Why do they keep taking it down? Do they take everything related to Mike Tyson down? Did Fiq say r@pe 4 times instead of 3 in the first 37.6 minutes of the video?
"Men aren't meant to be humble. Men are meant to be humbled." That sentence hit me like a ton of bricks. I don't even know if I agree with it or not, but coming from him, after all he said, it just feels so raw and and incredibly human. What a powerful video, friend. Truly loved every bit of it.
I feel like that a great line to put on a shirt to wear to the gym. What that line says it says a lot, but mainly, men will naturally express a lot of pride. In doing so, men will run into opposition, wherein, they will either triumph or fall. Falling will teach a man to have a newfound respect for the world, gain perspective on the world (and that they don't loom as large as they presumed), and they come out learning something new that change how they move. People will have a problem with the line because it singles out men instead of being generalized to anyone, but not every, message is meant for everybody. It is also the case that not every person can speak to the experience of every demographic. Of course there is also the aspect that people will think that Tyson is saying men should not be humble, amd my retort is that his quote is literally saying that the world, life and the people in it should actively seek to humble men. So unless, your currently humbling a man you shouldn't be complaining. Also, I'd argue teststerone prevents men from being innately humble.
@@angelarballo4478it’s about pushing boundaries. Men are meant to be the boundary pushers of society/culture. They can handle the consequences of their actions and we can handle punishing them for going too far. We do not hold women and children to the same accountability as men. So to empower women to push boundaries is generally not the natural social order. Women become unsatisfied when they are punished for pushing boundaries. So they either get credit they don’t deserve, or become dissatisfied facing the consequences for their actions. Men are more malleable and punishable. Literally, Tyson was capable of taking and dishing out punishment. He was a boundary obliterator - and it took a long time to humble such a epic heroic character. Age humbled him just as much as his losses. These are the natural cycles of the young males transition from infancy, to boyhood, to adulthood, to seniority.
Well the fact of the matter is most people get humbled at a young age but Tyson was impossible to humble at a young age because he was just Mike Tyson at a young age. But I do think it's kind of true that if men don't experience any sort of humbling ever in their life then they grow up to be bad people, you see it over and over again. And being humbled doesn't necessarily mean you get your ass beat in a fight or whatever like you can be humbled by a lot of different things there are a lot of humbling experiences that have nothing to do with violence or hitting rock bottom or anything like that.
The bit about Mike Tyson fighting while his brain was still developing hit hard. The price of mastery. This is a great video essay. If they keep taking it down, keep putting it back up. It's wonderfully constructed. I love the larger history as well as the personal history.
I'm always so impressed by how loving and sympathetic you can be without being overly charitable to these figures. These people aren't gods, they aren't mythological beings. They're human beings, who have done good things and bad things. And you always give me so much to think on, without just telling me what to think! Keep it up, so happy I found you!
Is it scary that Tyson is the one pushing for a healthier understanding or masculinity, or is it obvious? I mean, this video just spells out precisely how the influence of D'Amato was a forward-directing force, whereas Don King's let him indulge in the worst parts of the id. Who better to talk about these topics with any measure of authority than someone who's experienced every facet of the curve where masculinity turns toxic?
@@Potent_Techmology We also had all our memories formed of Tyson with a minimal understanding of mental health. People didn't even know what the spectrum even was... He was never well the entirety of his career.
I feel like it's similar to what Writers have done with Kratos in God of War. Wouldn't be surprised if Kratos was inspired by Tyson. How do you continue after falling to rock bottom after being the pinnacle of hyper masculine power fantasy, how does someone who lived that introspect
Its criminal that YT make yuh affi run this one back, big man but no problem - that just mean we get to watch a rerun that’s actually worth rewatching ✊🏿
As a survivor myself, the other S.A. survivors in the comments have valid, interesting, and sort of conflicting views of redemption to my own. When I listen to Mike’s story, especially his youth, it feels like a fool proof way of creating a monster. To never have examples of a healthy relationship and also enact in over-indulgence to fill said void is just ugly. People who do ugly things have so much emptiness inside of them, it’s hard for me to not pity them with my sympathy. If someone took something precious from me, do they never deserve another happy moment or meaningful life? I feel it’s selfish to say they can’t. I understand how others can feel differently.
Amen. I went through my own share of abuse and turmoil as an adolescent, then teen growing up in the gang life, And all I have to say is there but for the grace of God go I. 🙏
I've suffered assault and it's really difficult for me to come to a complete conclusion about Tyson. On one hand if my assaulter had an arc like Tyson, wouldn't I want change most of all? Like that's my issue with the prison system- the way we run it doesn't encourage growth and self-reflection, it only punishes for the sake of punishing at best and more often systemically harms those who can't afford to avoid it. So the fact that Tyson managed to pull out of what effectively is a death spiral is amazing. On the other hand... Yeah you're allowed to still feel conflicting feelings, and the fact that he's won't fess up to the assault is still a problem. In the end I have a lot of sympathy towards him because. yeah that's a whole lot of garbage in his life, but I also hope he keeps doing the hard work of chipping away at one's deep problems and eventually faces those aspects of his life as well.
