The Case Against Martial Arts

[Tsuruken]

Playing devils advocate & trying to make people think:

Powerful ham-fisted images, metaphors hammering home an ethos of self-worth through violence adorn the pages of the slurry of Martial Arts Magazines which jut out of the News-Stands around the country.

Grotesque and contorted images of martial arts mayhem embodied in both black & White and colour print leap outwards as one flicks lazily through the pages.

Do these images present the case against martial arts? Or are they simply representing where the arts (as they were once known) are headed?

Do these images and the articles they are wrapped within accurately represent the martial arts to Joe Public? Are these the messages we want to put forwards for the arts?

I fear hearing the answers to these questions. I fear that the true jewels of the arts remain (to most) sunken like treasure at the bottom of a vast sea made murky with these images.

Treasures like the art’s relationship to health. Not adrenaline-pumped health but the type that brings about longevity. Treasures like the immensely personal and philosophical messages beating at the heart of the arts.

Sadly I fear that the vital arteries of the arts are becoming clogged with a mire of destructive and violent messages eventually leading to failure of the heart … the heart of the martial arts.

Melodramatic? Perhaps. But sadly something to consider given the melee of images marketed within the pages of the martial arts press.

“Marketed” is a great term for surely these images are just that. Designed to enthral and entice Joe Public to believe that this is the way to go, the art for him or her or even more concerning, for their children!

Yes self-defence isn’t pretty but that’s not all there is to the martial arts. What say's you?

[Laughing Cow]

Personaly, I haven't picked up a mainstream MA mag in quiet some time.

I do buy if there is an article about my style or about a specific aspect that I am interested in.

There is only 1 Mag I subscribe to at the moment "T'ai Chi", all the other Info I want I get from e-zines, MA Boards or similar.

Why is that, because I got fed up and disappointed with the way MA are represented in the mainstream media.

Plus, I found that a lot of MA mags simply re-hashed the same info in different flavors and packaging.

cheers.

[joedoe]

Those that understand the value of MA beyond the fighting aspects are going to realise it despite the images projected by the media. Those that are only interested in the fighting aspects will mostly only ever be interested in the fighting aspects. The wider public seems to have a thirst for blood (kinda like the Roman empire just before its fall) and the magazine editors need to sell magazines so they cater for the thirst of the general public.

To be fair, the practitioners who are interested in the MA beyond fighting are (unfortunately) probably a minority, and are catered for by magazines like KFQG etc.

Just my view on things.

[Ether]

Its just like its always been people. Right from the explosion of kung-fu in the movies and international consciousness in the 70,s, through Karate and bad, bad Ninja obsessions in the 80,s and early 90's. Now people want to see blood, and 'streetfighting' styles . As always though, the people who know and understand their own arts just keep training and dont worry about the media.

I practise my art because it suits me and I feel it works. The media representation of it is a world away from the reality. And to be honest, I hope it stays that way.

Hi! btw. First post. :)

[apoweyn]

tsuruken,

personally, i think we've only got ourselves to blame. the media misrepresents everything in order to make it more entertaining, more dramatic, sexier, etc. that's hardly news.

police work, military life, the legal system, all of these things and more have been romanticized and dramatized for marketing and entertainment purposes. and yet we gripe about how our precious arts are misrepresented.

entertainment is one thing. a kung fu movie has no greater responsibility to realistically portray martial arts than 'le morte du arthur' has to realistically portray medieval knighthood.

and the magazines. that's marketing. those of us in the know are fully aware that it's nonsense. and those of us that don't know, those of us who are fascinated with that image, don't get a counterbalance from those in the know.

instead, they get melodramatic analogies about sunken treasures and beating hearts. is that any more realistic?

popular imagery also holds that martial artists are a bunch of serene, wizened pacifists (ala mr. miyagi). and yet i don't hear an awful lot of griping about that, despite the obvious inaccuracy of it. lots of martial artists seem all too happy to let stand any popular image that paints us in a good light. we're perfectly content to let people see us as models of humility, self control, and a drove of other positive qualities.

but that's not true either, is it. we're capable of being at least as trite, contrary, and small as the next guy.

to my mind, this ties into another common topic on this board. "do you tell people that you're into martial arts?" the usual answer is something like, "no. people have such stupid ideas about martial arts. they ask me if i could kill a man with my bare hands. or attack me all the time. or make silly bruce lee impersonations. it's annoying. so now, i just don't tell anyone."

silly. the people in the best position to give others a realistic portrayal of the martial arts are the ones least given to do so. leaving it wide open for the media (marketing, entertainment, etc.) to come in and fill up that space UNCONTESTED with fluff.

instead of telling people what it's really like, what we really go through, we pass out vagaries about 'walking the path', 'uncovering buried treasure', etc. we don't talk about real experiences. we romanticize and dramatize.

we only have ourselves to blame.


stuart b.

