Bruce Lee :: essays research papers

In the Book Bruce Lee They Died too Young, writer Jon Lewis tells the story of the greatest warriorlike artist that ever lived. Known as Lee Jun Fan whole to his family, Bruce Lee was an enthusiastic boy who took a special interest in the warriorlike arts. Unfortunately,his life was cut short at the age of only thirty-two. Through this short yet unbelievably incredible life, Bruce Lee still proves to be an splendid role model due to his discipline,determination, and self-improvement.&9One of Bruce Lees best characteristics was his discipline. During Bruces teenage years he was a member of a street gang that simply went looking for fights. However, through militant arts Bruce developed discipline and was soon able to control himself. Bruces discipline is comfortably seen in this quote about problems that occurred on the set of Enter the Dragon. "Another problem was that the martial arts extras- most of whom were members of the Chinese crime syndicate, the Triads, would some times argufy Bruce to a real fight. For the most part Bruce would ignore it" (30). Bruces discipline can also be seen in the amount that he practiced his martial arts. He would practice everyday for hours, and even as a young child he was always practicing. "BruceLees devotion to kung fu was total. At home, during dinner, he pounded away on a stool with alternate hands to toughen them" (8). Although Bruce Lee is a good role model due to his discipline, it is not the only reason.&9The second characteristic that made Bruce Lee a good role model was hisdetermination. During his life Bruce Lee was constantly plagued with problems. One of these was chronic indorse pains. "In 1970 Bruce injured his back in a weight-lifting session. The diagnosis was that he had permanently damaged his fourth sacral nerve. Not only would he affect months of bed rest, the doctors informed him, but he would never practice kung fu again" (18). Despite the doctors orders, Bruce began exe rcising again after only six months, and within a year he was again in top physical condition. Yet another example of Bruce Lees determination is found in his beat to get a job and support his family. Once Bruce had gotten settled in America, he was constantly in and out of a job. "He had been paid $ cd a week during filming and drove a red Porsche.