INDIVIDUAL FIELDWORK ASSIGNMENT

MODULE 1

Orientalism and Primitivism in Professional Wrestling

This week, we are going to look at how orientalism and primitivism play out in professional wrestling gimmicks. This may be the first time you have had to watch a wrestling match for a class, but all aspects of culture can be looked at through an anthropological lens, and professional wrestling is no exception.

First, let’s take a look at your textbook. Just to keep things fresh in your mind, we’ll take a look at the terms we’re going to be using.

1. How does your textbook define orientalism? Type the definition below:

• How does your textbook define primitivism? Write/type the definition below:

Think of a character from a book, movie, or TV show you’ve seen that is a good example of primitivism or orientalism.

• Describe that character and explain in a paragraph why they are a good example of primitivism or orientalism.

Now that we’ve established those concepts, we’re going to look at how orientalism and primitivism play out in professional wrestling in the United States. Before we get to that, let’s start with some important vocabulary words: kayfabe, gimmick, and heel. From an etic (outsider’s) perspective, professional wrestling is often called “fake”. From an emic (insider’s) perspective, though, professional wrestling is referred to as kayfabe. In kayfabe performances, unlike in competitive sports, match outcomes and rivalries are staged. However, kayfabe also requires that the wrestler’s performance extend beyond the confines of the wrestling ring, as wrestlers are supposed to remain “in character” whenever they interact with fans, even during their personal time. Wrestling characters generally rely on some sort of gimmick, which is a persona taken on by the wrestler. A gimmick could be based on size (“Andre the Giant”), the supernatural (“The Undertaker”), profession (“Brutus ‘the Barber’ Beefcake”), or whatever the wrestler finds captivates the crowds. It is not uncommon for gimmicks to be based on ethnicity or origin, particularly when the wrestler is a heel, or the “bad guy” against whom the crowd cheers. It is also not uncommon for professional wrestlers to be assigned managers. While in kayfabe the ostensible purpose of a manager is to arrange matches and help the wrestler with training, in reality the manager mostly serves to highlight and enhance the gimmick.

For this assignment, you are going to choose one of three professional wrestling heels (Yokozuna, Kamala, or Muhammad Hassan) and analyze these characters from an anthropological perspective. Below are very brief descriptions of the three heels; you can pick the one that sounds most interesting to you. Again, choose one of the three. (If you nerd out on this kind of stuff, you’re more than welcome to look into your heel in more detail using other Internet sources. This is not a requirement, however.)

	Heel One: Yokuzuna	Heel Two: Kamala	Heel Three: Muhammad Hassan
Gimmick	Japanese sumo wrestler	Ugandan headhunter	Arab-American
Real name	Rodney Anoa’i (Samoan American)	James Harris (African American)	Marc Copani (Italian American)
Years Active	1984-2000 (died in 2000)	1978-2010 (died 2020)	2004-2005 (brief return in 2018); currently a middle school principal
Manager	Mr. Fuji	Kim Chee	Daivari

	Video clip of wrestling match	Interview with wrestler outside of keyfabe
Yokozuna	https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJs5mhMFR24	https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2ljREAv-5Y
Kamala	https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqzxJ741sZg	https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2b–RGsXGU
Muhammad Hassan	https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49pUi7m6yYA	https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ok0T-dWcVYI

• Choice of wrestler (type here):

First, watch the provided video clip of your wrestler in a wrestling match. Then address the questions below in separate paragraphs:

• You have probably noticed that your wrestler’s actual ethnic identity is different from that of his gimmick. How do the wrestler and his manager perform the gimmick identity?

• What evidence do you see of primitivism and/or orientalism in this performance?

• How do the crowd, the announcers, and the opponent challenge or support the primitivism/orientalism within the performance?

Next, watch the video of your wrestler being interviewed out of his kayfabe character and answer the questions below in separate paragraphs.

• What differences do you notice between the wrestler’s real persona and his kayfabe persona?

• Why do you think this wrestling gimmick was selected for a heel (bad-guy) character as opposed to a face (good-guy) character?

1. What do you think the existence of these gimmicks says about people who watch professional wrestling specifically or American society generally? Be sure to explain your answer.