@gibbdude your insight is deep and meaningful. I'm so glad you took the time to comment such a lengthy response. thank you for your brave words, they will be remembered by scholars and poets for ages to come.
i 100000% agree! this is what i think is most indicative of his character. i’ll forever be traumatised from my assault and him doing 3 years and following it up by not confessing or taking public accountability is extremely frustrating because the public views him in a very positive light overall. rich powerful men can do the absolute bare minimum and get away with it and it’s so scary. he’s most likely changed a lot, but nowhere near enough to be admired or widely praised. as a woman the aspect of this video i really struggled with was the creator discussing the gold digger accusations his first wife was accused of, and following it up with her claims he abused her- as if those two things are comparable and not just purely indicative of the widespread culture of misogyny.
Part of the problem with the criminal justice system that you describe is that there's no incentive to admit to a crime. Like if people who committed crimes knew that there was a path that ended with redemption and them being welcome back into society after they do their penance, I think more people would be willing to be honest about crimes . But in our system right now, the minute you're caught you have to plead not guilty if you want a fair trial.
As someone who has been the abusive person in the past, I think this conversation is important. To me it is valuable that the victim has sympathy for their abuser, because no one in this world ever does. I have been the abuser because of my own circumstances growing up, it is what I learned about how to navigate in conflict, and what worked for me for years. I don't know if your abuser ever apologised to you, but I from the bottom of my heart hope he told you this: You never deserved the abuse I put you through. I myself have experienced it snd it hurts me to realise that I have caused another person this pain. The reason why I did it is, because I felt how I used to feel when I was confronted with abuse, and in my mind I was the victom that had to stand up for themselves, but I was wrong and I should have never even attempted to make you feel how I have felt. I should have apologised sooner, but I never could because I was a fool that denied the idea that maybe I have become the abuser. I know the world doesn't rewaed abusers for apologising, but I still think it's important that we do and let the people we have hurt, that they never deserved this pain, to end these cycles of abuse. I personally had to sit together with a therapist and learn how to apologise and navogate myself in triggering situations. About Tyson, I think the person he needs to apologise to and be held accountable for is his victims. He is still just a person in the public eye, and while he should be held accountable, I think we should not be misled to try making him the scapegoat for the abusers we have had in our lives, to project our feelings onto. This type of thinking is what has led me down the path of abusive behaviour in the first place. I truly just hope he has gotten bettet around the coversation about masculinity and how he represents that image for some, and he could take the opportunity to show how someone with the past of an abuser should move on and away from that life, for the abusers in the world that remain in denial of their actions.
" it only punishes for the sake of punishing at best and more often systemically harms those who can't afford to avoid it. " the problem is not the lack of rehabilitation (although it doesn't help) but mostly the lack of balance in society before the infraction/crime. in that way it reflects the way pro-life is not balanced out with financial support systems for having children. if you want to (and that is the million dollar question) keep people from going to prison, maybe a society should invest in decent housing and education? the exceptions - "i was poor and never became a criminal" - only prove the rule.
I have to admit, I relate to another comment on here about feeling challenged by sympathizing w ppl who have been sexually violent, personally as a survivor. I challenged myself to watch anyways cuz I love all your content. I really appreciate the effort you put into opening up vulnerable masculinity for other men to connect w and be inspired by. The part that you mentioned at the end though, could not help but have it overshadow the vid for me though: how do the women whom he hurt feel about his "redemption arc" and furthermore him profiting off books plays and podcasts about that arc? I know a lot of times for me its painful even just knowing the man who abused me is still alive. Resources for ppl who have abused other ppl is important, but just a reminder to anyone who happens to be reading this that survivors are constantly asked to empathize w their abusers. Resources for ppl who have harmed others are important, but a reminder to anyone who might happen to read this that some ppl are not gonna have space for it and when someone expresses they dont please believe them.
@@BurnerBoy-mw7txA forensic expert testified that the physical evidence showed she was raped, Tyson has been accused of rape/sexual assault by numerous other women (including Bill Cosby’s daughter), he tried to flee the state after she left his room despite it being like 3am, multiple witnesses testified she was traumatised afterwards. If that’s not enough evidence for him being guilty what would be?
@@BurnerBoy-mw7tx Mike himself has admitted to some of his abuse accusations. It's been proven in court as well. Obviously sure some people lie, but if you look into it most times even real victims aren't able to prove anything in court and it goes no where. There is not an epidemic of SA victims who are liars, it's an exception to the rule throughout 1000s of years.
I agree but also it's complicated, emotions are messy things and we can only do what's best for our own sanity. If a former abuser genuinely wants to change, that's great (and I always believe we have to look at the root cause of what makes abusers in the first place, not every abuser is born that way) but I'd never in a million years ask a victim to be part of that nor would I expect them to be okay with it.