[Budokan]

The media craze about martial arts is simply catering to the lowest common denominator to insure the magazine's or movie's success. Those of us who have actually practiced and studied MA for any serious length of time know these are only marketing practices and don't in any way seriously represent the factual truths surrounding legitimate martial arts.

[Cody]

apoweyn,
Nicely done. A couple of thoughts came to mind. mostly re movies and TV.

1. Did you see the Bresson film, Lancelot du lac? I wasn't sitting there with a textbook guide to the Middle Ages, but I felt like I was there and that's what it was like. Long time ago. Don't know what I would feel now. (Not a movie to have popped corn with.)

2. The media, specifically movies & TV, is there to make money, primarily. It does so thru entertainment. There is sometimes an attempt at realism, in order to expand the experience of the audience in a secondary sense. It's hard to know when the realism ends and flights into fancy begin, except that special effects have become so obvious that they are a big time hint. Even then, it's tricky. The emotions are big and overblown and sometimes flat like a comic book. Yet, there are people who appear like that in 3D.
To speak on a trivial example. I used to think that there was no one on the face of this earth who would have the voice of one of Marge Simpson's sisters. One day, I am in big city and hear a voice in a group of people. I guess they were middle aged, plain folk. Yup, the same kind of voice. Situation seemed genuine, and people who passed by didn't seem to notice. So, who's to say?

3. The media also deals in stereotypes. The thing about stereotypes is that they may have a basis in reality. It can be only one person. The problem with stereo's is that they blanket reality with assumptions which are not appropriate to individual cases across the board.
When a group basks in the glory of one positive stereotype ("...models of humility, self control, and a drove of other positive qualities."), but denies other across the board characteristics, they cooperate in getting set up. The media doesn't have to make this stuff up. All they need to do is visit a number of publically available MA websites to get their material.
The media has a toehold because of the discrepancies in the field, because the degree of proficiency appears to be deteriorating over time in terms of numbers who emerge from training on the same footing with the very high level practitioners, imo. You don't have to have very big ears in schools to hear the passing comment that MA training isn't what it used to be. Once the excuse was that Western students weren't up for it or would get bored. I guess that still flies. I haven't been around to hear it. There are others.
On the other hand, I've seen examples of the necessity for hard physical discipline in media. It doesn't take up the whole movie, but why should it? The interest is in seeing performance.

People in the best position to express "realistic" MA might not do so because they have no need for the parade. They also might not want to make for bad feelings in MA community. Some might feel criticized by what they say, and that's what it might amount to. Indeed, they might be turned into another stereotype if they go too public.

In the mountain of bull, a grain of truth might make a difference to someone. I'll give an example of one hyped up TV series, Witchblade. I occasionally watched it. There was an interesting view of evil in that guy who wanted to control the person who had this gift. In my heart, I said "No" to that. So, this weird series served a purpose of presenting me with a choice when I least expected that to happen. One might say: "You mean you hadn't made it already?" Sure I did, but the mind and heart can move because of what happens in life. It's important to recheck where you're at, especially by surprise.

My opinion is that the vagaries you mention, are seriously spoken of in MA circles. It's not the media's fault, except that they turn it into a broader stereotype and milk it for all it's worth. It sells cause it gives hope that maybe there's something more to life. The audience might be seeking simple relief of boredom, with no intention of following up. If some try, as I have no doubt they do, they will find what they will.

good post,
Cody

[Suntzu]

instead, they get melodramatic analogies about sunken treasures and beating hearts. is that any more realistic? well said...
Realistically…… fighting produces blood… u get puched u bleed… realistically… exercise promotes good health… u exercise u MIGHT live longer… realistically… T&A, blood and guts and more T&A sells anything… we need more T&A…

[apoweyn]

cheers fellas.


stuart b.