Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a masterpiece of Wuxia (martial art) movies. It also tells a beautiful romantic love story between the two warriors Li Mu Bai and Yu Shu Lien. Mu Bai joins a monastery, as a route to enlightenment and peace. He loves Yu Shu but the love is undeclared. Mu Bai decides to give his powerful, ancient sword as a gift to an old friend of his, but soon the sword is stolen…

Wuxia (martial arts) literature is very popular in China throughout the history. In almost all Wuxia stories, Yi ([font=宋体]义[/font]) righteousness is an ideology that emphasizes the importance of gracious deed received or favours (恩 ēn) and revenge (仇 chóu) over all other aspects of life. In the movie, Li Mu Bai never told to Yu Shu Lien that he loves her. This can be simply explained by the ideology of righteousness - Mu Bai was saved by Shu Lien’s fiancé who scarified his life in saving Mu Bai.

When showing this movie to my students, I will share with them the Yi ([font=宋体]义[/font]) righteousness that is deeply rooted in Chinese culture. I may discuss with them about the "Four treasures of the Study (ink brush, ink, paper, and inkstone) and the traditional Chinese house styles and its functions from the scenes. If time is allowed, I may ask students to compare and contrast Chinese Wuxia and Japanese Samurai from cultural perspectives.
edited by vding on 8/15/2011