@@BurnerBoy-mw7tx It's actually not hard for victims to see that, in fact no one hates the people who lie about abuse more than actual abuse victims. Sure some of them might be blinded by their own experiences, but in my experience a lot of victims are actually very sensitive and good at picking out when someone is being dishonest about these things. In the case of Tyson he definitely did bad things, he admitted to that himself though he never said exactly what. I personally don't think he did what he was jailed for, but he definitely had some flaws that extended to the way he treated/viewed women.
The part of his redemption that bothers me is that it is only even allowed because of his past in the hyper-masculine role he played. I call it the “war hero effect.” A war hero, a decorated veteran of a major war, is allowed to cry or sob or wail during an interview, and no one would dare question such behavior, ONLY because they have “proven themselves” in a theatre of peak masculinity. Only because a man has seen the hell of war can we accept him crying. Only because Tyson was an undeniable athlete can we accept his vulnerabilities. It’s a step in the right direction that still reveals the root problem with our view of all things “masculine.”
I've seen this in real life with many of my friends. They will dog on each other for doing stuff like saying I love you to their kids. Along with enjoying "girly' movies like Annie with their daughters. Yet they accept this same behavior from me and have never dared to question my masculinity. Because I'm 6'3" and 245lbs and they have all seen me systematically destroy men physically in our youth. It's both perplexing and infuriating in equal measures. Loving your children doesn't make you less of a man in fact it's a necessary part of being a good father.
Amazing video as always. There is just one point I want to call you on. At 36:01 you say: "Tyson says he was just as bad in jail as he was out of it having even gotten a female prison guard pregnant while he was inside." I'm not sure if you're referring to Tysons interactions with a prison counselor that he discusses here th-cam.com/video/Kug_8oCm81Y/w-d-xo.html. He says: "So by passing the GED they would've took that year away. So I flunked the f***ing GED and got mad, and so I had to start dating this counselor and stuff, giving her money and doing really some nasty stuff to her, and she let me pass this test." Here a member of prison staff offers to take a year from a prisoners sentence in return for sexual favours. That sounds like Tyson was raped to me. Particularly with how under-addressed prison rape is (and rape of men in general). I think this part could have been addressed differently. Anyway this just one issue I had with an otherwise outstanding video. I hope you keep up the amazing work!
As I think k about it. Any form of sexual interaction between a prisoner and a prison gaurd is coerced and thus an assault. I didn't even know this much. Damn shame
I'm going to be honest, he gets no sympathy from me on this considering the violence women in his life faced, including bill cosby's daughter. And his assault isn't on the level he subjected other women to.
I still find it very disturbing. For one as far as I can tell that rapist prison guard was never removed or even punished. Just left in a position with complete control over numerous men's lives for who knows how long. How many victims might she have had? It's honestly disgraceful. Also Tyson's punishment for what he did was prison. No law or court would sentence someone to be raped. But far too many see prisoners being raped as 'getting what they deserve'. No decent society should use rape as punishment.
I know we should be forgiving and offer people a chance at redemption, but I'm a woman that's been sexually assaulted violently twice I just can't find a way to feel for anyone who rapes another person. It's one of the most monstrous things you can do to another person and the victim will never be the same. The fact he in my view never served a serious enough sentence doesn't help either. I have been told over and over by people in left spaces (and to make it clear I'm on the left as well) that we need to allow a path to redemption and the goal is rehabilitation not punishment but I just can't really get myself to believe that. Rarely do men ever spend the rest of their lives in prison for just sexual crimes, so even with all the stigma and shit they go through they usually get another chance. Yet the pain they caused to victims lasts forever. So part of me feels like, yeah do they deserve a life of pain. I understand people like me are emotionally unable to form unbiased views in this area, but I'm just so tired of people asking for empathy for people that violated another person in the worst of ways. Like Jesus Christ we don't even provide proper care and support to victims yet so maybe we should be focusing on that before asking for empathy for abusers and predators. I don't necessarily think you're insights in this video are wrong, but I just can't get myself to feel like we should be worried about trying to empathize and rehabilitate sexual abuser's in the public eye. Once women are not shamed and judged for coming forward and doubted every time we speak out then maybe I'd be more inclined to care. I love your videos, just don't feel like abusers deserve our time or empathy.
There are too many men who get away with sex crimes and remain in powerful positions. Joe Biden, for example, is a rapist but people still make excusea for him. Rape culture is so ubiquitous
I think the "trying to empathize and rehabilitate...in the public eye" is a huge thing. Like, of the very, very, VERY small percentage of abusers who incur jail time (or any punishment at all), people want to say "well, they did their time, they deserve a second chance!" Which...okay, but does a second chance mean "gets to keep being famous"? "Gets to do endorsements"? Wouldn't the second chance be "is no longer in jail for r*pe"?
I find Mike Tyson's case to be very much like R. Kelly's case from the opposite perspective. People for years defended Kelly despite it being clear what he had done and was still doing. I'm not sure why they did but they did. On the other hand people will willingly ignore all of the nuance, acknowledged societal predjudices, and the man's own actions and statements pertaining to the case long after any public persuasion would be possible and still just go with what the racist institution decided. In a society where to this day Brock Turner's and Bill Cosby's and other rapist who don't get away unscathed get slaps on the wrist, no one finds it suspect at all that the richest and most famous American Black man in the world in his prime was jailed for 5 years to set an example? It obviously wasn't a sentence declaring that rape would no longer be overlooked or tolerated. Definitely wasn't the state showing they now cared about or were wanting to protect black women. It was White supremacists as always showing the black community no matter where we think we can ascend to they can strip it away at any moment.
