Gordon W. Russell
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195189599
- eISBN:
- 9780199868445
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195189599.003.0004
- Subject:
- Psychology, Social Psychology
This chapter discusses the role of media in influencing aggression. As examples, do the all consuming interests of the couch potato lead to conflict in marital and romantic relationships? The ...
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This chapter discusses the role of media in influencing aggression. As examples, do the all consuming interests of the couch potato lead to conflict in marital and romantic relationships? The question of whether violence on television increases the aggression of viewers is explored along with the equally important question of whether there are effects that extend into the community well beyond the viewing situation, for example, suicides and homicides. A following section considers the content and effects of professional wrestling on young children and teens in dating relationships. The cognitive phenomenon of “priming” whereby violent rhetoric sets the stage for later aggression is examined. The results of studies designed to assess the effects of people personally viewing aggression from the stands are summarized. Also considered are the effects on viewers of displays of interpersonal aggression containing erotic themes.Less
This chapter discusses the role of media in influencing aggression. As examples, do the all consuming interests of the couch potato lead to conflict in marital and romantic relationships? The question of whether violence on television increases the aggression of viewers is explored along with the equally important question of whether there are effects that extend into the community well beyond the viewing situation, for example, suicides and homicides. A following section considers the content and effects of professional wrestling on young children and teens in dating relationships. The cognitive phenomenon of “priming” whereby violent rhetoric sets the stage for later aggression is examined. The results of studies designed to assess the effects of people personally viewing aggression from the stands are summarized. Also considered are the effects on viewers of displays of interpersonal aggression containing erotic themes.
Joseph S. Alter
- Published in print:
- 1992
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520076976
- eISBN:
- 9780520912175
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520076976.003.0011
- Subject:
- Anthropology, Asian Cultural Anthropology
This chapter argues that wrestling casts the body in a particular light. Various regimens, in conjunction with certain symbolic structures, have the effect of building the body up to larger-than-life ...
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This chapter argues that wrestling casts the body in a particular light. Various regimens, in conjunction with certain symbolic structures, have the effect of building the body up to larger-than-life proportions. The regimentation to which the wrestler's body is subject does not produce a wholly disembodied pugilist such as might be the product of Western forms of discipline, where body is radically dissociated from mind, and where the rank-and-file individual is regarded as a mere machine. Since Hindu philosophy and practice does not make the same distinction between mind and body, the individual is not objectified in the same way when subject to various forms of discipline. As Narayan Singh pointed out, the first step of any exercise begins with the questioning the self, and proceeds along a direct path of regimentation to a subjective experience of self as whole and healthy.Less
This chapter argues that wrestling casts the body in a particular light. Various regimens, in conjunction with certain symbolic structures, have the effect of building the body up to larger-than-life proportions. The regimentation to which the wrestler's body is subject does not produce a wholly disembodied pugilist such as might be the product of Western forms of discipline, where body is radically dissociated from mind, and where the rank-and-file individual is regarded as a mere machine. Since Hindu philosophy and practice does not make the same distinction between mind and body, the individual is not objectified in the same way when subject to various forms of discipline. As Narayan Singh pointed out, the first step of any exercise begins with the questioning the self, and proceeds along a direct path of regimentation to a subjective experience of self as whole and healthy.
Roxanna Curto and Rebecca Wines (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- May 2022
- ISBN:
- 9781800856899
- eISBN:
- 9781800853317
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3828/liverpool/9781800856899.001.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Sport and Leisure
This edited volume gathers together studies examining various aspects of physical culture in literature written in French from Europe and around the Francophone world. We define “physical culture” as ...
