Spanish-style bullfighting
Encyclopedia
Bullfighting
Bullfighting is a traditional spectacle of Spain, Portugal, southern France and some Latin American countries , in which one or more bulls are baited in a bullring for sport and entertainment...
is called a corrida de toros (literally a "running of bulls"), or fiesta brava. In traditional corrida, three toreros, also called matadores or, in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, toréadors, each fight two out of a total of six fighting bulls, each of which is at least four years old and weighs up to about 600 kg (1,322.8 lb) (with a minimum weight limit of 460 kg (1,014.1 lb) for the bullrings of the first degree). Bullfighting season in Spain runs from March to October. The fights that attract most spectators are the ones held during a Fiesta patronal
Fiesta patronal
The Fiestas patronales are yearly celebrations held in countries influenced by Spanish culture.A fiesta patronal is usually dedicated to a saint or virgin, who is the patron of whichever city holds the fiesta. Usually, town members adorn the town streets with colorful decorations and other things...
, named ferias taurinas. The most prestigious of such fights is held for the fiesta of San Isidro in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
.
Participants
Each matador has six assistants — two picadorPicador
A picador is one of the pair of horsemen in a Spanish bullfight that jab the bull with a lance. They perform in the tercio de varas which is the first of the three stages in a Spanish bullfight.The picador has three main functions:...
es ("lancers") mounted on horseback, three banderilleros ("flagmen"), and a mozo de espada ("sword servant"). Collectively they comprise a cuadrilla or team of bullfighters. The crew also includes an ayuda (aide to sword servant) and subalternos (subordinates) including at least two peones (pages, singular peón
Peon
The words peon and peonage are derived from the Spanish peón . It has a range of meanings but its primary usage is to describe laborers with little control over their employment conditions.-English usage:...
).
Parts of a bullfight
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
sound. The participants first enter the arena in a parade or paseíllo to salute the presiding dignitary; presidente, accompanied by band music. (The corrida happens to the tune of live-played Pasodoble
Pasodoble
Pasodoble is a typical dance from Spain march-like musical style as well as the corresponding dance style danced by a couple. It is the type of music typically played in bullfights during the bullfighters' entrance to the ring or during the passes just before the kill...
s, many of which were composed to honour famous toreros.) The ritual is a key factor, for example the oldest matador goes to the far left, while the newest will be placed in the middle. If a matador is new to the Plaza, he will do the "paseíllo" without his hat on. Torero costumes are inspired by 18th century Andalusian clothing. Matadores are easily distinguished by their spectacular and quite costly "suit of lights" (traje de luces
Traje de luces
The traje de luces is the traditional clothing that Spanish bullfighters wear in the bullring. The term originates from the sequins and reflective threads of gold or silver...
), custom-made and embroidered with silver or golden thread.
Next, the bull enters the ring to be tested for ferocity by the matador and banderilleros with the magenta and gold capote, or dress cape. Bulls are raised on the open range by specialist breeding estates called ganaderías. The bull enters the arena with a rosette
Rosette (decoration)
A rosette is a small, circular device that is presented with a medal. The rosettes are primarily for situations where wearing the medal is deemed inappropriate. Rosettes are issued in nations such as France, Italy and Japan...
on its back bearing the colours of the estate of its origin.
Stage 1 – Tercio de Varas
Next, two picadores enter the arena, each armed with a lance or vara. The picadores are mounted on large heavily padded and blindfolded horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
s. The bull is encouraged to attack the horse which is protected by its padding and appears to treat the attack with stoic patience. The picador stabs a mound of muscle (morrillo) on the bull's neck leading to the animal's first loss of blood. This loss of blood further weakens the bull and makes him ready for the next stage. Padded protection for the horses was mandated relatively recently in history and up to the 1930s the horses were gored and killed by the bull in the ring.
As the picador pricks the top of the bull with the lance, the bull charges and attempts to lift the picador’s horse with its neck muscles. This causes further weakening of the neck. If the picador does his job well, the bull will hold its head and horns lower during the following stages of the fight. This makes him slightly less dangerous while enabling the matador to perform the passes of modern bullfighting.
This stage is a mandatory step in the corrida, and regulations require that the plaza judge ensures a certain number of hits are made before it is completed. In some rings a torero may request more or fewer hits in order to correct any perceived defects.