As a Māori wāhine (woman) thank you for using our haka as an example. For future pronunciation, Māori is two syllables, and pronounounced like the word "mouldy" but the "ld" is a rolled "r". Love your videos and tautoko (support) your inclusion!
@@FDSignifire kind of, and we roll our Rs, which can be hard if you're not used to so not that big a deal. Think of Maui from Moana and add an R "Mau-ree". Thank you for taking the time to clarify!
Kia ora F.D. Women and men have always performed in Kapahaka and the over emphasising of the warrior culture, violence of Māori cultural expression is a product of colonialism dismissing native art and culture as barbaric and about war. Pre colonial Māori culture didn't have gender role divisions that support readings that conflate them with gladiators or this violent masculine social roles, That is the perspective the British forced on Māori culture. Poi is closer to Māori martial arts. Kapahaka is a form of story telling, oral history and ritual chant, not violence, the british just wanted to see Māori as a warrior race to justify colonialisation and assimilation policies. Moana Jackson has spoken about this, including in his 'Once Were Gardeners'. Thank you.
Fellow NZer so thank you so much for the rec of Moana Jackson. I grew up (and was educated) overseas so I am trying to develop a more informed and nuanced understanding of our history.
To me, as someone who was watching him ascend towards the end of my adolescence, the saddest thing about Mike Tyson is that he was an obviously natively intelligent person who was instead reduced to a vital body and primal senses. How different his life may have been if intervention had come in a different form. I have wondered about this at every turn of this man's life. ThanksForPosting!
I feel this way with a lot of marginalized people groups. It’s frustrating to think about the thousands even millions of minds lost because they were forced to serve in a role that better suited a dominant society’s needs and never able to truly maximize their potential.
@@professorx4966 I think Stephen Jay Gould put it pretty well: "I am, somehow, less interested in the weight and convolutions of Einstein’s brain than in the near certainty that people of equal talent have lived and died in cotton fields and sweatshops."
He was a very quick witted and intelligent guy undoubtedly, but he doesn't get the platform he did to share that with the world without his once in a century physical gifts.
Mike is very very intelligent. Just search on youtube what werner herzog says about mike's intelligence. They didn't discuss boxing or life, they discussed roman republic, pippen the short, machiavelli among other things. Werner said that mike is one of the most knowledgeable person about frankish kings he has ever met.
You kinda hit it on the head, condensed most of this video into a sentence. Also, I mean yeah lots of stuff about men, black men, but not every man and black man is that ridiculously talented at fighting
Didn't realize this was a re-upload and thought we got ANOTHER deep-dive into Tyson and was so hyped. This is my favorite video of yours to date. Shame it had to be completely reuploaded.
Same same same when I saw it I was so excited… all the love and effort that went into this makes it worth keeping it on the channel. Thank you for uploading it again, I’ve probably seen it like 5 times 🧡🧡🧡🪶
Tyson’s statement on having to deal with yourself after losing is so relatable. People are often so much more cruel to themselves than anybody else is. Also, the editing and flow of this videos is chefs kiss 👌🏻💋 flawless
I really like your face to camera videos, because empathy being a large part of your video essay style, it's always interesting to see your emotions travel across your face as you speak and comment. That being said, the editing on this one is truly excellent. Great work
Listening to Mike Tyson talk about how he’d spent his entire life being trained to fight, to be a warrior, and the sense of dreadful emptiness that comes from when those days are gone reminds me of a soldier who’s been through war. We train men to be warriors; to fight, to kill, to suffer, and to die. We’ve turned the art of making warriors into not only a science, but a perfectly oiled machine. But going the other way is difficult, confusing, and sadly, sometimes impossible. When I look at Mike Tyson, I see Audie Murphy. Audie was a boy from Texas who was shipped off to the Second World War and came home the most decorated soldier in American history. At that time, he was the ideal warrior, the ideal man. But the war doesn’t end just because the fighting stopped. In his autobiography, he wrote of sleeping with a gun under his pillow and of nearly killing his wife with it when, in a nightmare flashback, he mistook her for the enemy. Mike Tyson is not a good person. His past is proof of that. But if there’s one silver lining to all that, it’s that even if he couldn’t become a good man, he could at least become a better man than he was.
i actually showed this to my mom months back and she got super into your channel! really enjoy your work especially your takes on being a black man in america, very enlightening to a young black woman like myself! i hope the big bad algorith1m boosts you like crazy! i def share your channel with all my friends and will be commenting more!
