Wednesday, September 4, 2013
Week One: Pure Corruption
Please answer the following questions/prompts about the video clip, "Pure Corruption," and incorporate your answers into a 200-word paragraph.
What is the overreaching point of the clip?
What are some of the minor arguments in the clip?
What is the main argument the clip made for its audience?
What are some repeated ideas?
Describe some of the new words in the video, and define what they mean in the context of the clip's main topic.
Stick to information that was only in the video and nothing more. Please keep your post free of opinion, as this is mean to only be a summary.
By Friday, midnight, reply to a classmate. Point out one aspect of your classmate's summary that made sense to you, and mention one aspect of your classmate's summary that you disagree with and explain why.
Please remain thoughtful and respectful with your interactions with each other.
For those who did not make it to class, please post your blog before midnight tonight. The clip we watched was Chapter 2, "Pure Corruption" from the movie, Freakonomics. You can also find the video clip on http://vimeo.com/12033732, or on Netflix instant watch.
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The overreaching point of the clip was the exposed corruption of the Art of Sumo wrestling and how the life of Sumo had advantages and disadvantages. The clip showed how the corrupted behind scenes are known and have been attempted to be exposed, but because of Sumo being such an high value and respected tradition and a way of life and religion, the attempts have failed. Some attempted to exposure have failed resulting in death. Yaocho(cheating) took place between the higher Sumo companions in order to keep the Sumo perks. Some of the minor arguments were how the higher respected Sumo wrestlers lived in their life style and their Sekitori (Sumo Stables). Other minors were the Sumos trying to keep from being cast out of their villages and maintaining loyalty amonst the Rikishi(wrestlers). Some repeated ideas was of course the corruption in different areas of the Sumo Tatemae (illusion of reality) and , the people that tried at some point to expose the Yaocho(cheating) , and how respected the Sumo are. The new words I learned are included in this paragraph with the definition beside them.
ReplyDeleteI like how you used the new words throughout your paragraph. On that note I think you could of left out the last sentence and been alright.
DeleteThe overreaching point of the clip is that corruption is usually present in most pure institutions. Minor arguments of the clip consisted of fear of losing social status because of the overwhelming pressure for triumph and how rituals give the impression of purity through years if history in Sumo Wrestling. The main argument would be the wide spread of corruption in Sumo Wrestling. The ideas that seem to be repeated would be the lack of acknowledgment of dishonesty by the audience, finding the truth in numbers, and corruption being difficult to identify and prove. The new words that were introduced in this video such as Yaocho, meaning cheating, Honne, meaning absolute truth, Tatemae, meaning illusion of reality, Rikishi, referring to the wrestlers, and Sekipori, meaning Sumo stable are all from Japanese origin.
ReplyDeleteCorruption hides in purity. Sumo wrestlers (also known as rikishi) are proud, religious, and loyal people. The word cheating is never freely associated with these honorable showmen. They portray themselves as religious people who uphold the Japanese ways. Japanese people know somewhat that the wrestlers partake in yaocho (cheating or willingly throwing a fight for someone with lower numbers then themselves) but most Japanese people choose to ignore this and look the other way. When rikishi come out and speak of what really happens during sumo fights, they hide their names keeping their identities hidden; afraid that if found out that they would lose their position or be forced out of the hierarchy that sumo wrestlers have created among themselves. Two sumo wrestlers made themselves known to the world and told the truth of yaocho, that it is true that cheating takes place. Two weeks before they would make a formal statement they both died of respiratory problems, on the same day in the same hospital. However, strange these circumstances the police looked no further into their deaths, not even having an autopsy. Cheating is not a widely known thing in sumo wrestling simply because corruption is hard to identify.
ReplyDeletethought out and very well stated good job
DeleteI like how you added the words in your paragraph in parentheses. Your work was very though out. Good job i agree with everything you said.
DeleteAccording to "Pure Corruption", deceit is almost everywhere. It seems that the more you try to make something look pure, there's bound to be corruption in it.
ReplyDeleteSumo wrestlers do so much to portray the appearance of pure, whether it's through rituals done before the start of the game, or the showman in the ring, they’re always trying to make things seem honest.
It’s easier for people to look the other way. “Even though the audience may be aware of the truth, the sumo association has continued to deny the existence of yaucho (cheating)”.
Corruption is hard to identify by simply viewing a match, especially when there's fear of losing social status and respect. “When whistle blowers stepped forward with corruption, they weren’t treated very nicely.” Since no one will admit to what’s happening, the only way to find the truth is in the numbers.
Nicely written. I like how you told a little bit about the whistle blowers, but I wish you would have explained a little more about what could happen to them. How were they not treated very nicely?
DeleteThanks, I know I thought about writting a bit more about them, but I didn't want to be tempted to put in my own input...
