Corridas del Toros

“Corridas de Toros”

By Abdullah Amin Ghumman

Sequence

• Bullfighting – History• Religious Roots• Modern ‘Corrida’ – The Spectacle• The Bullfight – Main Elements• First Stage – Tercio de Varas• Second Stage – Tercio de Bandelliras• Third Stage – Tercio de Muerte• Big Business• Bloodsport or Fine Art?• Questions and Answers

1

Bullfighting – History 1/2

• Spanish for ‘Bullfighting’• The spectacle of bullfighting

has existed in one form or another since ancient days – It is now a popular sport in Spain, Portugal, France, Japan, Mexico, among others

• Wall painting unearthed at Knossos in Crete, around 2000 BC

• Were also popular spectacles in ancient Rome

2

Bullfighting – History 2/2

• The Moors from North Africa changed bullfighting significantly

• Was originally done on horseback and reserved for aristocracy

• 1724: Aristocracy banned from bullfighting

• Thus began bullfighting by Commoners who dodged bulls on foot and unarmed

• Spread like wildfire

3

Religious Roots

• The ‘Plaza de Toros’ or the ‘Bull Ring’ is based originally on Celtic-Iberian temples

• Bulls were sacrificed to gods

• Greek and Roman influences converted it into a spectacle

• Bulls played role in religious ceremonies of Iberian tribes

4

Modern ‘Corrida’ – The Spectacle

• Modern ‘Corrida’ or Bullfighting as a spectacle emerged by 1726

• Pioneers like Francisco Romero of Ronda, Spain introduced elements of: – ‘esloque’ (the sword) or

– ‘muleta’ (the small cape used in last part of the fight)

5

The Bullfight – Main Elements 1/3

• Usual structure followed in Spain– 3 Matadors, 6 Bulls

• ‘Banderilleros’ & ‘Picadors’ (assistants)

• ‘Paso Doble’ (march rhythmic) music

– Costume• Silk Jacket

• ‘Montera’ (hat)

• Traje de Lucas (suit of lights)

6


• The bull enters the arena through the ‘Toril’ (the Bull pen gate)

• Bull is greeted with a series of maneuvers or passes

– Basic cape maneuvers are called ‘Veronicas’

• Named after the woman who held a cloth to Christ on his way to the Crucifixon

7


• Fighting Bulls charge anything that moves– Centuries of breeding

• Bulls selected for corridaslive one year longer

• Novilleros (beginners)– Fight bulls at least 3 years

old

• Full Matadors– Fight bulls at least 4 years

old

• The fight itself is divided into 3 stages

8

First Stage – Tercio de Varas 1/2

• ‘Tercio de Varas’ means “the lancing third”

• The Bull is tested for ferocity by the ‘matador’ and the ‘banderilleros’ with the magenta and gold ‘capote’ (cape)

• Then a ‘picador’ enters on horseback with a ‘vara’ (lance)

9

First Stage – Tercio de Varas 2/2

• Then the Picador enters the arena on horseback with a ‘vara’ (lance)

• He stabs the bull just behind the ‘Morrillo’ – a mound of muscle on the bull’s neck – weakening the neck muscles and leading to its first loss of blood

• This encounter changes the behavior of the bull: the distracted bull becomes more focused and stays on a single target rather than charging at everything that moves

10

Second Stage – Tercio de Bandelliras

• ‘Tercio de Bandelliras’ means ‘the third of bandelliras’

• Each bandelliros plants two ‘bandelliras’ (sharp barbed sticks) into the bulls shoulders

• These anger and agitate the bull but further weaken it

11

Third Stage – Tercio de Muerte 1/3

• ‘Tercio de Muerte’ means ‘the third of death’

• The matador re-enters the ring alone with a ‘muleta’ (a small red cape) and a sword

• The cape is used to attract the bull – series of maneuvers aimed at wearing down the bull and entertaining at the same time

12


• The individual maneuvers are called ‘tandas’ (or series of passes)

• At the end, the matador gets the bull in a position so as to stab it between the shoulders and through the aorta or heart

• This is done, first, with a ‘estoque simulado’ (fake sword) to entertain the crowd

• At the end, the matador pierces the bulls heart with a real sword known as ‘estoquede verded’

13


• If the matador has performed well, the crowd waves white handkerchiefs – the matador is then awarded the ear of the bull as a souvenir

• If his performance is exceptional, he will be awarded 2 ears

• Very rarely, if the bull has performed valiantly, the event’s president may be petitioned to grant it an ‘indulto’ (a pardon)

• If granted, it leaves the ring alive and returns to its ranch where he becomes a stud for life

14

Big Business

• Over $1 billion ticket sales annually

• Million dollar series salaries for top matadors

– Sometimes they pay with injuries or their lives

• Matadors often fight up to 100 corridas per year

– Carlos Arruza fights 33 corridas per month

15

Bloodsport or Fine Art? 1/3

• For Animals Rights’ activists, the fact that 250,000 bulls die annually is inhuman

• Pope Pius V said: “Spectacles” such as bullfights are “removed from Christian piety and charity.” He wished that “these cruel and base spectacles of the devil and not of man” be abolished and he forbade attendance at them under the penalty of excommunication.

16


• BARCELONA has declared itself as an “anti-bullfighting city”

• In January 2012, Catalonia officially banned bullfighting

• 38 Catalan municipalities followed suit• Main channel RTVE no longer broadcasts

bullfights• In 2006, 72% of Spaniards showed no interest in

bullfighting• That figure was 31% in 1990s

17


• Ernest Hemingway said, "Bullfighting is the only art in which the artist is in danger of death and in which the degree of brilliance in the performance is left to the fighter's honour.”

• It shows sophistication and verve – it is a manifestation of man’s glorious triumph over nature

• Like all true art, the art consumes the artist, who often has to pay for it with his/her life. Thus, it is no different from poetry or painting– The famous matador Manolete is

no less an artist than Keats, Van Gogh, or Schubert

18

Thank You!

Question and Answers

Corridas del Toros

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