Fiq’s pen game is just so on point here. The writing is always so good, so precise but artful. Learning a lot from this man. Also loved rewatching and catching the “heel turn” reference to Kanye. More wrestling metaphors please lol
"I don't know how this story ends, whether he'll be able to maintain this space of health and humility. But I hope it ends well and that hte character arc of Mike Tyson completes with satisfaction." Mike Tyson's past is such a delicate subject. I really appreciated what you had to say, and how it doesn't downplay the harm he does, while also hoping that he continues to get better.
I'm glad I had the opportunity to watch this. You made me ask myself some really important questions. As an SA survivor myself I do a lot of advocating for victims, but I never really considered the future of the perpetrators. Regardless of my opinion on the matter, rapists will not always suffer public scrutiny throughout every aspect of their lives. They will move on and continue living. At that point we have to ask ourselves, what is best for society. What helps us stop SA from being so commonplace. Would it make things better for victims, or for the world if abusers continued to suffer every day for the rest of their lives? Is SA, DV or abuse worth a life sentence of misery? How do we rehabilitate abusers, and how do we feel okay with them rehabilitating themselves? My abuser never faced legal or social justice. To be honest, personally, if my abuser rehabilitated himself and is happy in his life, I don't care. I don't care if he's still miserable. What he did won't ever go away, but if he's at a place where he is choosing to never do it again, and to teach other men that they can make different decisions, good. I don't care what he does with his life as long as he doesn't hurt anyone else ever again.
I think your last line hits the nail, at least from a victim POV, one should be safe knowing that the perpetrator can't hurt anyone like that ever again, the how to is a detail that as a society we can't expect victims to chose in an unbiased way because it's just really a tall order, I believe in rehabilitation (to a point) and if not, a life sentence, you just can't have people like that runing around without at least a path for them to change. This shit was easier when we were just animals that could kick someone out of the pack if they did something this shitty, closest thing we have nowdays is jail for life, but it ain't the same.
You are not defined by one action. As humans we are capable of doing incredibly good things and evil things. Not saying you have to forgive him. I think forgiveness is optional. Still he is not defined solely by his failures.
@@rances4418 my opinion has changed slightly since I wrote that post but my realistic attitude is still there. If consequences eventually abate, it works to normalize SA and DV. It makes it more likely and more acceptable that it not only will occur more frequently but also that perpetrators will face no consequences. There’s already very few consequences for perpetrators currently. Reducing the amount of public backlash they face will not contribute to rehabilitating them. But it also might contribute to making them more bitter, angry and their feeling of justification or entitlement might increase. I’ve witnessed many abusers develop martyr syndrome. There’s no real good option in these circumstances. The best option starts with education and upbringing. So that acts like these happen with less frequency.
As someone who also made a career of violence (twenty years in the Army in my case, as well as boxing... though I was REALLY bad at the boxing part), I can identify with him and his journey. Many of us have gone through our own journey of finding out we are very good at violence, and thus, make a living at it. And then being appalled by who we were, at that time. And through self awareness, reflection (and psychedelics), only THEN coming to terms with it... Thus, many of us broken fools love him deeply because of it. Great video, man. As usual!
Your channel is teaching me so fuckin' much about blackness, it's truly changing the way I'm connecting with pop culture, as a Brazilian Proud Black Man, I thank you so much. Keep teaching.
seeing his blank stare at 27:40 made me want to cry, he was so clearly trying to understand his wife’s emotions, looking to her and trying to read her face. he knew what he did but it’s clear he didn’t understand why :(
he said in an interview he was stunned to silence bc she was lying about it lol he wasn't trying to read her, I guess he was just like "oh shit, is she going to ruin my career?"
I think the good woman will heal you trope comes from the fact that a lot of times people in these situations lack any sort of health or positive safety net that can otherwise help them, and the partner is a chance at bringing in a new unit of aid that they trust and might be different from the current system. Now, that is not healthy for all the reasons we can think of (Don King in this very vid pulls this as a new surrogate father that then drains him dry), but I think it speaks to a lot of the systemic problems here in the states & the west with finding & maintaining beneficial support and how our cultural system reinforces the toxic parts through shit like this.
One of my favorite youtube videos I've seen this year. It's thoughtful, and it feels like every minute of screentime is EARNED (which I don't necessarily feel about all of the hour long video essays we seen on this website). I hope it ends up in everyone's recommended tab, and I hope it gets a million views.
Love your work, keep doin what your doin. I am hung up on the rape trial - with not too much prior knowledge about Tyson it was sad to hear the pain that he ended up inflicting on others (especially women) in his destructive years. you’ve provided a nuanced discussion on the accusations and tried to shed light on both sides of the issue for sure. Although this is literally a video about his life and what to make of his story, I can’t help that so many celebrities end up getting their mistakes explained away so that they make sense. powerful men end up causing suffering to the women, children, and people in their lives (from trauma etc etc etc) and end up retaining a narrative where they are the good guy in the end. As long as they repent, the hidden trauma handed down from his actions can be explained. I’m Just left thinking of the people who suffered from his actions, and watch him still have the ability to captivate the world with legendary status that in some ways as a result of his violence and mistreatment of others. Sexual assault is no joke, and it’s crazy that that part of the story got forgotten about by so many.
