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While Pro-wrestling is mostly choreographed and pre-determined, the fighting aspects of it are real. Critics will say "oh it's fake! It's not based on any real fighting! It's too violent!" Tell that to the Undertaker and Brock Lesnar who are legitimate MMA fighters. In any case, i'm not here to write about whether or not wrestling is a realistic technical system of fighting. People argue that violent media may set a bad example for kids to follow but not for me. What truly inspired me as a kid was the message pro-wrestling sent. Before martial arts, pro-wrestling was the first to teach me how to defend myself. When i looked deeply into the art form, i realized how realistic it was from an abstract point of view. To the outsider, two pro-wrestlers feuding is full of meaningless jibber-jabber and drama. That's because they don't understand what exactly going on. In order to comprehend Pro-wrestling, you must look at it from an artist's perspective.
When two opponents stand face-to-face, this is where the real battle begins. It is not as many believe just for show. This is a test to see how brutal each wrestler is physically, mentally, and emotionally. They want to see how psychologically strong both of them are. They want to see if just one person will crack under pressure or show any sign of weakness or fear. They want to see just how far each of them are willing to dominate one another. A skilled fighter knows just how important psychological warfare is. Everyone has pride regardless of whether or not they believe in violence. Everyone has something to protect be it life, friends, family, a reputation, and so on. Everyone has enemies whether it's the Devil, the self, and so on. Pro-wrestling inspired me to stand up for myself and value what truly matters.
That being said, there will be pain and agony. There will be people who will try to steal what is rightfully yours. It is one of life's greatest tragedies. When i saw multiple opponents ganging up on one wrestler, one tag team partner betray his own for a title, cheating during matches, i realized how realistic it was. I realized that's how vulnerable we are to the circumstances in life. Ultimately, it is you who must fend for yourself because no one will always defend you. Do you realistically believe that security is going to step in between two wrestlers who weigh more than 300 pounds? How would you fight against multiple attackers in prison? How would you handle someone who bypasses the law and robs you? Pro-wrestling creatively depicts these situations because that's how life is.
People protest "I don't want to watch two men get it on in the ring! It's disgusting the way they feel each other's blood and sweat!" It should disgust you. Violence is brutal, bloody, cruel, painful, and depressing. Your are going to be hurt and you are going to be hurt bad! In any fighting competition, you are going to be badly injured and suffer the most tormenting agony. That is the reality of violence. No one wants to suffer. It's inevitable but that's not the point. The purpose of suffering is the choices we make in spite of it. Are we going to allow ourselves to be downcast, beaten, tortured, humiliated, and defeated? Or are we going to defy our own fate and embrace our destiny? This is what ought to inspire people to lift more weights than they did their last work out session and push themselves to their limits. This is one of the reasons i watch wrestling - to see how each competitor overcomes each obstacle in the face of excruciating pain and dismay. The real questions we ought to be asking is how far will each one of us go to succeed in life? How much will we sacrifice to grow and become what we are destined to be? Do we have what it takes to do more than just survive, but thrive as individuals?
And after we put our best in everything that we did, we win and reach our end goal. We reap the rewards in spite of what we've endured. We finally reach our utmost potential and continue to reach it because there is no limit as to what we can do. This is what is symbolized to world titles and battle scars. This is what inspired me to love pro-wrestling and carry these lessons with me to my adulthood.
Pro-wrestling is a vicious, violent, brutal, bloody, and dangerous sport but it is very rewarding. It is what entertains us but also what motivates us to accomplish what everyone said we couldn't. This is how pro-wrestling has taught me how to fight in all aspects of my being with passion, purpose, and power.
I deeply love Lana Del Rey as an artist but there are a few flaws that i wish she could improve on. I consider her to be underrated compared to other mainstream artists and has so much potential as a talented individual. When she dropped "Ultraviolence", she reached the height of her musical maturity in her career. What saddens me is that she couldn't keep it consistent. That being said, i list the following problems i have with her:
* She reps other races - She's stated that she's a mixture of hispanic and other races aside from being white. While it may be true, critics are bashing her for it. I can totally understand why. Her intentions may be good but culturally appropriating other races is disrespectful. If she wants to be multicultural, i feel that she ought to demonstrate it. Simply speaking in Spanish will not automatically make her a cultural Cuban. She must show that she completely understands different cultures if she wants to gain more influence and respect.