Stage 2 – Tercio de Banderillas
Stage 3 – Tercio de Muerte
Muleta
Muleta is the name of the stick that the red cloth hangs from in the final third of a bullfight. It is different from the cape used by the matador earlier in the fight ....
in one hand and a sword
Estoc
The French estoc or English "tuck" was a variation of the longsword focused intensely on fighting against mail or plate armour. It was long, straight and stiff, with a diamond or triangular cross-section. An estoc had no cutting edge, just a point. Examples from Poland are more than long, with a...
in the other. This cape is stretched with a wooden dowel and, in right-handed passes, the sword as well.
Having dedicated the bull to an individual or the whole audience, the matador uses his cape to attract the bull in a series of passes, both demonstrating his control over it and risking his life by getting especially close to it. The red colour of the cape is a matter of tradition, as bulls are actually colour blind
Color blindness
Color blindness or color vision deficiency is the inability or decreased ability to see color, or perceive color differences, under lighting conditions when color vision is not normally impaired...
: they attack moving objects (the real reason that a red colored cape is used is that any blood stains on it will be less noticeable). There are a number of distinct styles of pass, each with its own name. The fundamental pass with the muleta is the "natural", traditionally meaning a left-handed pass with the muleta without the aid of the sword to prop it up.
The faena ("job") is the entire performance with the muleta, which is usually broken down into a series of "tandas" or "series". A typical tanda might consist of three to five basic passes and then a finishing touch, or "remate", such as a "pase de pecho", or "pase de desprecio".
Spectacular passes are celebrated by the audience with shouts of "¡ole!".
The faena ends with a final series of passes in which the matador with a muleta attempts to manoeuvre the bull into a position to stab it between the shoulder blades and through the aorta or heart. The entire part of the bullfight with the muleta is called el tercio de muerte ("third of death") suerte de muleta ("act of muleta").
The act of thrusting the sword (estoca or estoque) is called an estocada. A clumsy estocada that fails to give a "quick and clean death" will often raise loud protests from the crowd and may ruin the whole performance. If estocada is not successful, the matador must then perform a descabello and cut the bull's spinal cord
Spinal cord
The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular bundle of nervous tissue and support cells that extends from the brain . The brain and spinal cord together make up the central nervous system...
with a second sword called verdugo, to kill it instantly and spare the animal pain. Although the matador's final blow is usually fatal, it may take the bull some time to die. A coup de grâce is therefore administered by a peón named a puntillero, using a dagger to further pierce the spinal cord. The matador must kill the bull in fifteen minutes after the first muleta pass, at most. After ten minutes, if the bull is still alive, the presidente will order an aviso, a warning given with a trumpet sound, followed by a second after further three minutes and a following third after further two. The presidente will then give an order to have the bull returned to its pen (corral), or, if local law so requires, to have the bull killed outside the ring. Regardless, it is a dishonor for the failing matador.
The bull's body is dragged out by a team of mules. If the presidente is impressed by the performance of the bull, he orders a tour around the ring to honour the animal. Very rarely, a bull will be allowed to survive a fight as an indulgence granted in recognition of an exceptional performance. The spectators will demand an indulto from the presidente, by waving handkerchiefs before the estocada. The matador will stop and look at the presidente. If he stands still, he will resume his action and kill the bull. But if he has an orange handkerchief hung on his balcony, the matador will imitate the estocada with a banderilla or with the palm of his hand and the bull will be "freed". Such bulls are generally retired from competition and raised as studs, as their experience in the ring makes them extremely dangerous opponents. A fighting bull is never used in the ring twice, because they learn from experience, and the entire strategy of the matador is based on the assumption that the bull has not learned from previous experience.
This also invalidates bulls who have been run in their estate by illegal fighters (maletillas), who in earlier times would sneak into an estate by night to practice their skills.
A trofeo (trophy) is the usual indicator of a successful faena. When the records of bullfights are kept, trofeos earned by the matador are always mentioned. If the crowd demands, the matador is allowed to take a lap of victory around the ring. If at least half of the spectators petition the presidente by waving handkerchiefs, the presidente is obliged to award the matador with one ear of the bull. To award the matador with another ear or with two ears and the tail (los máximos trofeos) depends solely on the presidente's appreciation. The matador who won at least two ears is given the permission to be carried on the shoulders of the admirers (salida en hombros). In some areas, such as Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
, three matadors take on two bulls each, and salida en hombros is only available to a matador that wins a total of three trofeos between his two bulls. In general, a matador that faces a bull that is freed is usually awarded los máximos trofeos, although only symbolically; ears or the tail can only be physically cut off of a dead bull.