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This edited volume gathers together studies examining various aspects of physical culture in literature written in French from Europe and around the Francophone world. We define “physical culture” as the systematic care for and development of the physique, and interpret it to include not only sport in the modern sense, but also all the athletic activities that preceded it or relate to it, such as bodily forms of exercise, leisure, and artistic creation. Our essays pursue diverse interpretive approaches and focus on texts from a wide variety of periods (medieval to the present) and genres (short stories, novels, essays, poetry) in order to consider the fundamental—yet highly neglected—place of physical activities in literature and culture from the French-speaking world. Some of the questions the essays explore include: Does the genre “sports literature” exist in French, and if so, what are its characteristics? How do governments or other political entities mobilize sports literature? What role do narratives about sports—especially the creation of teams—play in the construction of national, regional and/or local identities? How is physical culture used in literary works for pedagogical or ideological purposes? To what extent do sports performances provide a metaphorical and figurative discourse for discussing literature and culture?Less
This edited volume gathers together studies examining various aspects of physical culture in literature written in French from Europe and around the Francophone world. We define “physical culture” as the systematic care for and development of the physique, and interpret it to include not only sport in the modern sense, but also all the athletic activities that preceded it or relate to it, such as bodily forms of exercise, leisure, and artistic creation. Our essays pursue diverse interpretive approaches and focus on texts from a wide variety of periods (medieval to the present) and genres (short stories, novels, essays, poetry) in order to consider the fundamental—yet highly neglected—place of physical activities in literature and culture from the French-speaking world. Some of the questions the essays explore include: Does the genre “sports literature” exist in French, and if so, what are its characteristics? How do governments or other political entities mobilize sports literature? What role do narratives about sports—especially the creation of teams—play in the construction of national, regional and/or local identities? How is physical culture used in literary works for pedagogical or ideological purposes? To what extent do sports performances provide a metaphorical and figurative discourse for discussing literature and culture?
Ronald E. Heine
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780199245512
- eISBN:
- 9780191600630
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199245517.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Early Christian Studies
Contains a translation of the third book of Jerome's commentary on Ephesians with a translation of the parallel excerpts from Origen's commentary. Book III begins with a prologue and then provides ...
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Contains a translation of the third book of Jerome's commentary on Ephesians with a translation of the parallel excerpts from Origen's commentary. Book III begins with a prologue and then provides commentary on Ephesians 4: 31–6: 24. Origen and Jerome interpret Paul's comments in this section of the epistle on subjects such as anger, sex, obscenity in actions, speech, and thought, marriage and its symbolism in relation to Christ and the Church, and household relationships. There is a major discussion, focused especially on Ephesians 6: 12, of Paul's words about the ‘wrestling’ of the Christian ‘against the cosmic powers of darkness’.Less
Contains a translation of the third book of Jerome's commentary on Ephesians with a translation of the parallel excerpts from Origen's commentary. Book III begins with a prologue and then provides commentary on Ephesians 4: 31–6: 24. Origen and Jerome interpret Paul's comments in this section of the epistle on subjects such as anger, sex, obscenity in actions, speech, and thought, marriage and its symbolism in relation to Christ and the Church, and household relationships. There is a major discussion, focused especially on Ephesians 6: 12, of Paul's words about the ‘wrestling’ of the Christian ‘against the cosmic powers of darkness’.
Thomas L. Brodie
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195138368
- eISBN:
- 9780199834037
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195138368.003.0032
- Subject:
- Religion, Biblical Studies
Jacob's journey homeward, after an absence of twenty years, consists of two main episodes: journeying in fear to meet Laban (Genesis 31:1–32:2), and journeying in greater fear to meet Esau, the ...
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Jacob's journey homeward, after an absence of twenty years, consists of two main episodes: journeying in fear to meet Laban (Genesis 31:1–32:2), and journeying in greater fear to meet Esau, the brother who once sought to kill him (32:3–ch. 33). Jacob's fear includes the fear of death. In meeting Laban, he is cowed initially; only in his anger does he find the courage to confront Laban. However, before facing Esau, Jacob wrestles with God, and then he faces the danger somewhat calmly. The night struggle with God has some aspects of a betrothal.Less
Jacob's journey homeward, after an absence of twenty years, consists of two main episodes: journeying in fear to meet Laban (Genesis 31:1–32:2), and journeying in greater fear to meet Esau, the brother who once sought to kill him (32:3–ch. 33). Jacob's fear includes the fear of death. In meeting Laban, he is cowed initially; only in his anger does he find the courage to confront Laban. However, before facing Esau, Jacob wrestles with God, and then he faces the danger somewhat calmly. The night struggle with God has some aspects of a betrothal.
Ronojoy Sen
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780231164900
- eISBN:
- 9780231539937
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231164900.003.0002
- Subject:
- Sociology, Sport and Leisure
A summary of sport in ancient and medieval India including referenes to the great Indian epics.