DeleteThe overraching point of this clip is, how corrupt sumo wrestling is. A sport filled with over 2000 years of honor and tradition. Shinto (way of the Gods) is used to describe how rikishi (wrestlers) are examples of purity and harmony between man and nature. The author poses the question, "what happens when buyers and sellers cheat?" The answer is they become corrupt. In sumo yaocho (cheating) is frowned upon. Minor arguments are, in the sumo world it has ways of showing purity to mask the corruption. Before each match the tradition of showing your hands and the tossing of salt keeps with the purity of the sport along with the watchful eye of the ringmaster. Behind the scene what people don't see or want to know is that money is exchanged, boxes of cigarettes are exchanged, and fights are agreed to be thrown. Instead honne (truth or reality) or tatenae (illusion of the truth) are used. The main argument of the clip is sumo still carries its tradition of purity, but the truth is it is very corrupt. The attempt of exposure by two men ended in death said to be from health failure, and a third man's death said to be from accident during practice.
ReplyDeleteThe video clip “Pure Corruption” implies that there is corruption and cheating in all aspects of organizations regardless of how innocent or pure they may seem. They focus on sumo wrestling as a sport that one would not think could be corruptive because it “is built around honor, purification rituals and 2000 years of traditions”. The wrestlers, also known as Rikishi, arrive at the competition to fight fair with their bare hands and to show that they are there with a fresh and clean mind and heart. How could a sport so intertwined with tradition and honor become corrupt? The fact that the sport is held in such high esteem fosters the idea that it is pure and “discourages inquiry”. Even though people might suspect foul play, they do not speak of it out loud that they think yaocho (cheating) is going on. But if you follow the sport carefully you begin to see a pattern. You can see what the Japanese call honne (real truth) and tatemae (the surface of things). You can crunch the number of losses and wins of each wrestler and it is clear how rampant the cheating has become. The stakes have become high in the sport and when an opportunity arises to cheat someone will take that chance to move up the pyramid. Honne and tatemae is brought up in comparison to the financial difficulties in the United States. The financial advisors were revered as “wise and honest” and where exposed as neither. Also the Japanese policeman’s arrest rate for murder where extremely high. The tatemae of the high arrest rate made the people feel safe but the honne showed inflated numbers and corruption of the police officers. The police officers are measured on how many arrests they have made and as long as they are producing impressive numbers no one is going to dig deeper to find the real truth.
ReplyDeleteYou really did a nice job at capturing the facts of the clip. I would encourage you to maybe explain more of the corruption. Other than that good job.
DeleteCorruption lies within even the most pure of ideas. Honne, or real truth, unveils yaocho (cheating) within the ancient sport of Sumo. Some rikishi (wrestlers) have revealed how yaocho can be discovered, without giving names of any rikishi because of the fear of losing social status and honor, you just have to look within the numbers of the win/loss portion of the matches. Sumo can viewed as "untouchable" which is why many people rather practice their right to cognitive dissonance rather than expose the corruption that lies within the sport. Rituals performed before each match, such as purification of the ring with salt, make it appear that Sumo is nothing more than exactly that, pure.
ReplyDeleteI like the way you summarized the clip and touched on the main points in a short paragraph. I had trouble with that and went on a little to long than I probably should have.
DeletePure Corruption follows the steady line of cheating or Yaocho in the sacred art that is sumo. The video examines the facts that even the most sacred and honored things in society are not safe from corruption. This is true in Sumo even though it is hard to identify as Yaocho, if you look close at the scores in Sumo you will uncover the snake that is corruption wrapped around and strangling the purity that is sumo. There is a pyramid effect inside of the rikishi (sumo wrestler) world just like that of normal society, with the better stronger and richer rikishi on top and the mediocre and less advanced rikishi on the bottom. The top look out for the top and the bottom stay out of the tops way, making it easy to disguise tatemae (the illusion of reality), as hunne (the truth), in the Sumo world. The cheating is simple, if one rikishi is 8:6 and another rikishi is 7:7 the 8:6 rikishi will give up his win to the other so they may both advance to the next rounds. In return for the rikishi wins he will then give up the next match that he faces with the losing rikishi. The video also examines how the sport seems to be untouchable, when two corporate men found out about the corruption they called a board meeting to give names and seek justice they both died mysteriously on the same night at the same place in the same way. So who gets to decide what corruption is exploited and what is kept hushed and locked away?
ReplyDeleteSadly to say you can find corruption in the most pure of places but for what to try and keep it pure? The idea behind it is strong but their morals went out the window, keen on trying to take advantage of the place in society that it presents you, this is the overreaching point in the story. Minor argument presented where that it couldn’t be proven and even it was to be proven the results would be diminished and made into blasphemy, the Japanese society will not admit that they have dishonored something that is so pure, because honor is all that they live by. The main argument would be that you can’t continue to turn the other cheek when everybody knows what you are doing. the main repeated ideas are that you can find the corruption in the number, and also that the Japanese society will try to cover it up even if it means murder. Words from the clip Tatemea – which is the illusion of reality “surface” Sckitori – is a sumo stable honea – this is the actual or “reality”
ReplyDeleteThe video clip “Pure Corruption” takes a look behind the scenes of sumo wrestling that for 2000 years has put on an image of honor and loyalty. Where you think it is a straight forward sport. However in reality the clip points out that even in the most pure sports you can find cheating and corruption happening to keep the right people on top. The minor argument would be although it is a highly religious sport with lots of tradition some people turn and look the other way so that and they only see what they want to see.The main argument of the clip is the more pure the situation the more likely you can find corruption when you read between the lines. They have repeating ideas of the cheating occurring but no one has made if forward. The one time two people were going to hold a press conference on the cheating, they both died the same day at the same hospital two weeks before the conference. No autopsy or questions were asked about the deaths. Some new words with in the video would be Rikishi (sumo wrestlers), yaocho (match rigging), honne (real truth), and tatemae (surface of things).
