Popularize bullfighting knowledge and culture.
Hemingway, the Nobel Prize in Literature winner, once said, "Bullfighting is the only art that puts artists in danger of death." Indeed, Spanish bullfighting endows this competitive sport with artistic beauty, which is the original form of art and the perfect combination of strength and beauty.
As the quintessence of Spain, bullfighting has a history of centuries or even thousands of years. In the Neolithic murals found in Arda Milla Cave, people saw some descriptions of the struggle between man and cattle. According to historical records, Julius Caesar, the ancient Roman emperor who once ruled Spain, was keen on horse riding and bullfighting. Then, the matador developed to stand on the ground and fight with the cow. At this point, the rudiment of modern bullfighting has basically taken shape. In the following 600 years, this competitive sport has always been regarded as a symbol of bravery and good fighting, and it is quite popular among Spanish nobles. By the middle of the18th century, during the Bourbon Dynasty, the first king Felipe V hated this sport very much, and thought that this cruel sport, which was easy to hurt members of the royal family, should be banned. Since then, this traditional aristocratic patent has spread from the court to the people.
Someone said: "As long as the Spanish nation exists for one day, bullfighting will not disappear!" Nowadays, in this Iberian peninsula, bullfighting is regarded as a noble art, which is called the bullfighting season, starting from the San Jose Festival in March 19 and ending on the Spanish National Day in February 12. Among them, the famous fire festival in Valencia in March and the Eucharist Festival in Granada in June will hold a series of grand bullfighting activities. In addition, the familiar annual Bull Run Festival is also deeply loved by people.
About cattle
Spanish bullfighting is a pure wild animal. Generally, North African bulls with violent temperament are selected. They are cultivated by specialized training farms and can be used in competitions after four to five years. But the aggressiveness of Spanish bullfighting is not trained by people, but born. In fact, Spanish bullfighting is color-blind, so no matter what color cloth you use to indicate stillness, bullfighting is insensitive, and only shaking objects can arouse their fighting spirit (the statement that the red side of the red and yellow cloak in the matador's hand was used to anger the bull and the yellow side made the bull quiet has not been verified), so don't be surprised if one day the bullfighting hits a fast-moving train. The weight of a formal bullfight is between 400 and 500 kilograms. Trainee bullfighters usually face two or three hundred kilograms of cattle under three years old. In the performance, cows that are not stabbed to death by matadors will eventually be introduced into the cowshed and stabbed to death by others. But in some places, these cows will be regarded as sacred cows, and their meat will never be eaten until they die of old age and are buried.
About the matador
In Spain and even the whole Spanish-speaking world, the matador is regarded as a fearless person and admired and worshipped by China people. Spanish bullfighters have a higher status than ordinary celebrities and artists. This unique group has elegant and brave souls, and they combine technology with physical strength, gentleness with courage perfectly. In fact, bullfighting is not a man's patent. Before 1930s, women always took part in this sport, but later female matadors were banned. But in the past ten years, many women have devoted themselves to this brave challenge. In this year's Oscar-winning play "Tell Her", Spanish actress Rosario Flores showed people the image of a strong and brave bullfighter Lydia. Although the Spanish government forbids teenagers under the age of 65,438+06 to participate in bullfighting, the sport is widely respected in those Spanish-speaking areas. At present, Julian Ló pez Escobar, a famous talented young bullfighter in Spain, started his bullfighting career in Mexico in his early years. Therefore, it is not impossible to connect the matador with women and teenagers.
Bullfighters are divided into formal bullfighters and trainee bullfighters according to their grades. Trainee bullfighters can only fight with cows under three years old, and only formal bullfighters can challenge a fierce bull of 500 kilograms.