Hazards
Bullfighting is normally fatal for the bull, and it is dangerous for the matador. PicadorPicador
A picador is one of the pair of horsemen in a Spanish bullfight that jab the bull with a lance. They perform in the tercio de varas which is the first of the three stages in a Spanish bullfight.The picador has three main functions:...
s and banderilleros are sometimes gored, but this is not common. They are paid less because their job takes less skill and less courage. The suertes with the capote are risky, but it is the faena, in particular the estocada, that is the most dangerous. A matador of classical the Manolete
Manolete
Manuel Laureano Rodríguez Sánchez , better known as Manolete, was a Spanish bullfighter.He rose to prominence shortly after the Spanish Civil War and is considered by some to be the greatest bullfighter of all time. His style was sober and serious, with few concessions to the gallery, and he...
style is trained to divert the bull with the muleta but to come close to the right horn as he makes the fatal sword-thrust between the scapula
Scapula
In anatomy, the scapula , omo, or shoulder blade, is the bone that connects the humerus with the clavicle ....
e and through the aorta
Aorta
The aorta is the largest artery in the body, originating from the left ventricle of the heart and extending down to the abdomen, where it branches off into two smaller arteries...
. At this moment, the danger to the matador is the greatest.
Some matadors have been gored many times. A special type of surgeon
Surgeon
In medicine, a surgeon is a specialist in surgery. Surgery is a broad category of invasive medical treatment that involves the cutting of a body, whether human or animal, for a specific reason such as the removal of diseased tissue or to repair a tear or breakage...
has developed, in Spain and elsewhere, to treat cornadas, or horn-wounds. The bullring normally has an infirmary with an operating room, reserved for the immediate treatment of matadors with cornadas.
The bullring has a chapel where a matador can pray before the corrida and where a priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
can be found in case an emergency sacrament
Sacrament
A sacrament is a sacred rite recognized as of particular importance and significance. There are various views on the existence and meaning of such rites.-General definitions and terms:...
of extreme unction (also known as Anointing of the Sick
Anointing of the Sick
Anointing of the Sick, known also by other names, is distinguished from other forms of religious anointing or "unction" in that it is intended, as its name indicates, for the benefit of a sick person...
or Last Rites
Last Rites
The Last Rites are the very last prayers and ministrations given to many Christians before death. The last rites go by various names and include different practices in different Christian traditions...
) is needed.
Animal concerns
Bullfighting is criticized by many animal rightsAnimal rights
Animal rights, also known as animal liberation, is the idea that the most basic interests of non-human animals should be afforded the same consideration as the similar interests of human beings...
activists, referring to it as a cruel or barbarous blood sport
Blood sport
Bloodsport or blood sport is any sport or entertainment that involves violence against animals.Bloodsport includes coursing or beagling, combat sports such as cockfighting and dog fighting, or other activities...
, in which the bull suffers severe stress and a slow, torturous death. A number of animal rights or animal welfare
Animal welfare
Animal welfare is the physical and psychological well-being of animals.The term animal welfare can also mean human concern for animal welfare or a position in a debate on animal ethics and animal rights...
activist groups such as Antitauromaquia and StopOurShame undertake anti-bullfighting actions in Spain and other countries. In Spanish, opposition to bullfighting is referred to as antitaurina.
Special events
- Mano-a-manoMano-a-manoMano-a-mano is a Spanish construction meaning "hand to hand". It was used originally for bullfights where two matadors alternate competing for the admiration of the audience....
corridas are bullfights where two matadores fight three bulls each in competition. Often, they are rivals; sometimes, even enemies. - Novilladas are bullfights where younger bulls of two to four years of age (novillos) and apprentice toreros (novilleros) are involved. Novilladas with novillos younger than three years are held without picadores. For novillos aged three, a shorter vara is used.
- Festivales are bullfights where toreros, novilleros, and amateurs alike can attend. They are held for charity purposes. The costume worn at festivales is not the ornate traje de luces, but the more staid, humble traje corto . The bulls used for a festivale often have their horn-tips shaved or truncated, a practice that is deprecated by some writers. Some people think these bulls are safer, but this is not a reliable belief: the bull will not hit his target accurately, but the force of the blow will be unreduced. The wound may be more of a bruise that a sharp cut, but the surgeon will have a difficult time repairing it.
