Definition Brief Introduction Song: Chinese Kung Fu Famous Kung Fu Stars Kung Fu Fictions

Chinese martial arts, also referred to by the Mandarin Chinese term wushu (/ w sh) and popularly as kung fu ( gng fu), are a number of fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in China. These fighting styles are often classified according to common traits, identified as families ( ji), sects ( pi) or schools ( mn) of martial arts. Examples of such traits include physical exercises involving animal mimicry, or training methods inspired by Chinese philosophies, religions and legends. Styles which focus on qi manipulation are labeled as internal (, ni ji qun), while others concentrate on improving muscle and cardiovascular fitness are labeled external ( wi ji qun). Geographical association, as in northern ( bi qun) and southern ( nn qun), is another popular method of categorization.

 Kung fu or gongfu or gung fu ( gng fu) is a Chinese term often used in the West to refer to Chinese martial arts. Its original meaning is somewhat different, referring to one's expertise in any skill achieved through hard work and practice, not necessarily martial. The Chinese literal equivalent of Chinese martial art would be (zhng gu w sh). Gngfu is a compound of two words, combining (gng) meaning "achievement" or "merit", and (f) which translates into "man", so that a literal rendering would be "human achievement". Its connotation is that of an accomplishment arrived at by great efforts.
3-1

 Originally, to practice kung fu did not just mean to practice Chinese martial arts. Instead, it referred to the process of one's training - the strengthening of the body and the mind, the learning and the perfection of one's skills - rather than to what was being trained. It refers to excellence achieved through long practice in any endeavor. You can say that a person's kung fu is good in cooking, or that someone has kung fu in calligraphy; saying that a person possesses kung fu in an area implies skill in that area, which they have worked hard to develop. Kung fu is also a name used for the elaborate Fujian tea ceremony ( Kung-fu cha).
3-2

 Someone with bad kung fu simply has not put enough time and effort into training, or seems to lack the motivation to do so. The term kung fu was not popularly used in the sense of Chinese martial art until the 20th century, thus the word would be seldom found in any ancient texts. The term was uncommon in the mainstream English language until the late 1960s, when it became popular due to Hong Kong films and Bruce Lee ( l xio ln).

3-3

 In Mandarin, when two "first tone" words such

as gng and f are combined, the second word often takes a neutral tone, in this case forming gngfu.

Famous Kung Fu Stars

Bruce Lee Jackie Chan Ziyi Zhang Jet Li

 Bruce Lee (27 Nov. 1940 20 July 1973) was a Chinese American and Hong Kong actor, martial arts instructor, philosopher, film director, film producer, screenwriter, and founder of the Jeet Kune Do ( ji qun do, the way of the intercepting fist) martial arts movement. He is widely considered by many commentators and other martial artists to be the most influential martial artist of modern times, and a cultural icon. Lee was born in San Francisco, California in the United States, to parents of Hong Kong heritage but raised in Hong Kong until his late teens. Upon reaching the age of 18, Lee emigrated to the United States to claim his U.S. Citizenship and receive his higher education. It was during this time he began teaching martial arts, which soon led to film and television roles.
2-1

 His Hong Kong and Hollywood-produced films elevated the traditional Hong Kong martial arts film to a new level of popularity and acclaim, and sparked a major surge of interest in Chinese martial arts in the West in the 1970s. The direction and tone of his films changed and influenced martial arts and martial arts films in Hong Kong and the rest of the world as well. Lee became an iconic figure known throughout the world, particularly among the Chinese, as he portrayed Chinese nationalism in his films. While Lee initially trained in Wing Chun (yng chn), he later rejected well-defined martial art styles, favouring instead to utilise useful techniques from various sources in the spirit of his personal martial arts philosophy he dubbed Jeet Kune Do. He is noted for his roles in five feature-length films, The Big Boss (1971) and Fists of Fury (1972); Way of the Dragon (1972), directed and written by Lee; Warner Brothers' Enter the Dragon (1973); and The Game of Death (1978).

2-2

 The Big Boss ( tng shn d xing) is a 1971 Hong Kong martial arts action film. The Big Boss was Bruce Lee's first major film. Initially, the star of the film was intended to be James Tien, but Lee's strong performance relegated Tien, then a major star in Hong Kong, to second billing. His success in this film made Bruce Lee a star across Asia.