A summary of sport in ancient and medieval India including referenes to the great Indian epics.
Ronojoy Sen
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780231164900
- eISBN:
- 9780231539937
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231164900.003.0009
- Subject:
- Sociology, Sport and Leisure
The story of wrestling and boxing in colonial India and the lives of some of its biggest stars.
The story of wrestling and boxing in colonial India and the lives of some of its biggest stars.
Ronojoy Sen
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780231164900
- eISBN:
- 9780231539937
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231164900.003.0013
- Subject:
- Sociology, Sport and Leisure
An assessment of the state of sports, other than cricket, in India.
An assessment of the state of sports, other than cricket, in India.
Sharon Mazer
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- September 2020
- ISBN:
- 9781496826862
- eISBN:
- 9781496826626
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781496826862.001.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Sport and Leisure
Professional wrestling is one of the most popular performance practices in the United States and around the world, drawing millions of spectators to live events and televised broadcasts. The displays ...
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Professional wrestling is one of the most popular performance practices in the United States and around the world, drawing millions of spectators to live events and televised broadcasts. The displays of violence, simulated and actual, may be the obvious appeal, but that is just the beginning. Fans debate performance choices with as much energy as they argue about their favorite wrestlers. The ongoing scenarios and presentations of manly and not so-manly characters—from the flamboyantly feminine to the hypermasculine—simultaneously celebrate and critique, parody and affirm, the American dream and the masculine ideal.
Sharon Mazer looks at the world of professional wrestling from a fan’s-eye-view high in the stands and from ringside in the wrestlers’ gym. She investigates how performances are constructed and sold to spectators, both on a local level and in the “big leagues” of the WWF/E. She shares a close-up view of a group of wrestlers as they work out, get their faces pushed to the mat as part of their initiation into the fraternity of the ring, and dream of stardom. In later chapters, Mazer explores professional wrestling’s carnivalesque presentation of masculinities ranging from the cute to the brute, as well as the way in which the performances of women wrestlers often enter into the realm of pornographic. Finally, she explores the question of the “real” and the “fake” as the fans themselves confront it.
First published in 1998, this new edition of Professional Wrestling: Sport and Spectacle both preserves the original’s snapshot of the wrestling scene of the 1980s and 1990s and features an up-to-date perspective on the current state of play.Less
Professional wrestling is one of the most popular performance practices in the United States and around the world, drawing millions of spectators to live events and televised broadcasts. The displays of violence, simulated and actual, may be the obvious appeal, but that is just the beginning. Fans debate performance choices with as much energy as they argue about their favorite wrestlers. The ongoing scenarios and presentations of manly and not so-manly characters—from the flamboyantly feminine to the hypermasculine—simultaneously celebrate and critique, parody and affirm, the American dream and the masculine ideal.
Sharon Mazer looks at the world of professional wrestling from a fan’s-eye-view high in the stands and from ringside in the wrestlers’ gym. She investigates how performances are constructed and sold to spectators, both on a local level and in the “big leagues” of the WWF/E. She shares a close-up view of a group of wrestlers as they work out, get their faces pushed to the mat as part of their initiation into the fraternity of the ring, and dream of stardom. In later chapters, Mazer explores professional wrestling’s carnivalesque presentation of masculinities ranging from the cute to the brute, as well as the way in which the performances of women wrestlers often enter into the realm of pornographic. Finally, she explores the question of the “real” and the “fake” as the fans themselves confront it.
First published in 1998, this new edition of Professional Wrestling: Sport and Spectacle both preserves the original’s snapshot of the wrestling scene of the 1980s and 1990s and features an up-to-date perspective on the current state of play.
Susana Vargas Cervantes
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- January 2020
- ISBN:
- 9781479876488
- eISBN:
- 9781479843428
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9781479876488.001.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Law, Crime and Deviance
The Little Old Lady Killer focuses on the female serial killer Juana Barraza Samperio, a Mexican lucha libre wrestler who, disguised as a government nurse, strangled sixteen elderly women in Mexico ...
