Wrestling, Culture, and Mythology - Essay Example

Media and cultural studies Introduction. 1Myth is the hidden set of rules and conventions through which meanings, which are in reality specific to certain groups are made to seem universal and given for a whole society. Myth can serve to precipitate fear, to uphold status quo, to guide and serve as a road map towards cultural believes and practices. In the following discussion the works of Roland Barthes, about wrestling as a sport with mythical meanings will be analyzed with an aim of ascertaining how myth affects cultures and whole societies. Barthes contention that image plays a big role is emphasized by the fact he always cites examples in which he shows how every days trivia could have a deep meaning as long as the mythology in it is analysed. 1.1. Wrestling and Mythology. Wrestling, applied to myth can take the three different meaning so that several cultural values are attached to it. These may include masculinity as many cultures attach or connect masculinity to protectionism, the way wrestling is contacted makes clear that the society is agreeing to by spectating acts depicted in wrestling, whether fictional or real , in a wresting game, value of the masculinity the ingenuity with which wrestlers ruthlessly handle each other is a clear sign that, in wrestling there are deeper meanings. Just to emphasize masculinity, contesters are usually heavy and well build. 2Culturally a man underweight would never pass for wrestling auditions. It is almost un-ethic to even think about wrestling if one does not confer to the se values and standards. 1.11. Feminity in wrestling Although culturally wrestling only involved men as the only active actors, recently, females have been assimilated to the sport with a bit of success. The fact that their shows too attract big audiences is a clear pointer to the fact that unlike in the past when 3culturally a myth that feminist was not supposed to come out but was innate is fast being replaced by a new culture in which the myth has been transformed and shockingly or interestingly these have succeeded in wrestling due to the fact that a myth on feminist in the context of self protectionism has cropped up. Accordingly, modern wrestling has evolved. The evolution seems to have done away with beliefs such as women are not able to engage in literally involving physical activities. 4The belief that fighting as many views wrestling is a preserve for men because again many belief women to be soft and not able to tolerate the physical exchange involved. 1.12. Overweight wresting Traditionally, overweight was not believed to be a major cause for worry in many traditions. 5In fact many are the cultures that associate body mass with being a well to do person and therefore lack of it was interpreted to mean starvation or 'not doing so well'. The underlying belief was that in order to gain weight, one had to be eating well and conversely, eating well meant that one was having enough to spend on food. Such society was simple and technological advancement had not caught up with the people, having enough food to put on the table implied that one was meeting their basic needs and therefore were well to do. Therefore overweight was something, which the society treasured and valued, and therefore those overweight or with much weight were considered fit for wrestling and the other culturally viable tasks associated with it. Today, the myth about wrestling still remains albeit with some little new meanings to it. 6The connotation attached to wrestling is one in which wrestlers are viewed as tough, by being tough or purporting to be tough the society sees in a wrestler a champion, someone who is dependable, one who can protect some one who can sire an offspring, capable of defense, toughness as depicted is a virtue. Wrestling is the epitome of power, authority and control. The above are achieved through cohesion, use of force, blackmailing and manipulation. Toughness is to be adored, to be revered and at the same time to be countered with an equal measure of force, zeal and determination. Riches and wrestling While culturally riches have had many myths attached to it. Wrestling has traditionally been associated with riches. 7The people, who enjoyed most, wrestling, were those of the bourgeoisie class, over-endowed, wealth, and seekers of pleasure. Wrestling encouraged pleasure, it was a pleasure to watch wrestling. It was associated with the state of 'well-to-do'. Usually not many from the low class were watching the game. In terms of who played, the bourgeoisie also played the sport. This particularly choosy class likes not many sports. For one to be assimilated or recruited in the otherwise exclusive club, one had to be personally networked or have a proxy to the bourgeoisie if not totally belonging of there Riches also are connected to this group in that playing in the recent past has become connected to richness. It nowadays earns a wrestler slightly higher than a a million dollars per month. This is money which directly connotes riches, therefore