why should karate be decisive?

Question

i need to right a essay

Answer 1

You should try doing some of your own research, never trust people on the internet as your source for an essay.

Answer 2

You should try asking this question in the writing/english section, because I could answer this question in a 5 page essay format without knowing anything about karate, LOL. This is why I love english! Even though I am a total martial arts nerd, I am also an english nerd, as I am going to school to become an english teacher. This is a perfect essay question because it is so general (assuming you were assigned this question and didn't make it up yourself). The word "karate" can have so many different meanings: the translation of karate is "self defense," or if you don't know any "factual" information about karate you can use the word as a general term for martial arts as a whole, or you can talk about fighting/street fighting, or self defense, or war, or sparring, or physical fitness/health, or the different types of karate (because there are several), or the history of karate, etc. etc. (I could name at least 5 more different takes on the word "karate"). The glory of language is that any one word, when looked at in a research perspective, has a whole books' worth of history, application, and information surrounding it!
Therefore, your first step is to decide what you mean by "karate" (look above if you need ideas), and then tackle why that topic needs to be decisive. Next on the agenda is to explain what you mean by "decisive!" By decisive, you can mean why it is important to make quick decisions, or why it is important to make correct/crucial decisions, or finally, why it is important to know what your decisions even are?
Only AFTER you have decided between these 2 generalities can you actually answer the question "why." To give you an example of what you need to do I will pick one: "Why does a karate student need to make quick decisions when sparring?" This question includes both "karate" and "decisive" but is much more specific, however there are at least 2 different answers to this question: "Because the student needs to be able to decide how to react to his opponent quickly enough to intercept/block his attacks." OR "Because the student needs to decide how to defeat his opponent quickly, before the opponent gains the upperhand or the match is over." Now, there are probably several more answers you could come up with to my questions, but you will probably only need one answer to complete your essay (unless your doing a 7 to 10 page one, then you should use several answers). once you aave a specific question and a specific answer you are ready to write out the whole essay.
Your intro. and beginning pragraphs should explain in detail the reasoning and meaning of your question: what is "sparring?" Why "decisive" and not speed? or strength? Then in your body paragraphs you should discuss the answer in detail: what is it like to spar? what are the consequences of bad decisions? etc. Then in your conclusion repeat everything you already said but in a really small summary.
GOOD LUCK!

(by the way, I forgot to mention that "karate" can't be "decisive," you have to have a brain to make decisions, and "karate" is not a person or an animal. Therefore your first question should be phrased more like: "why is it important to be decisive when training in karate?" but again, this is a very general question.)

Answer 3

Karate had its beginnings as a means of self-defense and a way for unarmed Okinawan people to defend themselves against the Japanese soldiers and samurai during feudal times when Okinawa was being over run by its larger, more war-like neighbor. The Okinawans were more peacful and largly peasants and farmers possessing only tools and farm implents that they used in everyday life. The sword and spear were the primary weapons of the Japanese while the Okinawans had none. So the Okinawans developed their ability to do this with years of training and there are stories of how they even were able to defeat an army of Japanese soldiers using only their skill and knowledge, unarmed or armed with only the tools and farm implements that they had.

In such situations where the person had not developed their skill to such a fine edge they would literally pay with the loss of limbs or even their lives. Out of all this and their training come several principles that they used and believed strongly in. One is called the "single technique principle". Basically that is if a person spends a great deal of time, effort, and energy in developing a single technique then it will be ready to be used in such a situation against an armed person. The technique will be so strong, and be executed so quickly that the armed opponent will have no chance of countering or defeating it or the person using it.

Another principle is the "empty mind principle". This principle involves the idea that if an unarmed person is semi relaxed and not pre-disposed to react in a particular way to an armed opponent then he may more readily react correctly when the attack comes. The trained, unarmed opponent will not jump or guess and react incorrectly. Both of these principles coupled together of course dictate that when the person acts or reacts to an armed opponent they do it quickly and strongly, without hesitation of any kind. By doing this they then ensure themselves the best chance for sucess against armed opponents.

Answer 4

In the Christian Bible, there is an old adage that reads: "A double-minded man (person) is unstable in all his (or her) ways."

If one is not decisive, there usually is one of two outcomes. The first is that there is an over-reaction. In karate, this may mean excessive violence, or many other "over-reactions".
The second is non-action. Again, in karate, this may mean that the techniques and applications do not happen.

Karate, and all martial arts remains in the critical eye of the public. Many claim to be experts, but have a difficult time convincing others just what their expertise entails. If it is ever truly needed, karate (and all other forms of self-defense) only gets one chance. One chance for that person to use what they know to save someones life (especially their own). Moral complications, such as fear of being sued, or going to jail for hurting another person, can cost someone's life.

Perhaps the decisiveness you are asking about could mean that very fine line martial artist walk between their rights to defend themselves and the boundaries set by law, critics, and even the ego. Who knows. This can be argued for ages, but even that proves to be indecisive, right?

For me, I have learned to make a decision on what I believe, and to stand my ground no matter what the cost. That is my "decisiveness", which I have come to after many years of study. Try broadening up the question, it may help narrow your focus down slowly. Use a parallel, such as: Why should people be decisive when using controversial means. Good luck with your report.

~Train well. Live well.

Answer 5

Miyagi: Walk on road, hm? Walk left side, safe. Walk right side, safe. Walk middle, sooner or later [makes squish gesture]

Miyagi: get squish just like grape. Here, karate, same thing. Either you karate do "yes" or karate do "no." You karate do "guess so," [makes squish gesture]

Miyagi: just like grape. Understand?

I've never studied a martial art (Hapkido and Aikido here) where we were taught to drag out a fight (or fight at all in the case of Aikido).

Especially in the case of some Japanese martial arts, they were studied by Samurai to defend themselves if they becamed unarmed on the battlefield. In a free-for-all situation such as that, one must defeat their current opponent quickly and prepare for the possibility of being attacked by another.

"One cannot accomplish things simply with cleverness. One must take a broad view. It will not do to make rash judgments concerning good and evil. However, one should not be sluggish. It is said that one is not truly a samurai if he does not make his decisions quickly and break right through to completion" - from Hagakure, The Book of the Samurai

-Neogeek
"I reserve the right to be completely wrong."

Answer 6

Because the goal of karate is to be in a state of non-violence with your neighbor.
If your neighbor chooses to be in a state of violence with you, then you want to be back in a state of non-violence as quickly as possible.
Therefore: cause your neighbor to return himself to a state of non-violence by quickly and decisively showing him that further violence is not preferable - by, for example, knocking him out, or taking out a leg with a good kick, or blocking his attempt forcefully.

Answer 7

http://www.fightingarts.com/reading/article.php?id=291
here's an interesting article showing the importance of decisive attacks. Dont' plagarize.