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The Little Old Lady Killer focuses on the female serial killer Juana Barraza Samperio, a Mexican lucha libre wrestler who, disguised as a government nurse, strangled sixteen elderly women in Mexico City. The search for the Mataviejitas (the killer of old women) was the first ever undertaken for a serial killer in Mexico. Following international profiling norms for serial killers, the police were initially looking for an ordinary-looking man, but after witness accounts described the Mataviejitas as wearing a wig and makeup, police changed their focus and began to search for a “travesti.” The book undertakes an analysis of the classed, gendered, and sexed transitions described in police reports and media accounts in relation to international criminological discourses and Mexican popular culture. On January 26, 2006, Juana Barraza was arrested as she fled the home of an elderly woman who had just been strangled with a stethoscope. Two years later, Barraza was convicted and sentenced to 759 years and 17 days; she remains in Santa Martha Acatitla to this day. I argue that La Dama del Silencio, Barraza’s masked wrestling identity, more than the woman herself became figured in official and popular discourse as the serial killer, La Mataviejitas. This displacement of personas reinforces national imaginaries of masculinity, femininity, and criminality. The national imaginaries of what constitutes a criminal female or male, in turn, determine crucial notions of mexicanidad within the country’s pigmentocratic culture, who counts as a victim, and how a criminal is constructed.Less
The Little Old Lady Killer focuses on the female serial killer Juana Barraza Samperio, a Mexican lucha libre wrestler who, disguised as a government nurse, strangled sixteen elderly women in Mexico City. The search for the Mataviejitas (the killer of old women) was the first ever undertaken for a serial killer in Mexico. Following international profiling norms for serial killers, the police were initially looking for an ordinary-looking man, but after witness accounts described the Mataviejitas as wearing a wig and makeup, police changed their focus and began to search for a “travesti.” The book undertakes an analysis of the classed, gendered, and sexed transitions described in police reports and media accounts in relation to international criminological discourses and Mexican popular culture. On January 26, 2006, Juana Barraza was arrested as she fled the home of an elderly woman who had just been strangled with a stethoscope. Two years later, Barraza was convicted and sentenced to 759 years and 17 days; she remains in Santa Martha Acatitla to this day. I argue that La Dama del Silencio, Barraza’s masked wrestling identity, more than the woman herself became figured in official and popular discourse as the serial killer, La Mataviejitas. This displacement of personas reinforces national imaginaries of masculinity, femininity, and criminality. The national imaginaries of what constitutes a criminal female or male, in turn, determine crucial notions of mexicanidad within the country’s pigmentocratic culture, who counts as a victim, and how a criminal is constructed.
Constance Classen
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- April 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780252034930
- eISBN:
- 9780252094408
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of Illinois Press
- DOI:
- 10.5406/illinois/9780252034930.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, Cultural History
From the softest caress to the harshest blow, touch lies at the heart of our experience of the world. Now, for the first time, this deepest of senses is the subject of an extensive historical ...
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From the softest caress to the harshest blow, touch lies at the heart of our experience of the world. Now, for the first time, this deepest of senses is the subject of an extensive historical exploration. This book fleshes out our understanding of the past with explorations of lived experiences of embodiment from the Middle Ages to modernity. This approach to history makes it possible to foreground the tactile foundations of Western culture—the ways in which feelings shaped society. This book explores a variety of tactile realms; including the feel of the medieval city; the tactile appeal of relics; the social histories of pain, pleasure, and affection; the bonds of touch between humans and animals; the strenuous excitement of sports such as wrestling and jousting; and the sensuous attractions of consumer culture. The book delves into a range of vital issues, from the uses—and prohibitions—of touch in social interaction to the disciplining of the body by the modern state, from the changing feel of the urban landscape to the technologization of touch in modernity. Through poignant descriptions of the healing power of a medieval king's hand or the grueling conditions of a nineteenth-century prison, we find that history, far from being a dry and lifeless subject, touches us to the quick.Less
From the softest caress to the harshest blow, touch lies at the heart of our experience of the world. Now, for the first time, this deepest of senses is the subject of an extensive historical exploration. This book fleshes out our understanding of the past with explorations of lived experiences of embodiment from the Middle Ages to modernity. This approach to history makes it possible to foreground the tactile foundations of Western culture—the ways in which feelings shaped society. This book explores a variety of tactile realms; including the feel of the medieval city; the tactile appeal of relics; the social histories of pain, pleasure, and affection; the bonds of touch between humans and animals; the strenuous excitement of sports such as wrestling and jousting; and the sensuous attractions of consumer culture. The book delves into a range of vital issues, from the uses—and prohibitions—of touch in social interaction to the disciplining of the body by the modern state, from the changing feel of the urban landscape to the technologization of touch in modernity. Through poignant descriptions of the healing power of a medieval king's hand or the grueling conditions of a nineteenth-century prison, we find that history, far from being a dry and lifeless subject, touches us to the quick.
