Another paper for my Shanghai Global City class. This was supposed to be a group paper, but I ended up writing 90% of it, which I was alright with because I just tackled it like a blog post. Hopefully all of you will find it as interesting as I did.
- muffinman
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At the heart of Shanghai lies People’s Park, an oasis of recreation and calm is surrounded by the hustle and bustle of the surrounding People’s square. In the small exercise corner of this park, our group discovered the martial artists that call this park home. Our research group set out to learn as much about these recreational martial artists in People’s park as we could.
On our first day of field work, our group wandered to the exercise equipment area, where we observed various individuals striking the trees repeatedly. Puzzled by what we saw, we approached these individuals, all male and around the age of forty, and asked them what they were doing. The first man that we talked explained that the reason that he was hitting his knuckles against the tree was to strengthen them. When he showed us his knuckles, they were all perfectly aligned presumably from his training. He explained to us that he practiced a “san da” style and that there were masters teaching on Sundays at nine o’clock in the morning. The second man that we talked to was also hitting a tree but was doing it with his forearms rather than his knuckles. Like the first man, he was hitting the tree to strengthen his body. The goal was to hit each of his forearms three hundred times against the tree every day. He went more in depth about the teaching that occurs on Sunday mornings, explaining that there were four main styles being taught at People’s park.
We arrived at People’s park at 9:25AM on a sunny Sunday morning and as soon as we entered the park, we spotted the first group of martial artists. At first we only noticed a small group of six or seven martial artists who were practicing with the master. It was very easy to pinpoint the master out of the group as he was the one leading the routine, as well as correcting the students’ posture and footwork. The group of students were predominantly male and well into their forties or fifties. On the sides watching the students, were other martial artists who were stretching and socializing. Further away, there were a group of younger students who were practicing something that looked like a different style, but we could not spot the master.
We approached one of the individuals on the side, a man in his forties dressed in a white martial arts uniform and asked him about what he was doing in the park today. Needs more info (Max) The man confirmed to us who the master was and named the style that he was teaching.
Next, we approached the only foreigner in the group of students, an Australian male in his forties. The Australian had been practicing with this specific master for three and a half years, though he has practiced martial arts prior to becoming this master’s student. He trains to improve his health and flexibility, claiming that it has helped him find balance and keeps him centered in Shanghai’s fast paced lifestyle. The Australian comes to the park to train with the master four to five times a week in the morning before going to work.
The Australian student gave us good understanding of the structure of this master’s teaching as well as how martial arts are taught in the park in general. The master teaches seven days a week from 6:30AM to 4PM, though these hours are subject to change at the master’s discretion. Saturday and Sunday are the busiest and also the most relaxed and social. Most students who come, stay for about two hours. According to the Australian, the master is world-renowned for his technique. The master travels and teaches around the world at various times of the year. The Australian told us that foreign students will raise funds to have the master come and teach in their home countries, something, which the Australian has done more than once.
As for his own martial arts experience with this master, the Australian explained that the master is very old fashioned. The master’s teaching style is reminiscent of kung fu movies, where students are told repeat a simple move over and over again, only being taught something new when the master has decided that the student had mastered the technique. The Australian told us how he practiced walking around in a circle for two months before being taught a new a technique. The younger students who we initially thought were doing a different style were actually new students who were just practicing one technique repeatedly, most likely for two months, before moving on. The students that we saw doing a routine with the master had at least one year of experience.
In the park, the teaching of martial arts is completely recreational and is often done for the health benefits. There is no application, or sparring, done in the park. Classes are taught in Mandarin, but there are many foreign students who do not speak any Mandarin and learn through mimicking, though according to the Australian, some styles are not as foreign friendly. There are at least half a dozen masters in the park and all of them have some fame. Permission must be granted by an unspecified group before being able to teach in the park. The masters all hang a small banner to show that they have permission to teach. Every year, all the schools come together and perform in the main area of People’s park.
After talking to the Australian, the rest of my group left while I stayed behind at People’s park. I walked around a little and watched the other masters’ teaching. One group particularly drew my interest, because it seemed the most practical. Their strikes and movement were all very direct as well as the master taking great care to explain the theory behind the movements. I saw the heart that the master had for his students, much more so than the first master that I watched, this master had a brand new female student, who was performing horrendously. Nonetheless, he took much care and patience in teaching her, which was very admirable.
Seeing the martial arts in People’s park gave me a whole new perspective about the place. Just when I thought I had seen all there was to offer at this old park, I discover a whole new subculture that I had completely missed.