 Fist of Fury (Jng W Mn), formerly known as The Chinese Connection and The Iron Hand in the United States, is a 1972 Hong Kong martial arts action film. It starred Bruce Lee in his second major film after The Big Boss. Bruce Lee plays Chen Zhen (), a student of Huo Yuanjia (), who fights to defend the honour of the Chinese and to bring to justice those responsible for his master's death.

 Way of the Dragon ( mng lng gu jing; literally, "The Fierce Dragon Crosses the River"; also known as Return of the Dragon in the United States) is a 1972 Hong Kong martial arts action film written and directed by Bruce Lee. It was his third major film. In addition to directing and screenwriting the film, Bruce Lee appears in the film as the leading character.

 The Game of Death (S wng d Yu x) was the film Bruce Lee had planned to be the demonstration piece of his martial art Jeet Kune Do. Over 100 minutes of footage was shot before his death, some of which was later misplaced and has not yet been recovered. In the middle of filming The Game of Death Bruce Lee received an offer to star in Enter the Dragon. The first kung fu film to be produced by a Hollywood studio, and with a budget unprecedented for the genre, it was an offer Lee was unable to refuse. Lee died before the film's release.

 This is Bruce Lee's final film appearance before his death on July 20, 1973. Six days after Lee's death, the film was first released on July 26, 1973 in Hong Kong. Enter the Dragon ( lng zhng hdu) was the first Chinese martial arts film to have been produced by a major Hollywood studio Warner Bros. and Lee's Concord Production Company. The film is largely set in Hong Kong.

Enter the Dragon

chn ln

Jackie Chan

 Jackie Chan, (born Chan Kong-sang, ; 7 April 1954) is a Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, director, producer, comedian, martial artist, screenwriter, entrepreneur, singer and stunt performer. In his movies, he is known for his acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, use of improvised weapons, and innovative stunts. (01:37:24~01:39:59) Jackie Chan has been acting since the 1960s and has appeared in over 100 films. Chan has received stars on the Hong Kong Avenue of Stars and the Hollywood Walk of Fame. As a cultural icon, Chan has been referenced in various pop songs, cartoons, and video games. Chan is also a Cantopop and Mandopop star, having released a number of albums and sung many of the theme songs for the films in which he has starred.

l lin ji

Jet Li

 Li Lian Jie (born April 26, 1963), better known by his stage name Jet Li, is a Chinese martial artist, actor, film producer, wushu champion, and international film star who was born in Beijing, and has taken up Singapore citizenship in 2009. After three years of intensive training, Li won his first national championship for the Beijing Wushu Team. After retiring from wushu at age 17, he went on to win great acclaim in China as an actor making his debut with the film Shaolin Temple (1982). Li's first role in a Hollywood film was as a villain in Lethal Weapon 4 (1998), but his first Hollywood film leading role was in Romeo Must Die (2000). He has gone on to star in many Hollywood action films, most recently co-starring in The Forbidden Kingdom (2008) with Jackie Chan.

(01:31:01~01:34:35)

 Zhang Ziyi ( Zhng Zy born Feb. 9, 1979) is a Chinese film actress. With a string of Chinese and international hits to her name, she has worked with many renowned directors. At the age of 19, Zhang was offered her first role in Zhang Yimous The Road Home (), which won the Silver Bear award in the 1999 Berlin Film Festival. She rose to further fame in 2000 with her role as Jen (Chinese version: Y Jio lng) in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, for which she won several awards in the Western world, such as Chicago Film Critics Association Awards, Toronto Film Critics Association Awards and Independent Spirit Awards. Zhangs first appearance in an American movie was in Rush Hour 2, but because she did not speak English at the time, Jackie Chan had to interpret everything the director said to her. In the movie, her characters name is Hu Li (h li)", which is Mandarin Chinese for "Fox". Zhang then appeared in Hero (2002), with her early mentor Zhang Yimou. This was a huge success in the English-speaking world and was nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe award in the category of Best Foreign Language Film.

(00:34:50~00:38:30)

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

8. 9.
10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15.