* She's insecure - Dan Aucherbach, her record producer, lectured her before releasing "Ultraviolence." After he left, she went back to being lonely and insecure. I feel one of her flaws is that she lets others negatively influence her too much. I can see it by comparing "Ultraviolence" with her other releases and notice a big difference. "Ultraviolence" is her ideal sound. It is her voice. She doesn't need to experiment anymore with pop, trying to find who she is. With the pressure to make new music and competing for success, it's easy for her as a young woman to be swayed by it.
* She's a horrible girlfriend - Reading her bio, listening to her music, and learning about her past ex-boyfriends - she's toxic. My gut tells me she unhealthily dates guys with no intention of marrying them so she can write a love song about them later. Worse, she picks the men who are abusive to her. I'm concerned more about her emotional and mental well-being than listening to her break up songs. I feel she could do much more writing songs about one successful relationship while still carrying the past with her.
Other than that, she's an amazing artist. My hope is that she would realize where her flaws are and grow as an individual.
It's common for people to think that art is completely subjective however i argue that isn't the case. Art has some degree of objectivity to it based on certain principles.
People who understand art, understand that there are various techniques, skills, criteria, philosophies, and concepts involved in artwork. Movies, music, T.V shows, paintings, drawings, and so forth are all examples of art forms requiring technical handiwork. Forms of art such as movies, games, shows, etc. have a certain level of skills involving several things:
1) Story writing - This has a general format of a beginning, middle, and end. There are also conflicts, character, and plot development. There can be a struggle between good and evil. There are also other literary devices such as foreshadowing and changes of direction like plot twists.
2) Visual arts - This can range from digital painting, CGI, designs, and so forth. This may require knowledge of computer programming and other sophisticated tools to achieve.
3) Story-telling - Voice acting or acting and methods of story-telling through cameras or other means are examples.
That being said, there is a difference to measure bad art from good art. If i suddenly made an amateur movie, the quality would be no where near popular films like "Lord of The Rings." This is because i lack expertise in Screen-writing, story-writing, direction, visual arts, and other things that Peter Jackson has. Directors like J.J Abrams and actors like Jodie Foster have technical skills that require professionalism. Whether or not you enjoy it is subjective but the work's quality is measurable.
There is a general criteria for judging good and bad art:
1) Originality - Is the artist's work cliche or is it a uniquely distinguishable piece? Elements from culture, values, genres, and so on set parameters on what is "original." For example, i find artists like Marilyn Manson original. This is because his fashion of dress, gimmicks, and artwork deviate from the norm. Cliche ought to be frowned on because it does not progress art nor generate new ideas. New ideas cannot therefore breed new styles of art.
2) Creativity - What artistic expressions create something revolutionary and of value? This can be measured by culture, values, and compared with other works. Creativity depends on how well the artist understands the type of work he is involved in. It's by this that we have a framework to determine whether or not he's being creative.
3) Quality - The quality of resources available to the artist depends on what type of art they are doing. Some art forms like poetry do not require as much resources as game designing. The more tools you use, the higher expectations to judge your work's quality will be.
While there's no way to distinguish objectively between who's a "better" artist, there is a way to judge whether or not a person has reached their uttermost potential. This is the goal of constructive criticism and it's vital for improvement. There is a difference between a valid and an invalid opinion. A well informed critic who has studied various subjects surrounding art is qualified to make an expert opinion vs. someone who says "this is rubbish!"
People dislike constructive criticism because they'd rather believe that their art is perfect. You as an artist can ditch constructive criticism but there will be consequences. You probably won't get the fame or respect that you want. Essentially, you won't grow as an artist. While there may be some contests that are biased, others evaluate your work.
What about mainstream artists like Justin Bieber who achieved fame and fortune? In my opinion, they accomplished that because they had other things to substitute for their art. Connections, record labels, popularity, fashion, beliefs, and many things make them appealing. I dislike artists like Bieber because he's not as passionate about art as he is being a celebrity. His music is generic and nothing special. I'm not arguing that every mainstream artist does this. There are exceptions but they'll most likely be recognized for their ingenious work by artists looking for high quality content.
