Pro Wrestling Essay -- Wrestling Sports Entertainment Essays

Pro Wrestling Bret Hart: Wrestling with Shadows Written and Produced by Biography Special Interview 15 December, 1997 Unreal Story of Professional Wrestling Narr. Steve Allen Written and Produced by A&E Special Documentary A&E New York, New York 1 March, 1998 WCW/nWo: Sting Unmasked Narr. Toni Shiavone Written by Eric Bischoff, Produced by Turner Broadcasting Co. Special Interview, Turner Entertainment Atlanta, Georgia 5 May 1998 Nagurski, B. â€Å"Professional Wrestling† Microsoft Encarta `99 (Electronic Version). Copyright INSO Corp. 1993-1998 PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING: SPORT OR ENTERTAINMENT? I. Introduction â€Å"Do you smell what the Rock is cookin?† shouts The Rock. This is the new crude face of professional wrestling. But it wasn’t always like this. Haven’t you ever wondered about the real history of pro wrestling, not the ‘history’ of what happened last week on Raw or Nitro? People either watch it or don’t, or some watch it and don’t admit it. In any case, what is it really? Some call it a controlled riot with commercial breaks, a melodrama of mayhem, or a brawl with a referee. Whatever you call it, it’s an old form of entertainment with plenty of ups and downs, but recently, it has become a part of mainstream America. II. The Early Years Wrestling is as old as human history. It has always been used for dominance or competition. The Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, and Arabs all were great wrestlers. Plato’s name literally means broad-shouldered, and he wrestled in his early days. The Irish used it as a way to settle differences. In fact, it was Irish immigrants living in Vermont who brought the sport to America. Because of this, Vermont would produce the best wrestling talent for the next 50 years. Presidents like Washington, Taft, and Coolidge were all rasslers, and Abraham Lincoln was very much a professional wrestler. Professional wrestling began when veterans from the Civil War used the skills they had picked up in camp to grapple for money. Wrestling in the late 1890’s was a very successful international sporting event. It was the most popular spectator sport in the United States. It was seen as more scientific than boxing, and football and basketball hadn’t appeared on the national level. The use of magaz... ...im. Nevertheless, they are the reason their chiropractors are so successful. (A&E, Unreal) So why do over 5 million people tune in to watch wrestling in a week? Because they want to see the dramatic reenactment of rituals, like belonging to a group that reflects who you are, like the nWo, The Corporation, The Four Horsemen, or Ministry, and the sign language that goes along with it, of course. It’s a soap opera, and just like one, issues are never resolved, or new ones develop. (Dr. Gerald W. Morton, Wrestling to `Rasslin V. Conclusion Is wrestling fake? Well if we look at it as fake, we are judging it for trying to be something that it wasn’t intended to be. It is drama. So is Shakespeare. Would we call his work fake? No, because that word is irrelevant. It is said that a society can be judged by how it entertains itself. At least we aren’t throwing Christians to the lions, and when we celebrate violence, it isn’t real. Professional wrestling is only as real as the imagination allows. The father of professional wrestler Jeff Jarrett once said, â€Å"For those who believe, no explanation is needed. For those who don’t, no explanation would do.†