- Corridas Goyescas are special events that intend to reflect the visuality of bullfights represented in the works of Francisco de Goya. This type of bullfights was originally introduced at RondaPlaza de toros de RondaThe Plaza de Toros in Ronda, Málaga is one of the oldest operational bullrings in Spain. The arena has a diameter of , surrounded by a passage formed by two rings of stone. There are two layers of seating, each with five raised rows and 136 pillars that make up 68 arches...
in 1954.
Other lesser spectacles
Professional
- The rejoneo or corrida de rejones: A rejoneadorRejoneadorRejoneador is the name given to a bullfighter who fights the bull on horseback. The rejoneador shouldn't be confused with the picador, who is just an assistant of the matador...
(lancer) on horseback tries to stab the bull with javelins called rejones de castigo in the first stage and banderillas in the second. In the final stage, the rejoneador kills the bull with a rejón de muerte (lance of death). On some occasions, the rejoneador will kill the bull on foot in the traditional way with muleta and estoca. - The recortes: A bullfighter dodges around the bull and does not use a cape or sword. Bulls are not killed during this type of bullfight. Most specialists in this form of bullfighting come from AragonAragonAragon is a modern autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. Located in northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces : Huesca, Zaragoza, and Teruel. Its capital is Zaragoza...
. - Comedy spectacles, such as El bombero torero y los enanitos toreros ("The bullfighting fireman and the bullfighting dwarves").
Amateur
- The encierro: A "running" of the bulls through the streets. Customarily, runners run before the bulls to guide them from the pen to the plaza, where the bulls will await the afternoon's bullfight. The most famous is that of PamplonaSan FermínThe festival of San Fermín in the city of Pamplona , is a deeply rooted celebration held annually from 12:00, 6 July, when the opening of the fiesta is marked by setting off the pyrotechnic chupinazo, to midnight 14 July, with the singing of the Pobre de Mí...
in July, although encierros exist in towns throughout Spain. It is a dangerous activity, and care should be taken by those who wish to participate. In SegorbeSegorbeSegorbe is a municipality in the mountainous coastal province of Castelló, autonomous community of Valencia, Spain. The former Palace of the Dukes of Medinaceli now houses the city's mayor...
, bulls are herded to the bullring by riders on horseback, an event called Entrada de toros y caballos, which is a tourist attraction. - The Toro de la Vega: This takes place in September at TordesillasTordesillasTordesillas is a town and municipality in the province of Valladolid, Castile and León, central Spain.It is located 25 km southwest of the provincial capital, Valladolid at an elevation of 704 meters. The population was c. 9,000 in 2009....
. A bull is run through an open area and over a bridge across the Duerno River. There a crowd (on foot and on horse) tries to kill the bull with spears and lances before it reaches the other side. Considered as an espectáculo tradicional (traditional spectacle) by the government of Castilla y León. - The Toro de San Juan: In CoriaCoriaCoria may refer to:People* Rodolfo Coria, Argentine paleontologist* Guillermo Coria, Argentine tennis playerPlacesCoria is a Brythonic equivalent of the Latin Curia and may be used as a place-name in Roman Britain and elsewhere:...
, a bull is set free on the streets and the townspeople jab or throw at the animal knives, scissors, darts, and other assorted sharp objects until it collapses. While the animal is still alive, the testicles are cut off. - The vaquillas (sokamuturra in BasqueBasque languageBasque is the ancestral language of the Basque people, who inhabit the Basque Country, a region spanning an area in northeastern Spain and southwestern France. It is spoken by 25.7% of Basques in all territories...
): A young cow is freed in a small ring (often built for the period of the festival and then dismantled) among local youths who tease her. The cow may have a dangling rope for recovery purposes. This is also practiced in PamplonaSan FermínThe festival of San Fermín in the city of Pamplona , is a deeply rooted celebration held annually from 12:00, 6 July, when the opening of the fiesta is marked by setting off the pyrotechnic chupinazo, to midnight 14 July, with the singing of the Pobre de Mí...
after the traditional running of the bulls.- A Mediterranean variation takes placed on a dock. The youths jump into the water when the cow has cornered them.
- Another variation is the toro embolado ("fire bull"). This fiesta takes place at midnight. Balls of flammable material or actual fireworks are placed on the horns. The bull is set free on the street where young men dodge and run away from the charging animal.
- Before the construction of modern sports premises, bull rings were used in the Basque CountryBasque Country (autonomous community)The Basque Country is an autonomous community of northern Spain. It includes the Basque provinces of Álava, Biscay and Gipuzkoa, also called Historical Territories....
for endurance-running contests. The public made bets on the number of laps the runner could make. No bulls were involved.