Dear Reader,
Each and every one of us has a history that defines who we are, not just our own history, but the history of our heritage. As an Ecuadorian, my family has created traditions that began long before I was born. Although I was not present when they started, those traditions affect the way that I act today. My culture differs from other cultures, which is why I probably greet my parents differently than you do, or why I play a sport that you may not play. But we all should have a sense of pride in our culture, no matter where it originates from.
You probably never thought that Bullfighting would be part of your history, but you'll be surprised to find the contrary! Bullfighting is such an iconic event that although it began in one place, it has found a way to spread all around the world. This tradition contains several various aspects other than a man "dancing" around trying to kill a bull four times his size and weight. I wanted to go deeper in the history of bullfighting because it is involved in my history. All I really knew is that bullfighting was a practice that occurred in Ecuador from time to time, but I had no idea where it came from, who started it, why the men wear such flashy clothes, etc. To me it basically seemed like a game of "how many different ways can I look like an idiot while a bull attacks me." But as I began asking myself more serious questions about why things are the way they are, I realized that my closed mindedness almost shut me out from a completely different world than the one I thought I was looking at.
Some questions that I first started asking myself were, "where and how did bullfighting begin," and ,"what are the rules of bullfighting." The more and more I researched, the more questions I began to ask. Who knew that bullfighting is on the verge of a downfall? This topic had so many more dimensions than I originally expected. If you think that Wikipedia is the only source of information out there, then you're a noob. To find the answers to my questions, I began with Wikipedia just to prepare my brain for what I thought would not be much, but turned out to be more information than I could have imagined. Not only did websites relay plenty of information, but I asked some of my family about the history of bullfighting and what they knew about it.
The information that I learned from researching bullfighting allowed me to be more involved with my culture. I learned how it is more than just a practice, but a way of life, and a symbolism that means more to a culture than you could imagine. My research makes me want to discover more about my culture and about other cultures throughout the world, not only to become more informed, but to be able to open up hidden treasures that I would never think were there. Bullfighting may not be a huge interest to you, but then again, how will you ever know what you like or don't like unless you go deeper? You never know, you may just find a new you.
Thanks,
David Warfel
Each and every one of us has a history that defines who we are, not just our own history, but the history of our heritage. As an Ecuadorian, my family has created traditions that began long before I was born. Although I was not present when they started, those traditions affect the way that I act today. My culture differs from other cultures, which is why I probably greet my parents differently than you do, or why I play a sport that you may not play. But we all should have a sense of pride in our culture, no matter where it originates from.
You probably never thought that Bullfighting would be part of your history, but you'll be surprised to find the contrary! Bullfighting is such an iconic event that although it began in one place, it has found a way to spread all around the world. This tradition contains several various aspects other than a man "dancing" around trying to kill a bull four times his size and weight. I wanted to go deeper in the history of bullfighting because it is involved in my history. All I really knew is that bullfighting was a practice that occurred in Ecuador from time to time, but I had no idea where it came from, who started it, why the men wear such flashy clothes, etc. To me it basically seemed like a game of "how many different ways can I look like an idiot while a bull attacks me." But as I began asking myself more serious questions about why things are the way they are, I realized that my closed mindedness almost shut me out from a completely different world than the one I thought I was looking at.
Some questions that I first started asking myself were, "where and how did bullfighting begin," and ,"what are the rules of bullfighting." The more and more I researched, the more questions I began to ask. Who knew that bullfighting is on the verge of a downfall? This topic had so many more dimensions than I originally expected. If you think that Wikipedia is the only source of information out there, then you're a noob. To find the answers to my questions, I began with Wikipedia just to prepare my brain for what I thought would not be much, but turned out to be more information than I could have imagined. Not only did websites relay plenty of information, but I asked some of my family about the history of bullfighting and what they knew about it.
The information that I learned from researching bullfighting allowed me to be more involved with my culture. I learned how it is more than just a practice, but a way of life, and a symbolism that means more to a culture than you could imagine. My research makes me want to discover more about my culture and about other cultures throughout the world, not only to become more informed, but to be able to open up hidden treasures that I would never think were there. Bullfighting may not be a huge interest to you, but then again, how will you ever know what you like or don't like unless you go deeper? You never know, you may just find a new you.
Thanks,
David Warfel