@@ChiefChokeAHoe that may be true (I think it is), but it's really important to remember that people still have to live with the consequences of his actions. There's a balance between understanding the pain and trauma that caused somebody like Mike to hurt others, and understanding the pain inflicted.
@@ChiefChokeAHoethis is quite frankly so easy to say this when you are not the victim who is forever armed “It’s just one action it doesn’t define you” is one of the biggest cope an abuser will ever have. He just did it “only one time and didn’t do it again” Rubbish
Kindness and knowledge are one in the same and I feel like you extended kindness but sharing knowledge and giving in depth analysis of an often parodied figure.
I remember in an interview he said after he was taught to be mean in the ring and no one ever taught him how to turn that off when he got out of ring, he had to learn that years later on his own.
In most video games, the last boss is always this crazy imagined monster or being of such vast imaginable strength that it makes you feel as if it's insurmountable. In Punch-out they literally took a real life person and made them the last boss. His power was awe-inspiring that he was a literal final boss. Not to mention his influence in games like Street Fighter where his inspiration continued. He's named Barlog here in the US but it's well known in Japan he was known as M.Bison for his resemblance to Tyson and the character reflects that. Powerful, rush down in your face character with even his bob in weave in Street Fighter V. The only other fighter that has had this kind of legend, at least that I can immediately think of, is Bruce Lee.
Bullied insecure kid in his teens. Heavyweight boxing champion by his twenties. Deranged monster by his thirties. Philosopher by his fifty. His introspection is almost at Nietzche's level. There is really something special in him. I hope he managed to bring it out even more.
nah he was monstrous as a teen. particularly a late teen. he almost got shot by Atlas as a new teen for some sexual shit as well. by the time a man gets to his adult phase, if he has enough entitlement... he is already controlling and manipulating people around him at that point.
4:56 - Conversely, here's Tyson getting into street brawls.... Is that Tyson wrestling an actual tiger? That's what you call a street brawl? What kind of streets did you grow up in???? Like damn, your streets had to be the roughest neighborhood in the entire planet if you write off a grown man wrestling an apex predator as a street brawl
I knew almost nothing about Mike Tyson before this and just wow, what a story. The depth and feeling you put into telling it really hits me. I hope this gets to stay up this time, it's a story worth telling and that there's a lot of benefit to be had from exploring it. And it's important that people who seem to both understand and care about those discussions, like you, are the ones to lead them.
im sorry that youtube keeps taking this down! i'm gonna let this play in the background for a while because honestly you deserve all of the views! nothing but love
You know it's a good video when you finish it and immediately begin reading through all the comments just to get more insight. As for me, I see within Tyson almost an archetype of patriarchal brainwashing: fear cultivated into domination, the victim made into a victimizer. After all is said and done, the wounds that have been inflicted may never properly heal, a series of damaged humans all seeking to limp by in the ruins. Thank you for your work. You strike a crucial balance between empathy and accountability that is very difficult to find.
This was such a raw, beautiful, hard to watch video. I usually like to analyze my thoughts when I’m done with a piece but this time I found that profoundly difficult. It made me feel a lot of deep emotions that I don’t even know if I can fully categorize, and at the end of the day I don’t know how I feel about Tyson. Sadness, pity, respect, revulsion, and more. This is one of the best video essays I’ve ever seen, if not the best. Great job and keep up the good work!
I'd like to think that I'm always trying to move forward and make myself better. Seeing someone like Tyson seemingly come out the other side a better man and force for positivity is pretty inspiring. Awesome video. Thanks for making it. 🤘
Watched on a previous upload. Thought there was more! Honestly one of the most impactful documentaries I’ve seen. Took me from zero investment and minimal knowledge, to a really informed position of increased empathy and understanding for a lot of things. Thank you.
Wow, what a video dude. An unbiased look at a truly fascinating person who at the very least seems to be trying to be better than he was, and I don't think there's anything more relatable than that. I wasn't a subscriber when this first went up and I don't know how long it was down, but thanks for putting it back up. Knowing this I'll be going back through all the old stuff. I appreciate you.
Why does yt say they take this down? It just reminded me to watch it, so thank you. I wish my dad was still around to show him this. He’d be 71, I’m 43, he passed in 2012, but he loved the psychology of boxing and he was _mesmerized_ by The Boxer. I think he would have said, “Wow” and shook his head a little after he saw it, which always meant his mind had just been shown something he didn’t think was possible. Previously unbelievable. My dad was a professor for the last third of his life, but he couldn’t stand elitism. 😂 I mean he liked to talk and create dialog but he hated staying in the house w it. He would’ve appreciated this. Being fully genuine, in one video essay, you’ve rehumanized this man. I’ll be honest, I never realized I had dehumanized him, or he had become dehumanized in my eyes. I figure I dehumanize all ppl I believe are rapists, or used to anyway. Was I introduced to Mike as an already dehumanized persona? Plus I was only a young teen girl, a white girl- I wasn’t racist, but I was not yet an anti racist. I didn’t even kno I had a backpack to unpack yet-sooo I was that amount of racist. But besides that I couldn’t even recognize the SA’s that were happening to ME as SA’s. But stories like Mike Tysons? That was rape. I didn’t say that tho, like I said WE were a pro-boxing household and Poor Iron Mike was gettin a raw deal. It’s abuse that Mike’s trainer only fed one side of him, exploiting him for his physical power and focus and didn’t nurture any other part of his being or mental health. Actively suppressed it. That’s no mentor, That’s no friend. That’s a fxkcing predator. I remember when Mikes one man show came out, I wanted to see it, still do. I noticed the way you speak, as if you haven’t watched his material…I’m going to make a huge presumption ~ Is this because you don’t want to support a convicted rapist? Or am I way off 😆 Thank you so much for putting this out. I’m very happy to have this viewpoint to be able to look thru
I love this one, FD. I watched it recently when I was reading a book called Circe which is about the Greek gods and characters such as Achilles during the Trojan war. I see so many parallels here….a hero’s journey indeed.
