INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand comer and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality fi' x 9" black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. UMI A Bell & Howell Information Company 300 North Zeeb Road. Ann Arbor MI 48106-1346 USA 313n61-4700 soot521-o600 AMERICAN CONCEPTUALIZATION OF ASIAN MARTIAL ARTS: AN INTERPRETIVE ANALYSIS OF THE NARRATIVE OF TAEKWONDO PARTICIPANTS by Jin Bang Yang A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School at the University ofNorth Carolina at Greensboro in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy Greensboro 1996 Approved by ~ .M, .&+;~</ Dissertation Advisor OMI Number: 9715637 UMI Microform 9715637 Copyright 1997, by UMI Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. UMI 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, MI 48103 YANG, JIN BANG, Ph.D. American Conceptualization of Asian Martial Arts: An Interpretive Analysis ofthe Narrative ofTaekwondo Participants. (1996) Directed by Dr. Sarah M. Robinson. 214pp. The purpose of this study is to investigate American conceptualizations of Asian martial arts practice. The study collected American martial arts literature that were known as influential to the American martial arts community and analyzed them to grasp how American literature conceptualizes Asian martial arts practice in American society. On the other hand, the study collected narratives of American martial arts practitioners to investigate how ordinary American participants interpret martial arts practice in the contexts of their own social lives. The informants were selected from the population of over 3 5 year old adult male and female taekwondo black belts. Through the open-ended interview, narratives were collected from 18 informants (male: 9, female: 9). American martial arts literature conceptualized Asian martial arts as a spiritual discipline and rejected the practically oriented perspective of martial arts including the competitive and sport-oriented modem version of martial arts. American martial arts literature emphasized the value ofthe traditional Asian cultures of martial arts practice and viewed some Asian world views and philosophies as a significant part of the arts. American literature accepted Japanese perspectives of martial arts as the main referential framework and neglected to discuss other cultures of martial arts, particularly the Chinese and Korean resources. American middle-aged martial arts practitioners viewed martial arts training as self- defense, physical exercise, and a medium for self-improvement. They valued martial arts training as offering meaningful experiences that help them enhance self-confidence, self­ esteem, and self-discipline. Adult female practitioners interpreted martial arts training to propose challenging experiences that help them reflect on their social self and personal potentials and reconceptualize themselves as more confident and self-centered beings. Adult participants defined their physical condition for the training but at the same time, reframed the training for their age and gender. They attempted to find meanings for their own purposes and conditions of life from the martial arts training. Whereas American martial arts literature conceptualized martial arts as a spiritual, philosophical, and educational discipline, ordinary American practitioners defined their training in practical, physical, and personally meaningful ways. The spiritual version of martial arts framed by literature was not accepted by the ordinary practitioners. American practitioners' narratives did not reveal a significant influence from the languages of American martial arts literature. APPROVAL PAGE This dissertation has been approved by the following committee of the Faculty of the Graduate School at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro Dissertation Advisor ~ ~ · _..,e,_/.__:~ Committee Members ~ uJ. dt;::;'L-u:.._,...._, Date of Acceptance' by Committee Date of Final Oral Examination 11 This work is dedicated to my mentor Chong Woo Lee, a father of modem Taekwondo, and Taekwondo instructors all over the world. ll1 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page APPROVAL PAGE·············································································· II CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................. I Asian Martial Arts in Today's American Society ....................................... I Diffusion of Asian Martial Arts in American Society .................................. .2 Definitions of Asian Martial Arts ......................................................... 5 A Chronology of Asian Martial Arts Diffusion to United States ............ 6 A Brief Introduction to Taekwondo .................................................... I 3 Purpose of the Study ...................................................................... 16 Significance of the Study ................................................................. IS Research Questions ....................................................................... I 9 II. THEORETICAL GROUNDING .......................................................... 2 I Introduction ............................................................................... 2 I Theories ofMeaning ......................................................................22 Constructionist Theory of Meaning .....................................................23 Theory of Meaning in Cultural Studies ................................................. 26 Intertextuality .............................................................................. 3 I Interpretive Community .................................................................. 33 Theoretical Grounding of the Study .................................................... 35 ill. METHODS ................................................................................... 38 Introduction ............................................................................... 38 Autobiographical Framing: Researcher as the Interpretive Frame ................ .40 Selection and Analysis of Written Texts .............................................. .43 Selection of Texts ............................................................... .43 Analysis of Texts ................................................................ .44 Selection oflnformants ..........................................................45 Interviewing and Analysis .......................................................46 IV IV. Analysis of American Martial Arts Literature ........................................ 48 Introduction ................................................................................ 48 Spirituality and Practicality ...............................................................49 The mean1ngs. o f"sp1ntu . al" . .5' _ Traditionalism versus Modernism ....................................................... 74 Mystification and Demystification of Martial Arts .................................... 83 World View of Asian Martial Arts ..................................................... 87 Pedagogy of Asian Martial Arts .........................................................95 Culture of Martial Arts Pedagogy ............................................ 104 Socialization in Martial Arts ........................................................... I 08 Violence and Martial Arts .............................................................. I 12 Personal Meaning and Self-improvement in Martial Arts Training ................ I 18 V. ANALYSIS OF PARTICIPANT NARRATIVES .................................... 129 Introduction ............................................................................... 129 Starting and the First Class, and Then a Couple of Weeks .......................... 131 Pains, Injuries, and Difficulties ......................................................... 13 5 A New Self-image - Empowered Self .................................................. 13 S Violence, Victimization, and Self-defense ............................................. 145 A Way ofLife ............................................................................. 151 I am Mediocre - Improvement, Improvement, Improvement ...................... I 57 Men and Women in the