Fact is Myagi is a good man who never fights unless he has to and cares and respects everyone.
In a review of Karate Kid 3, Roger Ebert made an interesting observation: Miyagi's philosophy doesn't work! Miyagi is always saying that violence is not the way to solve problems, but he ALWAYS uses violence to solve his problems.
Remember the scene at the beach when some rednecks put bottles on the hood of his truck? Does he verbally persuade them to remove the bottles? No, he knocks them off with a Karate chop!
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Fowler's knots? Did you say ... fowler's knots?
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8 years ago
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wears-alan
8 years ago
He asked the men to move the bottles. They told him to do it. He did. He showed no violence whatsoever towards these men. He simply planted a thought in their heads.
On another note, Miyagi says to Daniel 'If must fight, win'. So to look at the philosophy correctly, it means that looking for a peaceful resolution first is the answer, not going in fists first. Violence is not the answer, but sometimes it is the solution, as is fighting fire with fire.
If those pen pushers up at city hall don't like it,well, they swivel on this middle digit!
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ncdwbmk6
8 years ago
Why didn't Miyagi simply pick up the bottles and place them on the ground?
For a person who is supposedly opposed to violence, he certainly manages to get into a lot of fights.
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wears-alan
8 years ago
Why?
To teach these men not to mess with him. He managed to do that without inflicting violence upon them.
As for getting in to a lot of fights, in each instance he is either protecting himself or somebody else.
Halloween: saves Daniel
After competition: saves Johnny
Okinawa: attacked by Chozen and his gang
Outside Kai dojo: saves Daniel from Barnes
Inside Kai dojo. Attacked by Kreese and Silver
Each time there is the opportunity for the other party to cease and desist.
He does get in to a few scrapes but it is most likely because the other party feels that they can beat him because he looks harmless enough. The obvious message being don't judge a book by its cover and bullies always get their comeuppence I suppose.
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ncdwbmk6
8 years ago
He does get in to a few scrapes
lol
The point is that his philosophy is at odds with his behavior. If he really thinks that violence should be avoided, why does he ALWAYS use violence to solve his problems?
When the Cobra Kai's harass Daniel, he could have gone to the police and used the legal system to stop it. Of course, that would make the film rather boring.
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wears-alan
8 years ago
The whole idea of Karate as a peaceful way of life seems at odds with itself when you consider the damage one can inflict on another person. But as Miyagi (and others ) say 'Only as a last resort, but if must fight....WIN !'
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ncdwbmk6
8 years ago
But Miyagi doesn't use Karate as a LAST resort. It's more like a second or third resort, when he still has other choices. I'm not saying that's necessarily wrong, although in real life that would likely have landed him in jail. But if that's his philosophy, he should have at least been honest about it.
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8 years ago
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ncdwbmk6
8 years ago
Sometimes Ebert was right, sometimes he was wrong. In this case, he was right.
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8 years ago
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wears-alan
8 years ago
Welcome back Callum!
Maybe the op could do with spending Saturday night in Glasgow
If those pen pushers up at city hall don't like it,well, they swivel on this middle digit!
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Sonic_whovian
8 years ago
Only when he has to and that's when people get aggressive to him. As for the bottles do you think John kreese would've just chopped fhrbottles no he'd just have attacked the guys and destroyed them. If Myagi had thrown the bottles the guys would've gotten angry and attacked him. By doing that he showed he was skilled and tough and got the guys to move the bottles themselves that way stopping a fight from happening.
Also the way kreese was mouthing off in the dojo to him he could've challenged him right there but he didnt. Honestly people who make Myagi out to be the bad guy must've been bought up in a real crappy way to think he was the bad guy yet a child abusing racist like kreese was the good guy
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sonofbeach-sheet
8 years ago
People are really cynical and suspicious today and the fact that a lonely old man strikes up a friendship with a teen boy is raising just as much or even more anger than Kreese. People like Kreese or Miyagi wouldn't be caught being around teens in today's PC world, either.
Yet I do wonder if Miyagi had some serious issues, the fact that he was a young man in his 20's when his wife died and never remarried, stuck with a simple apartment maintenance job, and living stuck in the 1950's with his autos and house.
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