Throughout history, rulers and political movements have used public spectacles of combat to evoke courage, sacrifice, collective strength and national purpose. From Roman gladiator contests to modern mixed martial arts, combat spectacles have served not merely as entertainment but as public rituals through which people experience belonging to something larger than themselves. When President Donald Trump proposed staging a UFC championship event on the White House grounds as part of America’s 250th anniversary celebration, many observers treated it as another example of his affinity for spectacle and mixed martial arts, or MMA, a combat sport combining striking and grappling techniques from multiple martial arts disciplines. Yet the symbolism runs deeper than a president’s taste for theatricality and combat sports. I’ve spent decades studying why people are willing to fight, sacrifice and even die for causes, and I see such spectacles illuminating an important psychological process known as identity fusion. People belong to groups: families, nations, religions, professions, political movements, sports teams. Usually, these identities remain distinct from the personal self. Identity fusion occurs when that boundary disappears. People do not just support a group – they experience it as an inseparable part of who they are. The group’s successes and…
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How political leaders use combat spectacles to symbolize national power and purpose
Source: The Conversation Politics — CC BY-ND 4.0