Anne Pippin Burnett
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199277940
- eISBN:
- 9780191707841
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199277940.003.0008
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Poetry and Poets: Classical, Early, and Medieval
Composed by Pindar about a decade after Nemean 5, Nemean 4 once again takes Peleus as the figure through whom a victorious boy may discover his new identity. It was made for Timasarchos, a young man ...
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Composed by Pindar about a decade after Nemean 5, Nemean 4 once again takes Peleus as the figure through whom a victorious boy may discover his new identity. It was made for Timasarchos, a young man who has won in wrestling contests in Athens and Thebes as well as at Nemea, having been coached in this most devious of Greek sports by the famous trainer, Melesias. Timasarchos' prizes have been brought back to his grandfather, Euphanes, who celebrates the boy's victory with an ode that addresses an audience explicitly divided in age and experience. The song announces itself as an agent of Euphrosyna, the high-spirited sense of Joy that rules during the spontaneous victory night celebration and also in the more mature and inhibited symposium. The song engages with the magnificence of the Aiakids, specifically with Peleus' struggle with the Thetis-monster.Less
Composed by Pindar about a decade after Nemean 5, Nemean 4 once again takes Peleus as the figure through whom a victorious boy may discover his new identity. It was made for Timasarchos, a young man who has won in wrestling contests in Athens and Thebes as well as at Nemea, having been coached in this most devious of Greek sports by the famous trainer, Melesias. Timasarchos' prizes have been brought back to his grandfather, Euphanes, who celebrates the boy's victory with an ode that addresses an audience explicitly divided in age and experience. The song announces itself as an agent of Euphrosyna, the high-spirited sense of Joy that rules during the spontaneous victory night celebration and also in the more mature and inhibited symposium. The song engages with the magnificence of the Aiakids, specifically with Peleus' struggle with the Thetis-monster.
Sharon Mazer
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- September 2020
- ISBN:
- 9781496826862
- eISBN:
- 9781496826626
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781496826862.003.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Sport and Leisure
Professional wrestling is an unsporting sport, a theatrical entertainment that is not theatre. Its display of violence is less contest than ritualized encounter between opponents, replayed repeatedly ...
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Professional wrestling is an unsporting sport, a theatrical entertainment that is not theatre. Its display of violence is less contest than ritualized encounter between opponents, replayed repeatedly over time for an exceptionally engaged audience. To watch wrestling and write about its performance is to attempt to come to terms with the significance of a highly popular performance practice as it intersects, exploits, and parodies the conventions of both sport and theatre. Rather than simply reflecting and reinforcing moral clichés, professional wrestling puts contradictory ideas into play, as with its audience it replays, reconfigures, and celebrates a range of performative possibilities. Beyond its spectacular elements, professional wrestling is an athletic performance practice, constructed around the display of the male body and a tradition of cooperative rather than competitive exchanges of apparent power between men as directed by the promoter. The fight is fixed, in the squared circle as in life.Less
Professional wrestling is an unsporting sport, a theatrical entertainment that is not theatre. Its display of violence is less contest than ritualized encounter between opponents, replayed repeatedly over time for an exceptionally engaged audience. To watch wrestling and write about its performance is to attempt to come to terms with the significance of a highly popular performance practice as it intersects, exploits, and parodies the conventions of both sport and theatre. Rather than simply reflecting and reinforcing moral clichés, professional wrestling puts contradictory ideas into play, as with its audience it replays, reconfigures, and celebrates a range of performative possibilities. Beyond its spectacular elements, professional wrestling is an athletic performance practice, constructed around the display of the male body and a tradition of cooperative rather than competitive exchanges of apparent power between men as directed by the promoter. The fight is fixed, in the squared circle as in life.
