What is the conflict between the squatters and the ranchers?

Underlying the wars between ranchers and squatters is a fundamental economic ideology which the novel pursues. By staking the claim that Fletcher is no more entitled to all the land he claims than he thinks the squatters entitled to live on “his” land, the novel propose that capitalism is fundamentally about equality. Capitalism without equitable access to resources and the potential for making a living is no different than the European feudal system which America as an idea is supposed to reject outright. Shane as the hero taking the side of the squatters against the monopoly ownership of Fletcher is a confirmation that the novel espouses a system of capitalism that assumes certain elements of socialism are a requisite for equal opportunity.