized as Manifest Destiny, a concept that will also lend itself to a wide range of discussion possibilities.

1. Why does Cooper develop two similar adventures in The Pathfinder, each of which deals with Natty rescuing Mabel? What does the first adventure establish that helps us understand the second — the sea battle and massacre on the Island?

2. What are Natty's true feelings for Mabel? Does he love her? Does he feel a marriage with...