Quote Originally Posted by Zurawa
Hey...

I'm a college student doing a project for a rhetoric class I'm taking. I'm doing an ethnography on the subculture of boxing and need some input from people who box. If you box, please take a few minutes to answer these questions. All input is appreciated.

1. Why do you box?

2. Furthering the first question, what do you want to get out of it?

3. In your mind why is it worth any inflicted damage during a fight?

4. Does your ego/pride play a major role in your motivation to box?

5. Some people say boxers enjoy violence; would you agree with this statement, why or why not?

6. Would you say you have had a troubled past, or one that motivates you to box? If so, and if you don’t mind explaining, how has it motivated you?

7. Would you say any stereotypes hold true for most (not all) boxers as far as ethnicity, gender, class, and sexuality?

8. Are there any behaviors or actions that only boxers/fighters do? (in other words, something you see a person do and think "that person must box")

Thanks again for any input.
for the record im training and hope to make it far in the sport but its alittle early to tell if thats going to happen with that out of the way here's my input

1. I like the sport and its something i wanna get into and hopefully suceed in.

2. there's some people that do it just as a hobby and i can see doing it for that but i'm hoping to make it big and i believe you have to have the mindset that you're going to be the next big thing or else it takes something away from your ability. I think you also have top believe that you are the best no matter who you're going against because if you think that "they're alittle bit better than me" you're giving them a mental edge that they haven't earned.

3. This one's kinda hard to answer. I'm pretty sure that most boxers don't go into a fight thinking "hopefully i don't get hit" but its something you live with. There's physical risk in all the other sports out there and everyday life activities. You can't live you're life in a bubble. To sum it up no matter how careful you try to be you'll probably get injured so you might as well be risking your health doing something you like.

4. I don't think there's ever been a great athlete who wasn't motivated by pride to prove someone wrong or his own ego that he's better than everyone writes him off to be. Inorder to become something i believe you gotta have some kinda chip on your shoulder.

5. I think thats just a bad generalization. Most people who love boxing are fans of the technical side of it. If you're watching at home you wanna see an intense competetive fight but you really dont wanna see anyone get injured. So i'd say they like competitive combat more than they do just blatant violence.

6. It wasn't troubled like jail and money problems but i was going thru a patch of some personal bs that everyone goes thru. After some surgeries and all that i just felt that i had to rise up and become something great after all of it. Maybe i saw one rocky movie too many but i felt that boxing was the best way to do that.

7. Alot of mexican and hispanic boxers seem to excel at the lower weightclasses that the only one i can think of thats true.

8. Some are very self confident and i dunno they just look like they've been in the ring.