and their Influence on the American Television and Movie Industry
Crystal Michallet-Romero
Copyright © May 2003 L.C.M.
All Rights Reserved
and Merpup list who let me pick their brains for this project. Thanks all! I hope you know I?ll need to do more picking a yr
from now when I start my masters thesis!!
Pronunciation for wuxia pian is: wuxia = wooshar, pian = pan
All feedback welcomed at: CrystalMichallet@charani.org
One can hardly watch an American action movie or popular television show without seeing the influence from the Hong Kong
movie genre. Wuxia pian, as it is commonly referred to, incorporates a hero canon as well as the finely detailed choreographic
actions scenes filled with high flying kicks and supernatural feats. At one time this form of martial arts film was uncommon in
American television and movies, but now it is a common staple of the Hollywood industry. Hong Kong directors such as King
Hu, Zhang Che, Tsui Hark, and Ronny Yu, just to name a few, have had a direct hand in influencing the style of Hollywood
movies and television shows. Though only trying to preserve the traditional mythology of Chinese heroes from the cultural
contamination from Great Britain and the United States, the Hong Kong Film directors inadvertently influenced the American
entertainment industry. To fully understand how both the wuxia style of mythology and the phenomena within America came
about, one must first understand the historical and philosophical concepts that brought about the genre?s inception. Only by
understanding the historical and political atmosphere of the times, will the revivalist movement for such tales be understood.
Long before Sir Thomas Mallory wrote his legendary tales of chivalry and knightly deeds in his 1485 novel, Le Morte D?Arthur,
there were legends of valiant heroes traveling the countryside in search of adventures and the opportunity to perform chivalric
deeds. A continent away from the tales of King Arthur and his knights, China already had a mythology filled with tales of heroes
performing supernatural feats. These tales, known as the Wuxia legends, chronicled the heroic travels of both male and female
swordmasters (Stokes 89). These stories were not only the embodiment of heroism but they were a direct result of the
teachings of Confuciusan philosophy as well as Buddhist and Taoist religious beliefs (Gernet 36).
While many credit the 17th century English philosopher, Thomas Hobbes with the social contract theory, a view which outlines
the moral relationship between a king and his subjects, Confucius (552 - 479 B.C.E.), philosophy regarding the conduct of a ruler
toward his subjects predates Hobbes (Harrison 38). Confucius lived through the turbulent era in China known as the Warring
States which lasted from approximately 475 B.C.E. to 221 B.C.E. (Watkins). China during this period was in the grips of feudal
struggles between rival clans all vying for control. Owing to the constant strife, Confucius was acutely aware of the need for
social order both in political and personal affairs. It was from his observations of the world around him that he formed
numerous philosophical beliefs; however, for the discussion of this paper, and his direct impact on wuxia literature, I will only
focus on his teachings regarding the proper conduct of an Emperor and warrior class.
Like Hobbes, Confucius placed great value in loyalty to the Emperor. In addition to subject loyalty, he emphasized the
importance of obedience and duty toward the family, with the father as head of the household. By placing the family as the basis
for society, Confucius effectively taught respect toward elders and the concept that those who are stronger, the adult children,
must protect those who were weaker, the aged parent/grandparent figure (Morgan 177). Unlike Hobbes, Confucius did not
subscribe to the notion that the Emperor had a divine right to rule; instead, he taught that with great power came great
responsibility and he advised the Emperor that in matters pertaining to his subjects, the ruler must always be noble and treat his
subjects judiciously. Additionally, he counseled the warriors who supported the feudal rulers, that they were to conduct
themselves with nobility, and that their responsibility toward the people was to act gallantly, with valor, and have valiant conduct
(Gernet 159). It is from the teachings of Confucius that the foundation of wuxia literature was set in place.
Another key player in the formation of the wuxia genre is the well known philosopher, and religious leader Siddartha Gautama,
also known as Buddha. Buddha was born in India around 448-368 B.C.E. as a prince. Like the Warring States Era in China,
India was submerged in turbulence. However, as a prince, Buddha was relatively immune to the suffering of the common man.
It was not until he ventured away from his palace that the severity of suffering caused the young nobleman to renounce his title
and worldly possessions to enable him to search for a solution to the dilemmas of man (Morgan 110). Like Confucius, Buddha
developed teachings that could take a lifetime for a student to learn, so for the purpose of this thesis, I will only outline the
philosophical beliefs which were incorporated into the wuxia tales.
From his observation, Buddha formed what is known today as the Four Noble Truths. In these truths he found that life, from
birth through death, was filled with suffering. He also noted that the cause of suffering was man?s own desires, whether it be
through attachments to people or things. In order to end the suffering, Buddha believed that one must first end all attachments of
the self, from people, to objects and including the need for self-preservation. By understanding the four noble truths, Buddha
believed that one was then able to work toward a state of Nirvana, which was a state of existence free from suffering. In
addition to the noble truths, and other teachings, Buddha believed that it was the responsibility of each individual to attempt to
alleviate as much suffering from their fellow man as possible. In order to succeed in this, it was felt that only when an individual
releases the notion of self would he be able to begin to act for the sake of others, or act for the greater good (Cohen 54).
In the beginning, Buddha?s teachings were never fully embraced by his own people. However, because of the notion of
self-sacrifice, Buddhist philosophies soon found an eager audience in neighboring China. Together with the teachings of
Confucius, the notions of nobility, gallantry, judiciousness, valiant conduct, valor and self sacrificing actions found an eager
following.
What changed the scope of Buddhism was the introduction of the physical disciplines that we have become familiar with today.
It is estimated that around 520 B.C.E. an Indian Buddhist monk named Bodhidharma, after joining a Shaolin Buddhist temple in
China, invented a form of physical techniques that were patterned after the tiger, deer, leopard, cobra, snake and dragon, animals
that he either saw around him, or studied within the folklore