Sharon Mazer
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- September 2020
- ISBN:
- 9781496826862
- eISBN:
- 9781496826626
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781496826862.003.0002
- Subject:
- Sociology, Sport and Leisure
More than a vulgar parody of “real” sport, professional wrestling is a sophisticated theatricalized representation of the transgressive, violent urges generally repressed in everyday life. More than ...
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More than a vulgar parody of “real” sport, professional wrestling is a sophisticated theatricalized representation of the transgressive, violent urges generally repressed in everyday life. More than a staged fight between representatives of good and evil, at its heart is a Rabelaisian carnival, an invitation to every participant to share in expressions of excess and to celebrate the desire for, if not the acting upon, transgression against whatever cultural values are perceived as dominant and/or oppressive in everyday life. More than an elaborate con game in which spectators are seduced into accepting the illusion of “real” violence, wrestling activates and authorizes its audiences, makes them complicit in the performance. Matches can be described in conventional dramatic terms that remain consistent whether in Madison Square Garden or Gleason’s Arena. Because the fight is fixed, the contest is for heat—for the fans’ attention—rather than for victory per se.Less
More than a vulgar parody of “real” sport, professional wrestling is a sophisticated theatricalized representation of the transgressive, violent urges generally repressed in everyday life. More than a staged fight between representatives of good and evil, at its heart is a Rabelaisian carnival, an invitation to every participant to share in expressions of excess and to celebrate the desire for, if not the acting upon, transgression against whatever cultural values are perceived as dominant and/or oppressive in everyday life. More than an elaborate con game in which spectators are seduced into accepting the illusion of “real” violence, wrestling activates and authorizes its audiences, makes them complicit in the performance. Matches can be described in conventional dramatic terms that remain consistent whether in Madison Square Garden or Gleason’s Arena. Because the fight is fixed, the contest is for heat—for the fans’ attention—rather than for victory per se.
Anne Pippin Burnett
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199277940
- eISBN:
- 9780191707841
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199277940.003.0013
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Poetry and Poets: Classical, Early, and Medieval
Olympian 8 is the only Aiginetan ode by Pindar that celebrates an Olympic victory. In 460 BC, Alkimedon, a boy of the Blepsiad tribe, sailed round the Peloponnese, probably in ...
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Olympian 8 is the only Aiginetan ode by Pindar that celebrates an Olympic victory. In 460 BC, Alkimedon, a boy of the Blepsiad tribe, sailed round the Peloponnese, probably in the company of his trainer, and after a month's preparation at Pisa, defeated all his opponents in the wrestling ring in the Olympics. Through this rare triumph, Zeus ‘exalted’ the boy's city and his tribe, the elder generations of which had also known major victories. Olympian 8 is a Zeus-filled song in which the god is four times formally named — as Zeus of the Silver Bolt, Zeus genethlios, Zeus Xenios, and Zeus the deep-thundering Son of Kronos — before a final prayer in which he is summoned as one who apportions splendid things among mortals. From an Aiakos set down on Aigina by his divine chauffeur, the chorus turns directly and with a rhetorical flourish to Alkimedon's trainer. The snakes and the Aiakid takers of Troy cannot really be reconciled, and Pindar covers the course of two long wars in ten words.Less
Olympian 8 is the only Aiginetan ode by Pindar that celebrates an Olympic victory. In 460 BC, Alkimedon, a boy of the Blepsiad tribe, sailed round the Peloponnese, probably in the company of his trainer, and after a month's preparation at Pisa, defeated all his opponents in the wrestling ring in the Olympics. Through this rare triumph, Zeus ‘exalted’ the boy's city and his tribe, the elder generations of which had also known major victories. Olympian 8 is a Zeus-filled song in which the god is four times formally named — as Zeus of the Silver Bolt, Zeus genethlios, Zeus Xenios, and Zeus the deep-thundering Son of Kronos — before a final prayer in which he is summoned as one who apportions splendid things among mortals. From an Aiakos set down on Aigina by his divine chauffeur, the chorus turns directly and with a rhetorical flourish to Alkimedon's trainer. The snakes and the Aiakid takers of Troy cannot really be reconciled, and Pindar covers the course of two long wars in ten words.
