Martial Arts Studies

This episode centers on Dr. Matthias Assunção’s research into capoeira’s history and martial arts studies more broadly. Assunção explains how capoeira myths developed over time, particularly misconceptions such as enslaved people using their feet to defend themselves because their hands were shackled. He explained that capoeira's African origins are clear, but it was developed in Brazilian port cities rather than on plantations and emphasized that the art form can be used for both resistance and oppression. This episode also addresses the globalization of capoeira, including debates about singing songs in languages other than Portuguese and how the art form has been adapted in different countries, and the continued debate over capoeira's professionalization in Brazil. 

In this episode, John Clements and Daniel Jaquet reflect on the reconstitution of European martial forms that have been preserved in fight books. One of the topics covered is the value of balancing scholarship and embodied practice in order to best understand these texts. Clements and Jaquet also discuss the appeal of these martial arts to modern-day practitioners and the future of the scholarly field. 

In this episode, Dr. Anne Tjøndal discusses her research on gender, social inclusion, and methodological challenges in the study of Norwegian boxing. As an athlete, coach, and former vice president of the Norwegian Boxing Federation as well as a sociologist, Tjøndal has a unique perspective on the experiences of women in the sport. This conversation addresses the persistent association between boxing, masculinity, and violence, while highlighting efforts to increase women’s participation and leadership within the sport. Central to the conversation is Bailey’s four-dimensional framework of social inclusion, encompassing spatial, relational, functional, and power dimensions. Tjøndal argues that participation alone is insufficient for measuring inclusion and emphasizes the importance of qualitative and ethnographic approaches to understanding belonging, access, and influence within sporting communities. 

In this conversation, Dr Christopher Matthews of Nottingham Trent University discusses his immersive approach to research. By participating fully in the life of the boxing gym, Dr Matthews not only came to understand the norms and practices of boxing but also developed a carnal intersubjectivity. In this episode, we discuss the need to communicate clearly in our writing rather than use theory as a gatekeeping device as well as the ultimate goal of social science research, which is to “reduce unnecessary human suffering and enhance human flourishing.” 

In this episode, Emily Dobrich, Carlos Gutiérrez, and Martin Minarik join Lauren Miller in discussing their work on the MASA Board. Topics of interest include the association’s plans for supporting early career scholars, the benefits of having global representation within our association, and plans for promoting members’ public-facing projects, particularly those with applications for the broader martial arts community.

In this episode, Alex Channon, Wayne Wong, and George Jennings join Lauren Miller in discussing the formalization of our research network into an academic association. What started as a loose affiliation of likeminded scholars has blossomed into a robust academic organization, and becoming an association legitimizes the interdisciplinary field of martial arts. This conversation highlights the collaborative nature of our organization, its welcoming environment, and the benefits of membership in the association.  

In this conversation, Dr. Marc Theeboom—professor of physical education and physiotherapy at VUB in Brussels—discusses the vast benefits of martial arts for youth development. Importantly, it is not that some martial arts have more benefits for children than do others, but that some pedagogical approaches are more beneficial than others. Theeboom explores the challenges of keeping martial traditions alive while simultaneously making martial arts fun and accessible for modern youth. He also points towards a future for martial arts studies that is holistic, collaborative, and interdisciplinary. 

In this episode, three scholars from the varied disciplines of classics, history, and English come together to discuss the connections between Ancient Greek philosophers and modern-day BJJ and MMA. Foregrounded is the concept of agon, which is often translated as competition, but can perhaps be better conceptualized as striving for excellence. Perhaps most provocatively, this episode asks listeners to consider how the daily training regimes of the Ancient Greeks may have led to the creation of democracy as we know it today. 

In this episode, Dr. Noah Johnson of Cornell College shares insights from his multi-sited ethnography on karate. His innovative approach to fieldwork took him to dojos in Okinawa as well as many different regions in the U.S. He concludes that the rituals of karate serve as a means for individuals to reinvent themselves. It also provides resources for individuals to protect themselves not just against physical threats, but against the threats of precarity and social uncertainty. 

In this episode, Raúl Sánchez-García—researcher at King Juan Carlos University—reflects on the use of the sociological concept of habitus in martial arts studies. Sánchez-García demonstrates the utility of both Elias’s and Bourdieu’s formulation of the concept, and discusses how the martial arts scholar benefits from acquiring a fighter’s habitus. Sánchez-García also discusses his newer work on the spectacularization of violence in MMA as well as in bareknuckle fighting, especially as this pertains to masculinity in the current socio-political climate.