ReplyDeleteI thought you defined the arguments very well. The only main thing I would add-on would be to expand on the over arching theme of cheating, not just in sumo wrestling, but in all "pure" institutions. Great job though!!
DeleteThe overreaching point of the clip is that in the Japanese society views Sumo Wrestling (Rikishi-Wrestlers) as a sacred cultural sport and that because of this they will do anything to overlook corruption that is taking place. Purity often is a great cover for corruption, and if there is an incentive to cheat people will find a way to do that. The main argument is that society looks to large institutions (financial, social or religious) for guidance and that corruption is almost always hiding in these pure ideas or enterprises. Society is then shocked when these institutions are accused of doing something wrong or corrupt. Spiritual and religious rituals support the idea of purity. Often these rituals area a façade (tatemae) and hide the real truth (Hunne). People will do anything to mask corruption and maintain the façade they have created. Yaocho (Cheating) is difficult to prove, unlike murder which leaves actual evidence. The only thing that can support the idea of cheating is the data that is leaves behind. People often look the other way to maintain their ideals around the financial, social and religious institutions.
ReplyDeleteOther than a couple grammatical errors, you put this very solidly together and this flowed nicely, good job. :)
Deleteit flowed nicely in a good order I meant.
DeleteIn “Pure Corruption”, the overreaching point is that corruption is prevalent everywhere. Even hiding in the most purest enterprises such as Sumo Wrestling. Sumo wrestling is a sport that is filled with tradition and honor that dates back as far as 2000 years. One of the supporting points is that rituals support the idea of purity. The tatemae (illusion of reality or the surface) is that corruption doesn’t exist in sumo wrestling, but the honne (truth or actual reality) is that yaocho (rigging of sumo matches/cheating) does exist in sumo wrestling. The rikishi (wrestlers) have a fear of losing social status by falling down in the ranks. If two rikishi faced each other in a tournament, one with an 8-6 record and the other with a 7-7 record, the wrestler with the 8-6 record will ‘throw’ the match and let the other wrestler win the match 75% of the time. If these two rikishi met again in the tournament, the 8-6 wrestler wins 100% of the time. This is another example of yaocho. Many people including the police believe that sumo wrestling is untouchable, so this type of corruption is hard to identify and prove, so most people turn a blind eye or have a cognitive dissonance to these types of situations.
ReplyDeleteVery well written and interesting to read. I liked how you added more of how the cheating works in sumo.
DeleteThe overreaching point in the video "Freakonomics" is the fact they put more dramatic focus on sumo wrestling than the economics. Though I see the point of their main argument, which is the fact that if corruption can happen in something as pure as sumo wrestling, then it can certainly happen in economics. One of the points that supports the main arguments that even though they use ancient rituals to support the idea of purity, in reality it is corrupt. A theory revealed in the video is that wrestlers would determine ahead of time who would win the match. In relation to economics, the video explains that investors looked at with high respect and trust were in reality cheating, known as Yaocho in Japan. Investors made money using corrupt tactics against their clients. Thus, like sumo wrestling, there was a Tatemae, an illusion of reality. The repeated ideas in both sumo wrestling and economics are that the desire for honor and status is so strong that corruption becomes hard to resist as humans and therefore, people look the other way and make corruption hard to detect. Those brave individuals who revealed corruption helped to temporarily bring it to a hault.
ReplyDelete*corrections made*
DeleteThe overreaching point in the video "Freakonomics" is the fact they put more dramatic focus on sumo wrestling than the economics. Though I see the point of their main argument, which is the fact that if corruption can happen in something as pure as sumo wrestling, then it can certainly happen in economics. One of the points that supports the main argument is that even though they use ancient rituals to support the idea of purity, in reality it is corrupt. A theory revealed in the video is that wrestlers would determine ahead of time who would win the match. In relation to economics, the video explains that investors looked at with high respect and trust were in reality cheating, known as Yaocho in Japan. Investors made money using corrupt tactics against their clients. Thus, like sumo wrestling, there was a Tatemae, an illusion of reality. The repeated ideas in both sumo wrestling and economics are that the desire for honor and status is so strong that corruption becomes hard to resist as humans and therefore, people look the other way and make corruption hard to detect. Those brave individuals who revealed corruption helped to temporarily bring it to a hault.
I like how you used quotes and used the new words. It was very well explained.
ReplyDelete