wrestling is a source of wealth and those who play it are more likely to be viewed as rich, worthy a fortune and able to control and lead. 2.1. War /peace and wrestling While many sports seldom connote affluence, very few connote war or peace. However, wrestling has a myth symbolizing war and peace. This is portrayed in that when wrestlers go at it, rarely can one tell whether the fight is fictional or practical. The fierceness, the seriousness, the determination, the animations all connotes reliability and therefore truthfulness. For an outsider, it is easy to be misled on the actual state of affairs as they are not privy to the insider happenings. Usually, at least in the eyes of spectators, what takes place in a wrestling ring is nothing short of war of blows, punches, kicks and use of objects to tear one another. This further hardens the belief among spectators that, wrestling is a real fight. Alternatively, the myth in the traditional times was that wrestling prepared men for war, preparation in the sense that the necessary drills were practiced in the playing battle. 8Since fighting in those ancient times was at best rudimentary, during wars, rudimentary weapons were used including the use of simple objects such as sticks, spears shields and in many cases kicks and blows, substituted the above mentioned objects. Wrestling is embedded in the myth that, wrestling signifies the ability to offer protection to one-self, protection to ones family and to a larger extent, offering protection to the society and the community. This protection was highly applicable in times of danger, when one came under immense danger from attack either by an enemy, as well as wild animals. It was a so applicable when a community, whole villages state or empires would face the danger of being conquered or captured by an enemy. Therefore, wrestling throughout the traditions has been viewed and believed to be protectionist, a tool of war. Signifying protection from danger or threats whether external or from within. Usually the threats would be environmental. 2.11. Wrestling and peace When wrestling is viewed as protectionist, thus therefore means it is a causative factor of peace. It implies wrestling is necessary if societies, communities, have to co-exist or survive in the advent of enemies' schemes. Peace refers to relatively total harmony amongst groups of people, communities, families, societies and even countries or even blocks of conglomeration of states commonly referred to as federations. Barthes was right to refer to wrestling as the spectacle of excess. Barthes views wrestling as a spectacle that takes place in the open air, the fact that he likens wrestling to emotions is characteristic of war whereby deep emotions are invoked when adversaries take to the battlefield. The above could demonstrate what happens when an individual, a group or a country wins war, in that, peace may result. 3.1. Prosperity wrestling Prosperity has always been limited to a myth of some sorts. For ages, not many people quite fathomed the beginnings of peoples' prosperity, why it happens to some people, the criterion why some end up being successful and why others end up as fortunes. 9While many believe that the reason for prosperity is ones effort, others refute the claim arguing that there are so many paupers who despite much effort are and still remain to be paupers. Hence the cause and key root of myth in prosperity the fact that, there are enough people who in spite of working so hard end up loosing their hand. The line between prosperity and wrestling has been evidenced by the fact that all a long the sport has been also been associated with the middle class, better known as the bourgeoisie. The low class has been marginalized, over the ages they have tended to agree to the fact that they are not fit for the game or rather the sport and therefore seems to have yielded much. Even today one can hardly seek to be enrolled into the club unless he or she is evidently prosperous either through personal efforts or by fate. Fate in the sense that, some people happen to be rich out of sheer coincidence and not due to any personal design or effort. Wrestling attracts those who have yielded into that kind of myth, those who share the same ideology as well beliefs. A class of its own, freely lost in a world of deep emotions, full of interpretation in which truth in meaning is not a big issue, whereby meanings to signifier as well as the signified does not always have to be reasonable hence wrestling continues to impact in its adherents, mass euphoria, hysteria and always makes them joyful. 3.11. Sex and wrestling 10To all generations, the battle of sexes has ensured albeit with different levels of complexity depending on the prevailing needs of a given society in the rudimentary cultures there was power exhibited in ones sexuality. 11Feminism was at its best when the sexuality element was central. Infact, the power in sex is exhibited in early wrestling by depiction in form of early paintings showing signs which capture hysterical scenarios when spectators would be watching the sport. 