The Martial Arts Studies Reader

A decade ago, the question was 'could martial arts ever be studied academically?' Today we are witnessing the global emergence and rapid proliferation of Martial Arts Studies - an exciting and dynamic new field that studies all aspects of martial arts in culture, history, and society. In recent years there have been a proliferation of studies of martial arts and race, gender, class, nation, ethnicity, identity, culture, politics, history, economics, film, media, art, philosophy, gaming, education, embodiment, performance, technology and many other matters. Given the diversity of topics and approaches, the question for new students and researchers is one of how to orientate oneself and gain awareness of the richness and diversity of the field, make sense of different styles of academic approach, and organise one's own study, research and writing.
The Martial Arts Studies Reader answers this need, by bringing together pioneers of the field and scholars at its cutting edges to offer authoritative and accessible insights into its key concerns and areas. Each chapter introduces and sets out an approach to and a route through a key issue in a specific area of martial arts studies. Taken together or in isolation, the chapters offer stimulating and exciting insights into this fascinating research area. In this way, The Martial Arts Studies Reader offers the first authoritative field-defining overview of the global and multidisciplinary phenomena of martial arts and martial arts studies.

Paul Bowman is professor of cultural studies at Cardiff University.

1. Introduction: What, Where and Why is Martial Arts Studies? Paul Bowman / 2. Early Chinese Works on Martial Arts Peter Lorge / 3. The Battlefield and the Bedroom: Chinese Martial Arts and Art of the Bedchamber Douglas Wile / 4. Martial Arts by the Book: Historical European Martial Arts Daniel Jaquet / 5. The Phone Book Project: Tracing the Diffusion of Asian Martial Arts in America Through the Yellow Pages, Michael Molasky / 6. Martial Arts, Media, and (Material) Religion, Esther Berg-Chan / 7. Liminoid Longings and Liminal Belonging: Hyper-reality, History and the Search for Meaning in the Modern Martial Arts, Benjamin N. Judkins / 8. 'He's an Animal': Naturalizing the Hyperreal in Modern Combat Sport, Janet O'Shea / 9. Martial Arts as a Coping Strategy for Violence, Sixt Wetzler / 10. Performance Ethnography, D. S. Farrer / 11. Martial Arts Studies and the Sociology of Gender: Theory, Research and Pedagogical Application, Alex Channon / 12. Masculinities, Bodies, and Martial Arts, Dale C. Spencer / 13. Martial Arts as Embodied, Discursive, and Aesthetic Practice, Tim Trausch / 14. Carnival of the Drunken Master: The Politics of the Kung Fu Comedic Body, Luke White / 15. Learning from Martial Arts, Meaghan Morris and Paul Bowman