The Book and the Sword ( sh jin n chu l) (first published from 1955-6) Sword Stained with Royal Blood ( b xi jin) (first published in 1956) The Legend of the Condor Heroes ( sh dio yng xing zhun ) (first published in 1957-9) Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain ( xu shn fi h) (first installment appeared in 1959) The Return of the Condor Heroes ( shn dio xi l) (1959-61) Other Tales of the Flying Fox ( fi h wi zhun) (1960-1) Swordswoman Riding West on White Horse ( bi m xio x fng) (first published in 1961) Blade-dance of the Two Lovers (yun yang do) (first published in 1961) Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre ( y tin t lng j) (first published in 1961) A Deadly Secret ( lin chng ju) (first published in 1963) Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils ( tin lng b b) (1963-6) Ode to Gallantry ( xi k xng) (Ming Pao, 1966-7) The Smiling Proud Wanderer ( xio o jing h) (first published in 1967-9) The Deer and the Cauldron ( l dng j) (19691972) Sword of the Yue Maiden ( yu n jin) (1970)

 fi xu lin sh bi l xio sh shn xi y b yun

Shooting a white deer, snow flutters around the skies; Smiling, [one] writes about the divine chivalrous one, leaning against bluish lovebirds (or lover)

 Louis Cha, (born 6 February 1924), better known by his pen name Jin Yong, is a modern Chinese-language novelist. Co-founder of the Hong Kong daily Ming Pao, which he started in 1959, he was the paper's first editor-in-chief. Cha's fiction, which is of the wuxia ("martial arts and chivalry") genre, has a widespread following in Chinese-speaking areas, including Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Southeast Asia, and the United States. His fifteen works written between 1955 and 1972 earned him a reputation as one of the finest wuxia writers ever. He is currently the best-selling Chinese author alive; over 100 million copies of his works have been sold worldwide (not including unknown number of bootleg copies). Cha's works have been translated into English, French, Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, Thai, Burmese, Malay and Indonesian. He has many fans abroad as well, owing to the numerous adaptations of his works into films, television series, manhua (comics) and video games.

Jn Yng

Content of Novels
Chinese nationalism or patriotism is a strong theme in Cha's works. In most of his works, Cha places emphasis on the idea of Han Chinese self-determination and identity, and many of his novels are set in time periods when China proper was occupied or under the threat of occupation by northern peoples such as Khitans, Jurchens, Mongols, or Manchus. However, Cha gradually evolved Chinese nationalism into an inclusionist concept which encompasses all present-day non-Han minorities. Cha expresses a fierce admiration for positive traits of non-Han Chinese people personally, such as the Mongols and Manchus. In The Legend of the Condor Heroes ( sh dio yng xing zhun), for example, he casts Genghis Khan and his sons as capable and intelligent military leaders against the corrupt and ineffective bureaucrats of the Han Chinese Song Dynasty.
3-1

Content of Novels
Chas references range from traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture, wushu, music, calligraphy, weiqi (), tea culture, philosophical schools of thought such as Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism and imperial Chinese history. His works show a great amount of respect and approval for traditional Chinese values, especially Confucian ideals such as the proper relationship between empire and subject, father and son, elder brother and younger brother, and (particularly strongly, due to the wuxia nature of his novels), between master and disciple, and fellow disciples. However, he also questions the validity of these values in the face of a modern society, such as ostracism experienced by his two main characters Yang Guos romantic relationship with his teacher Xiaolongn (which was considered highly unethical) in The Return of the Condor Heroes ( shn dio xi l). Cha also places a great amount of emphasis on traditional values such as face and honour.
3-2

Content of Novels
Cha broke his traditions of his usual writing style in The Deer and the Cauldron ( l dng j), where the main protagonist Wei Xiaobao () is a bastard brothel rascal who is greedy, lazy, and utterly disdainful of traditional rules of propriety. In his 14 other serials, the protagonists or the heroes were explored meticulously in various aspects of their relationships with their teachers, their immediate kin and relatives, and with their suitors or spouses. With the exception of Wei Xiaobao, all the heroes have acquired and attained the zenith in martial arts, most would be epitome or embodiment of the traditional Chinese values in words or deeds, i.e. virtuous, honourable, respectable, gentlemanly, responsible, patriotic and so forth. In The Deer and the Cauldron, Cha intentionally created an anticlimax and an anti-Hero in Wei Xiaobao, who possesses none of the desirable traditional values and no knowledge in any form of martial arts, and depends on a protective vest made of alloy to absorb full-frontal attack when in trouble, and a dagger that can cut through anything. Wei was a street wise womanizing weasel, with no admirable qualities whatsoever.
3-3