12There is ample evidence to the fact that wrestling all along rotated between power and women. Women in the sense that, it is the strong of the strongest in the society which exerted control over other men and women alike. In such a set up, such men as wrestlers would end up owning several women at the exposure of other men who did not possess enough, wealth control and power and therefore warranting a total manipulation. It is by manipulation that such men ended up having so many women in their lives, such as, as many as they wished. This myth which links wrestling and sex is evident today as TV's zoom images of huge and gigantic men battling out under the cover of deceit, women and men yell hysterically, totally consumed by the happenings in the ring, totally given to the actions of their champions, the champions who manipulate them by the virtue of being wrestlers. 13Therefore wrestling as a sport is a reserve for the mighty and hence an avenue for accessing all the good things in the society. In this sense and context, is a 'good' commodity in the society traded, with riches, power and prosperity as with wrestling and sex. 4.1. Power and wrestling 14Power has been and still is a very central theme in most societies. The fact that wrestling connotes control is evidenced by the fact that in wrestling, the fittest carry the day. All along many hold a view that for one to be actively involved in the sport then they have to be well endowed in terms of physical strength and therefore are treated as mighty. It goes without saying that in wrestling power is depicted as a product of conflict. Power is forcefully acquired as opposed to being negotiated in wrestling; the above is depicted in that many wrestlers go about the action with eyes set on the prize. The sport does not end in the ring as those who conquer follow and haunt the villains even away from the ring. This depicts authority and control, the mighty have the ability to control as well as to manipulate. Infact, wrestling is all about being mighty, subduing ones adversaries as well as conquering the world! Therefore the above has been the belief amongst many acquaintances of the sport as well as many spectators. This myth has continued to hold and often it has been assumed that, wrestling is synonymous with power. Even in the ancient days, wrestlers even in its amateurish form were responsible for the defense of their countries. Many were considered as powerful and therefore were more likely to subdue or coerce subjects into accepting their demands. Often such called the shots even from long ago, the myth embedded in cultural societies about wrestling was evident. 15It is therefore correct to say that, there is power in wrestling in that, wrestling addicts its die-hard supporters while on the other hard, wrestlers easily use their masculinity, feminity to conquer and subdue other people. 5.1. Politics and wrestling Humanity has never quite existed without a form of politics. 16Politics is what governs people, what sets rules and regulations in which a people, communities, states as well as kingdoms are governed. Wrestling has been shrouded in the myth of politics. Politics in the sense that ,since, wresting attracts the bourgeoisie class as key participants, therefore, politics which involves domination of the weak by the strong. Since most participants are strong physically and otherwise, politics and wresting are very much intertwined. 5.11. Bourgeoisie and wrestling Wrestling has been embedded in the myth that bourgeoisie class is the ideal class. 17The class in which one attains maximum pleasure through maintaining certain cultural aspects unique to the class. This explains the reason why hardly do others like the high class or the low class ever get quite get involved. Therefore, bourgeoisie and wrestling are strongly intertwined and the myth still holds to date. 6.1. Crisis and wrestling Wrestling always involves solving a crisis, crisis in the sense that wrestlers always seem to be deeply involved in solving of conflict. The fighting always emanates from failure to agree in wrestling matches, wrestlers seem to erupt into moments of arguments, very emotional and ever un-ending. Clearly a crisis arises and a solution has to be found. However the solution to the crisis is never, a talk, not even negotiations, but it involves exchange of blows. This way, crisis are solved, the victor carries the day until the next match when after another fight a different victor may emerge in what seems to be a never ending crisis. Conclusion Myths for a long time has determined and chatted the way forward for man, this is evident in the way different meanings as embedded to different actions, tries and objects. Myths play and will continue to play a very positive role in the society. Currently the mystery in myth especially in wresting provides a better and deeper meaning which is essential to understand cultural meanings. REFERENCES 1. Stunken & Cartanght, 2001. 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