In The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, law is shown in a rather negative manner as being powerless, therefore making people administer justice themselves. All the events of the story happen in Twotrees which is a town that lacks a law enforcing authority or a relevant authority that can take action against criminals like Liberty Valance. Consequently, there is no law protecting the townspeople, leaving them to fend for themselves. This theme is illustrated in the case of Ranse Foster who gets a rude awakening when realizing that the law cannot defend him. When Foster asks the marshal about…