This was incredible. Im on a FDS binge and I admire how much care and detail you put into your craft! so inspirational, humane, and refreshing. Thanks Fiq!!
Just a quick comment, i want to congratulate you on how good your thumbnails have been on your recent videos, they definitely improved from the older ones, which weren't bad per say but didn't look that much appealing, and if i'm being honest i watched the videos bc i already knew that you were the one doing, so back to the compliments, they are looking really good, appealing and interesting!
I am a 40 ys old South African woman with zero interest in boxing and even less in Mike Tyson but you have kept me glued the whole 53 mins. You are an extremely talented and engaging video essayist FD👏👏👏
The same people who say "Men should talk about their feelings, show vulnerability and seek help" are the the ones who will say that men who do or say the evil things need to be shut up, denied help and punished. The same people who will tell others to "seek help" and "do better" will then opine about how easily society forgives wrongdoers who do just those things. Just as when women speak their truth, talk about their emotions and air their grievances it can feel repellent, ignorant and cruel to men, when men talk about their emotions there's going to be cruelty, ignorance and ugliness. To think that someone who was raised in a brothel, bullied and abused for his superficial femininities, adored and desired by both men and women for being a hulking brute, then punished and ridiculed for his brutishness can ever have a truly "healthy" attitude towards women (whatever that means) is very naive... Anyway, great video!
This comment is 2 years old, but I'm responding anyway. I get what you're saying, but I don't think it's a stretch to define "healthy feelings towards women" as "not assaulting them." That's a good basline definition. Like, yeah that's what he grew up seeing and his childhood was awful. I wish he had learned better waaaaay sooner to prevent more pain... but better late than never I guess.
I don’t ever comment on videos but wanted to be sure I supported here! Your channel has been wildly important to me this year and I hope this is the last time you have to re-upload. Good luck!!
I've watched this one a few times, thinking I'll walk away with some sorta parasocial closure, but I only manage to end it with more complex feelings about someone I don't even know. I can say that I genuinely appreciate all the grace and honesty while telling Mike's story, without swaying the verdict either way. This particular video is one of your All Times.
These videos are so moving and humanizing. I loved hearing the stories that surrounded his biggest matches, as I usually think of sports and storytelling as different things (where we think about the numerical results of sporting events and not about the lives of the humans competing). It really is hard to hold complex opinions about people like Tyson, where there is no one simple way to feel - when one person's story can make us feel so much inspiration (on both ends of his career) and disgust at the same time. Regardless, I find value in the telling of these nuanced stories, and maybe making a final judgment on Tyson's character isn't what I have to gain here.
This made me cry.. I genuine felt Mike when he talked about being an student and the embodiment of war and not being that anymore. I felt Tyson's sadness at that moment and couldn't stop the tears because I think as men, and especially men who come from trauma and lived the consequences of that trauma, it resonated with me. Thank you for this video, the quality of this video along with your psychological analysis of a gladiator and later a very broken man was absolutely beautiful.
I was born in 1999 so I’ve known pretty much nothing of his life, aside from the ear thing. So this video was really cool to see and learn a lot about an unique person.
Since I was young, I followed Tyson and learned what i could from him. I saw parts of myself in him, I grew up a farm kid, a boy lonely with older brothers who didn't care and a father that hated me. I saw Tyson as someone far stronger than I and my goal. I became a boxer and a wrestler to learn how to take my power, to use my size so I wouldn’t hurt anymore. I wanted other people to hurt because of how much I hated myself, how much I hated my world, how much I hated living. I fought people from my school, from nearby schools, just because the pain made me feel so good and alive. I stopped fighting because I nearly lost my arm and I felt so weak again. I was unable to be strong and I became abusive, I became more hateful and more toxic than I was. I remember seeing Tyson in The Hangover and being confused because I saw a man more broken than me, a man who I watched shatter to pieces pick himself back up. I couldn't do that because I still hated myself more than I could ever love something or someone else. Tyson brought himself up because of his love for Kiki, I fell further. It wasn’t until I heard my wife call me by the name I always wanted and see me how I begged God I would have been. I am now on my way to being the woman I need to be for myself, and I still look to Tyson for that strength because he is Strength. He is Strength to change, to be better, to grow, and to show the world that falling apart is okay. I still look at Tyson because I see parts of myself and feel like I am strong, that I can be the parent my daughter needs and the partner my wife needs.