Claiming that we should appreciate art for it's own sake assumes that all artists do this which isn't always true. Corrupt people have used religion, science, ignorance, and many other things to gain profits. Art unfortunately is a way for corrupt businesses to make money. Very reputable modern artists have made millions from their masterpieces only to become too self absorbed leading to their work's downfall. That's why it's not advisable to buy just any person's work. Consider that the money you invest in low quality work may satisfy a company's greed while the underrated artist with a strong work ethic gets little to compensation. By refusing to buy anyone's work even from your favorite artists, you are disciplining them to strive for their potential. You are truly supporting them by teaching them that it's all or nothing. Many artists who are very passionate about their work go to extreme lengths to complete it. Some even put their health and lives at risk to express their art and entertain you. If everyone followed these principles, we would live in a world where hard work brings success. We would live in a world where everyone can get what they bargained for. Sadly, this isn't the case thanks to money, fame, bias, society, and many other things.
There are different reasons based on different experiences for why people enjoy art. Our emotional reactions can be subjective but art is not compromised of just feelings. I may not be inspired by most of Eminem's lyrics, but i won't deny that he has a developed a complex flow. The intellectual aspect of art still exists and it begins with observation. We can choose to hold fast to the belief that art is subjective but we will never go beyond the simple phrase "I like this just because.." By choosing to act only upon impulse, we will never understand a deeper meaning of art theory. This doesn't mean you should go to an Museum to appreciate art. You can still enjoy whatever forms of art you like. I simply advocate for opening your mind to new perspectives, constructive criticism, and artistic disciplines. The beauty of art is that it invokes subjective sensations from objective craftsmanship.
http://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/who-needs-a-stunt-double-8-actors-who-get-down-and-dirty.html/?a=viewall
While Pro-wrestling is mostly choreographed and pre-determined, the fighting aspects of it are real. Critics will say "oh it's fake! It's not based on any real fighting! It's too violent!" Tell that to the Undertaker and Brock Lesnar who are legitimate MMA fighters. In any case, i'm not here to write about whether or not wrestling is a realistic technical system of fighting. People argue that violent media may set a bad example for kids to follow but not for me. What truly inspired me as a kid was the message pro-wrestling sent. Before martial arts, pro-wrestling was the first to teach me how to defend myself. When i looked deeply into the art form, i realized how realistic it was from an abstract point of view. To the outsider, two pro-wrestlers feuding is full of meaningless jibber-jabber and drama. That's because they don't understand what exactly going on. In order to comprehend Pro-wrestling, you must look at it from an artist's perspective.
When two opponents stand face-to-face, this is where the real battle begins. It is not as many believe just for show. This is a test to see how brutal each wrestler is physically, mentally, and emotionally. They want to see how psychologically strong both of them are. They want to see if just one person will crack under pressure or show any sign of weakness or fear. They want to see just how far each of them are willing to dominate one another. A skilled fighter knows just how important psychological warfare is. Everyone has pride regardless of whether or not they believe in violence. Everyone has something to protect be it life, friends, family, a reputation, and so on. Everyone has enemies whether it's the Devil, the self, and so on. Pro-wrestling inspired me to stand up for myself and value what truly matters.
People protest "I don't want to watch two men get it on in the ring! It's disgusting the way they feel each other's blood and sweat!" It should disgust you. Violence is brutal, bloody, cruel, painful, and depressing. Your are going to be hurt and you are going to be hurt bad! In any fighting competition, you are going to be badly injured and suffer the most tormenting agony. That is the reality of violence. No one wants to suffer. It's inevitable but that's not the point. The purpose of suffering is the choices we make in spite of it. Are we going to allow ourselves to be downcast, beaten, tortured, humiliated, and defeated? Or are we going to defy our own fate and embrace our destiny? This is what ought to inspire people to lift more weights than they did their last work out session and push themselves to their limits. This is one of the reasons i watch wrestling - to see how each competitor overcomes each obstacle in the face of excruciating pain and dismay. The real questions we ought to be asking is how far will each one of us go to succeed in life? How much will we sacrifice to grow and become what we are destined to be? Do we have what it takes to do more than just survive, but thrive as individuals?
And after we put our best in everything that we did, we win and reach our end goal. We reap the rewards in spite of what we've endured. We finally reach our utmost potential and continue to reach it because there is no limit as to what we can do. This is what is symbolized to world titles and battle scars. This is what inspired me to love pro-wrestling and carry these lessons with me to my adulthood.
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