Self-Invention and Celebrity

Cody actively constructs his own legend, from earning the nickname 'Buffalo Bill' to transitioning from scout and hunter to a stage actor performing his own life, highlighting the creation of a public persona.

Cody's transformation from a plainsman to a nationally known actor and landowner illustrates the theme of self-invention and the creation of a public persona.

Cody transforms from a frontier scout into the internationally famous showman 'Buffalo Bill,' illustrating the power of self-invention.

Young Cody's pride in owning ponies and his early adventures foreshadow his later self-invention as Buffalo Bill, a frontier celebrity.

Horace Billings, a former Californian, reinvents himself as a skilled horseman and becomes a hero figure for young Cody, foreshadowing Cody's own self-invention.