Paul Bunyan
The most recognizable figure in American folklore (to Americans at least) is that of the giant Paul Bunyan. Sure, you could argue Johnny Appleseed is more well-known but what the hell does that guy look like? We all recognize the big bearded guy dressed in boots, a flannel shirt, carrying an ax, and accompanied by a giant blue bull named Babe. Iconic. The man that so many hipsters wish they could be.
When you start to think about what Paul Bunyan represents, he gets even more interesting. First of all, he’s a lumberjack, a notoriously difficult and low-paying job. You could even say it is the ultimate work-class profession. While his job is, at its core, the clearing of the wild places of North America to make way for the settler civilization, Paul Bunyan as a character is also instilled with an inherent connection to wildlife and nature. He’s a giant that could level the whole forest in one day, and yet he is also a protector of wildlife. His best friend is an ox, a work animal. As settlers moved west across the new country to follow the cattle trade or the gold rush, so did Paul. His myths started to take place at the Grand Canyon, the Rocky Mountains, and San Francisco Bay. People brought him with them as they moved. His connection to the lands grew as his myths moved out of the lumber camp and into creating the very landscapes of America.
People from other countries always wonder why white Americans are so obsessed with their genealogy. Why do we all know where our 5th great-grandfather was from and why do we care? Since most of us are descended from either settlers or immigrants, we don’t have an innate connection to the land. We are not rooted in that place and culture by countless generations. In many cases, folklore comes from this connection between people and place. To my mind, Paul Bunyan is an attempt by the white settlers to craft a connection with this new land. Pitiful as this attempt is, it has stood the test of time, as exemplified by the dozens of Paul Bunyan and Babe statues found around the country. And even though I have a soft spot for the myth of Paul Bunyan and am myself a white American, we didn’t need to do all these mental gymnastics to create a connection to the land. We could have just stayed in Europe, where we fucking belonged.
What is your relationship to Paul Bunyan and Babe? What do you think of my hypothesis? Are there any giants in your own folklore? My big question is; why in every fucking statue do they need to make Babe’s balls so fucking massive? We get it, he’s a bull! My eye doesn’t need to be drawn to the balls all the goddamn time. What's your take on giant balls on statues?
[originally posted to Patreon on 11/2/25]