About the arena
In many important cities in Spain, there are circular bullfighting arenas, with magnificent buildings and a vast area, which can accommodate tens of thousands of people. The design is similar to the Colosseum in ancient Rome. Generally speaking, it is an open-air arena, surrounded by spectators on concrete steps. Tickets with sunny seats are cheaper, and tickets without sunshine are more expensive. The center of the oval arena is the bullring, which is thinly covered with even yellow sand, and the life-and-death struggle between the matador and the bull will be staged here. There is a 2-meter-high thick wooden fence and passage around the bullring to separate it from the audience. There are doors on all sides, which can be opened and closed at any time to control the entry and exit of people and animals. There is a wide gap between the door and the fence. When the bullfighting scene can't be controlled by people, the matador can temporarily hide here to avoid the sharp edge of the cow and avoid unnecessary injuries. Directly opposite the podium, above the left audience, there are two brass bands that command and control the whole bullfighting procedure.
Opening ceremony and personnel
The usual bullfighting performance includes one entrance and three fights. The entrance ceremony was gorgeous and grandiose. When the horn blew, all kinds of dressed matadors appeared, including16th century classical mounted police, long and short gunmen, flower darters and many walk-on characters. * * * There are about twenty people. Of course, the most striking thing is the main matador wearing the most gorgeous style. After the audience gave warm applause, they all retreated to the rest place outside the fence and waited for their respective appearances. On-the-spot referee (called chairman in bullfighting performance) is generally served by local social celebrities.
There is a certain limit to the time and number of times the main matador stabs the bull. Anyone who fails to stab or kill cattle for more than 25 minutes or three times will be notified by the chairman to stop the performance.
Among them, the dart can be stabbed again if it misses. But if the long gunner is overturned by a cow, he can only be replaced by the long gunner or stabbed himself.
Matador equipment
Today, the Spanish matador's costume still inherits the tradition of16th century predecessors. The main matador usually chooses red-based clothes inlaid with Phnom Penh and some gold ornaments to make them shine in the sun. /kloc-people used to curl their hair in the 0 th and 6 th centuries, so the main matadors wore headdresses. This tradition has continued to this day, and gradually, the headdress has become a kind of decoration. The main matador is the only person wearing the headdress on the field and has evolved into a symbol of the identity of the main matador. Although matadors nowadays have short hair, we can still see the black symbolic bun on many people's heads.
Besides, red cloth and cloak are two very important tools. Red cloth is the patent of major matadors. In fact, the so-called red cloth is red and yellow, exactly the same color as the Spanish flag. Three matador assistants are holding cloaks. The difference between a cloak and a red cloth is that the red side is changed to pink.
Of course, the most important thing is the sharp weapon used to stab cattle. The matador's complete set of tools includes: a spear, six darts, four different swords and a dagger. Among them, daggers are the most challenging and ornamental. The main matador will choose different tools in different stages of performance: in the initial stage, he usually chooses an elbow-free sword and holds a red cloth to lure the bull. In the final assassination stage, he took out an elbow dagger, and the matador stabbed it into the heart of the bull's back. In addition, the main matador is equipped with a crosshead sword, which is used to stab the central nervous system of the bull.
Direct attack whole process
After the slightly noisy opening ceremony, it was an exciting performance stage. At this time, the stadium suddenly became silent, and the audience held their breath and waited for the bull to appear. When a huge figure weighing four or five hundred kilograms was released from the fence, it began to run wildly in the field and the dust was flying. Two curved horns are its killing weapon. There are several bright ribbons on the back of the cow, which is also a sign that people attack it. It seems a little scared, and suddenly it is slightly uncomfortable in the face of tens of thousands of people. After running a few laps, it stops alone, and the audience will exclaim during the dinner. Indeed, in the face of such a behemoth, the atmosphere of the arena has been elevated to a new height.
After the savage bull appeared, it was the turn of the respected matador. At the beginning, many matadors took turns to attack, and the main matador was the protagonist on the field and the leader of the whole atmosphere. In addition to some routine movements, he will also use some adventurous and exciting methods. For example, kneeling on one knee and holding a red cloth, let the cow pass. Every time such a scene appears on the court, it will cause high-decibel exclamation. At the same time, the main matador's assistants also took turns teasing the bull with cloaks in order to consume the bull's physical strength. After running for more than ten minutes, everyone was out of breath.
