The Influence of Bruce Lee’s martial art on the american culture

Abstract

Martial arts are an old cultural heritage that was practiced exclusively in the Far East for thousands of years, yet its fame increased rapidly in recent years to reach and influence every corner in the world including the United States. Nevertheless, martial arts such as Kung Fu are deeply rooted in the Chinese culture, it consists a big part of the identity there not only in combat but in almost every aspect of life including the spiritual and physical dimensions. Hence, kung fu is considered a way of life, and the center of the Chinese culture. More, the spread of Kung fu into far places such as the United States was possible due to its appearance in cinemas and movies such as the Chinese actor Bruce Lee's movies, he was the world's towering figure and a Kung fu master, he had an enormous impact on the American culture as a Great martial artist, an actor, a filmmaker, a kung fu coach, and a martial arts philosopher. Thus, the importance of this research lies in showing the balance between the two cultures to come up with sharing the benefits of each culture apart. Our historical descriptive and analytical study of both sides have concluded that despite the fact that Bruce lee is from a different culture, he managed to become an American cultural icon of both Kung fu and cinema, he contributed and benefited in the development of the American culture by many of his accomplishments and achievements.