Carey Anthony Watt
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- October 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780195668025
- eISBN:
- 9780199081905
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195668025.003.0005
- Subject:
- History, Indian History
This chapter explores how education was used to train both the mind and body to promote active participation in society, a belief common to Indian and Western understandings of the connection between ...
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This chapter explores how education was used to train both the mind and body to promote active participation in society, a belief common to Indian and Western understandings of the connection between a citizen’s physical health and service to society The leaders of the subcontinent’s social service organizations were keen that healthy Indians became active, patriotic, and efficient citizens. The chapter focuses on the educational interventions of the Arya Samaj, the Kanya Mahavidyalaya, the Theosophical Society, The Servants of India Society, The Kangri Gurukul, among others. Students were also encouraged to reject colonial employment in favour of social service. The observation of brahmacharya was encouraged amongst male students. The chapter also describes the physical capabilities of Professor Ramamurti Naidu, the athletics instructor of Central Hindu College. The influence of Baden-Powell’s Scouting for Boys (1908) is discussed as is also the threat posed by the growing number of Boy Scout movements to British power.Less
This chapter explores how education was used to train both the mind and body to promote active participation in society, a belief common to Indian and Western understandings of the connection between a citizen’s physical health and service to society The leaders of the subcontinent’s social service organizations were keen that healthy Indians became active, patriotic, and efficient citizens. The chapter focuses on the educational interventions of the Arya Samaj, the Kanya Mahavidyalaya, the Theosophical Society, The Servants of India Society, The Kangri Gurukul, among others. Students were also encouraged to reject colonial employment in favour of social service. The observation of brahmacharya was encouraged amongst male students. The chapter also describes the physical capabilities of Professor Ramamurti Naidu, the athletics instructor of Central Hindu College. The influence of Baden-Powell’s Scouting for Boys (1908) is discussed as is also the threat posed by the growing number of Boy Scout movements to British power.
Joseph S. Alter
- Published in print:
- 1992
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520076976
- eISBN:
- 9780520912175
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520076976.003.0010
- Subject:
- Anthropology, Asian Cultural Anthropology
This chapter looks at the way in which somatics translates into a nationalist discourse as the wrestler is cast in the role of perfect citizen. Wrestlers have a specific, overtly circumscribed ...
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This chapter looks at the way in which somatics translates into a nationalist discourse as the wrestler is cast in the role of perfect citizen. Wrestlers have a specific, overtly circumscribed interpretation of modernity, and often provided unsolicited critical commentaries on the state of the modern world. It became apparent that these were not the usual conservative and often anachronistically nostalgic retrospectives. In fact, a refined and critical evaluation of the current moral, economic, and political state of affairs in India is central to the practice of wrestling as a way of life. From the wrestler's perspective, an affliction of modernity assails the human body and thereby directly undermines the integrity of the modern state. A fairly elaborate discourse has developed that both delineates the precise nature of this affliction and offers a utopian alternative.Less
This chapter looks at the way in which somatics translates into a nationalist discourse as the wrestler is cast in the role of perfect citizen. Wrestlers have a specific, overtly circumscribed interpretation of modernity, and often provided unsolicited critical commentaries on the state of the modern world. It became apparent that these were not the usual conservative and often anachronistically nostalgic retrospectives. In fact, a refined and critical evaluation of the current moral, economic, and political state of affairs in India is central to the practice of wrestling as a way of life. From the wrestler's perspective, an affliction of modernity assails the human body and thereby directly undermines the integrity of the modern state. A fairly elaborate discourse has developed that both delineates the precise nature of this affliction and offers a utopian alternative.
Joseph S. Alter
- Published in print:
- 1992
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520076976
- eISBN:
- 9780520912175
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520076976.003.0001
- Subject:
- Anthropology, Asian Cultural Anthropology
This chapter explores wrestling in India as a way of life. The term Indian wrestling is translated directly from the Hindi phrase Bharatiya kushti. Kushti (generic wrestling) is regarded as having a ...