Then, the horn sounded and two knights armed with spears and helmets entered the stadium. The main matador ran actively and led the running route of the cow to the side of the lancer. When the cow was "fooled" into pouncing on the lancer, the lancer used this impulse to stab the spear behind the cow, but he used a wide-edged spear, and he would pick it slightly when stabbing it to avoid killing the cow. After the battle, he was covered in blood.
At this time, the competition has completely become the stage for the matador to perform. The bull was covered with scars and its momentum was not as good as before. It seems a little dangerous for the bull, but what the Spanish appreciate is the bullfighter's vigorous posture and bold and free and easy. Holding a sword in one hand and a cloth in the other, they slightly raised the red cloth in their hands during the March. When the glassy-eyed bull rushed at the matador, the matador stopped, turned around and raised the red cloth. At this time, the matador with strong desire to perform should not only show his aesthetic feeling, but also not forget to maximize the difficulty of the action.
After several rounds, this bull is already a spent force. Seeing that the time was ripe, the matador took a shorter but sharper sword from his staff, raised his wrist to look at the sword with one hand, aimed at the bull's body with the other hand, and rushed the bull forward with a red cloth. Then the last stab of the matador, all of a sudden, the blood splashed and the bull stumbled to the ground. This fatal blow must accurately hit about 3 inches wide between the shoulder blades of the cow. If the position of the thorn deviates slightly and touches the bone of the cow, or the depth is less than the heart, the cow will not die, so the matador has to stab the cow's neck with a short knife. When the cow falls, the butcher will run forward and kill it, so as not to make it suffer.
The winner in the arena was cheered by people. If the audience is satisfied with the performance of the matador, they will vigorously wave handkerchiefs and reward the bull's ears to the bullfighting hero according to the ancient ceremony. The brave bullfight that died on the "battlefield" was quickly carried in and dragged out of the stadium by a carriage with red flags and bells in the majestic horn. A life ends here ... Blood draws unforgettable and shocking memories in the sand.
Eternal beauty
Exquisite and elegant artistic modeling, wild and unrestrained power display. Both of them are a pair of contradictions, and they are so perfectly combined. Exquisite and elegant, let people realize the wisdom of modern people. Wild and unruly, he inherited the bravery and ferocity of Spanish ancestors. This is the crystallization of wisdom, courage, skill and will. Bullfighting has given mankind a strong physique, exquisite skills, adventurous spirit and iron will! In the whole bullfighting process, white-hot and fair competition is always reflected, and seniority is not respected. In the graceful movements of the matador, in his cold and arrogant eyes, the bloody side of the primitive instinct of sports is fully revealed.
Bullfighting is cruel. Its bloody cruelty has attracted a lot of controversy. It gives people noble honor, but at the same time it is accompanied by more pain and even life. It can make an excellent matador become a millionaire admired by everyone, and it also has the right to make a healthy person lose the ability to take care of himself. What's more, there are people like Jose Rito who died in the bullring! The true meaning of bullfighting is based on the souls of people who died for this cause. There are countless matadors' blood on the blood path trodden by the hoofprint of cattle.
The Spaniard said, "Behind every excellent matador who becomes a multimillionaire, there are hundreds of matadors on the way to the peak." A matador needs to keep fighting. Not only bulls, but also themselves must be defeated. In a fleeting moment, it is not only a fighter plane, but also an opportunity of fate. At this moment, only a few people have succeeded, but the pursuit process itself is a greater success!
Finally, we still have to say that the charm of bullfighting is that it is an adventurous sport, and the process is full of adventure, blood and beauty. The entanglement between the matador and the bull is worthy of being a gorgeous artistic dance.