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This chapter explores wrestling in India as a way of life. The term Indian wrestling is translated directly from the Hindi phrase Bharatiya kushti. Kushti (generic wrestling) is regarded as having a uniquely Indian form. In North India, there are two other terms that are used interchangeably when referring to Indian wrestling. The most common of these is pahalwani, which the chapter has taken to signify two important conceptual domains within the larger framework of wrestling as a way of life. On the one hand, pahalwani defines a particular concept of self-structure in terms of somatic principles, and on the other articulates the values and ethics of a distinct ideology. To explore pahalwani, therefore, is to understand how wrestlers make sense of who they are through the medium of their bodies, while the second term is mallayuddha, which may be literally translated as “wrestling combat.”Less
This chapter explores wrestling in India as a way of life. The term Indian wrestling is translated directly from the Hindi phrase Bharatiya kushti. Kushti (generic wrestling) is regarded as having a uniquely Indian form. In North India, there are two other terms that are used interchangeably when referring to Indian wrestling. The most common of these is pahalwani, which the chapter has taken to signify two important conceptual domains within the larger framework of wrestling as a way of life. On the one hand, pahalwani defines a particular concept of self-structure in terms of somatic principles, and on the other articulates the values and ethics of a distinct ideology. To explore pahalwani, therefore, is to understand how wrestlers make sense of who they are through the medium of their bodies, while the second term is mallayuddha, which may be literally translated as “wrestling combat.”
Joseph S. Alter
- Published in print:
- 1992
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520076976
- eISBN:
- 9780520912175
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520076976.003.0003
- Subject:
- Anthropology, Asian Cultural Anthropology
The concept of “guru” has been popularized to the point of parody, and it is difficult to approach the topic without stumbling over stereotypes and misconceptions. Spiritual teachers of all ...
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The concept of “guru” has been popularized to the point of parody, and it is difficult to approach the topic without stumbling over stereotypes and misconceptions. Spiritual teachers of all persuasions abound, and even those who espouse truth with conviction suffer the stigma of fraud. Wrestling is not immune to this modern malady, and there are as many charlatans in the akhara as there are in the temple, spiritual retreat, music hall, dance gharana, or any other arena where the institution of guruship prevails. Nevertheless, whether realized or imagined, the persona of the guru is an important concept in the wrestling rubric, in which ideals are more real than actual human experience, and the guru lives more as a figure of speech than as a flesh and blood teacher.Less
The concept of “guru” has been popularized to the point of parody, and it is difficult to approach the topic without stumbling over stereotypes and misconceptions. Spiritual teachers of all persuasions abound, and even those who espouse truth with conviction suffer the stigma of fraud. Wrestling is not immune to this modern malady, and there are as many charlatans in the akhara as there are in the temple, spiritual retreat, music hall, dance gharana, or any other arena where the institution of guruship prevails. Nevertheless, whether realized or imagined, the persona of the guru is an important concept in the wrestling rubric, in which ideals are more real than actual human experience, and the guru lives more as a figure of speech than as a flesh and blood teacher.
Joseph S. Alter
- Published in print:
- 1992
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520076976
- eISBN:
- 9780520912175
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520076976.003.0004
- Subject:
- Anthropology, Asian Cultural Anthropology
Patrons are responsible for the public image of their wrestlers. Without patronage, a wrestler can, in the language of structuralism, only signify—his body stands for morality and chastity—but he is ...
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Patrons are responsible for the public image of their wrestlers. Without patronage, a wrestler can, in the language of structuralism, only signify—his body stands for morality and chastity—but he is powerless and unable to convey the story of his way of life to a larger audience. The patron gives meaning to what a wrestler simply stands for. While what it means to be a wrestler is given public interpretation through patronage, wrestlers are not silent partners to an illegitimate reading of their way of life. In the akhara, and within the world of wrestling, the symbolic components of the body convey a set of standardized meanings on which any wrestler can build and from which he can elaborate and interpret various situations.Less
Patrons are responsible for the public image of their wrestlers. Without patronage, a wrestler can, in the language of structuralism, only signify—his body stands for morality and chastity—but he is powerless and unable to convey the story of his way of life to a larger audience. The patron gives meaning to what a wrestler simply stands for. While what it means to be a wrestler is given public interpretation through patronage, wrestlers are not silent partners to an illegitimate reading of their way of life. In the akhara, and within the world of wrestling, the symbolic components of the body convey a set of standardized meanings on which any wrestler can build and from which he can elaborate and interpret various situations.