Mike Tyson and D'amato have a warrior-monk vibe about them that I, as an aspiring LARP samurai, have always been drawn to. Combat sports are, in my opinion, the most holistic expression of mind and body working together, and I don't think it's any coincidence that the fighters and athletes who philosophize are often those who are the peak performers in the arenas in which they choose to compete. Reminds me of Musashi in a lot of ways, except he came from a lower place in society and actually achieved the fame, wealth and accolades in his youth that Musashi chased after through his whole life. The start of your video about story arcs is a perfect metaphor for Mike's story as we get to see it, that you can come from nothing and achieve excellence, and that you can fall from greatness, be humbled by your weaknesses, and be redeemed through introspection. I guess I missed this one the first time around, but I'm glad it was re-uploaded, because I doubt I'd have caught it.
I'm so glad I rewatched this video. Your storytelling interspersed with Tyson's audio recordings is haunting and captivating. I'm seriously considering watching it again.
Definitely the best video essay I've watched so far! I've been developing an interest for boxing lately (all thanks to Hajime no Ippo) and somehow hadn't looked up for anything related to Mike. I know he's been through and might have caused some shit, but we gotta respect who he's become by learning from all that. Thanks for the perfect video man!
This is one the most compassionate and compelling character studies I’ve ever come across and it’s a shame YT keeps taking it down smh
I completely agree.
Why do they keep taking it down? Do they take everything related to Mike Tyson down? Did Fiq say r@pe 4 times instead of 3 in the first 37.6 minutes of the video?
@@annward7794 On TH-cam, 99 times out of 100, it's copyright, copyright, copyright.
He doesn't deserve compassion he's a sick individual
@@chocolateprincess2656 sick people don't deserve compassion?
"Men aren't meant to be humble. Men are meant to be humbled."
That sentence hit me like a ton of bricks. I don't even know if I agree with it or not, but coming from him, after all he said, it just feels so raw and and incredibly human.
What a powerful video, friend. Truly loved every bit of it.
I feel like that a great line to put on a shirt to wear to the gym.
What that line says it says a lot, but mainly, men will naturally express a lot of pride. In doing so, men will run into opposition, wherein, they will either triumph or fall. Falling will teach a man to have a newfound respect for the world, gain perspective on the world (and that they don't loom as large as they presumed), and they come out learning something new that change how they move.
People will have a problem with the line because it singles out men instead of being generalized to anyone, but not every, message is meant for everybody. It is also the case that not every person can speak to the experience of every demographic.
Of course there is also the aspect that people will think that Tyson is saying men should not be humble, amd my retort is that his quote is literally saying that the world, life and the people in it should actively seek to humble men. So unless, your currently humbling a man you shouldn't be complaining. Also, I'd argue teststerone prevents men from being innately humble.
@@angelarballo4478This comment unravels itself at the end.
@@angelarballo4478it’s about pushing boundaries.
Men are meant to be the boundary pushers of society/culture. They can handle the consequences of their actions and we can handle punishing them for going too far.
We do not hold women and children to the same accountability as men. So to empower women to push boundaries is generally not the natural social order. Women become unsatisfied when they are punished for pushing boundaries. So they either get credit they don’t deserve, or become dissatisfied facing the consequences for their actions.
Men are more malleable and punishable. Literally, Tyson was capable of taking and dishing out punishment. He was a boundary obliterator - and it took a long time to humble such a epic heroic character. Age humbled him just as much as his losses. These are the natural cycles of the young males transition from infancy, to boyhood, to adulthood, to seniority.
Well the fact of the matter is most people get humbled at a young age but Tyson was impossible to humble at a young age because he was just Mike Tyson at a young age.
But I do think it's kind of true that if men don't experience any sort of humbling ever in their life then they grow up to be bad people, you see it over and over again.
And being humbled doesn't necessarily mean you get your ass beat in a fight or whatever like you can be humbled by a lot of different things there are a lot of humbling experiences that have nothing to do with violence or hitting rock bottom or anything like that.
The bit about Mike Tyson fighting while his brain was still developing hit hard. The price of mastery. This is a great video essay. If they keep taking it down, keep putting it back up. It's wonderfully constructed. I love the larger history as well as the personal history.
I started Boxing training at age 8 (1980). It has caused me many problems. At ages 8-12 I took countless hard headshots.
I'm always so impressed by how loving and sympathetic you can be without being overly charitable to these figures. These people aren't gods, they aren't mythological beings. They're human beings, who have done good things and bad things. And you always give me so much to think on, without just telling me what to think! Keep it up, so happy I found you!
Saying Mike Tyson has done good things and bad things is the understatement of the day.
We Are All God's
@@mistake1197 honestly truly
how@@mistake1197
I’m oop
Is it scary that Tyson is the one pushing for a healthier understanding or masculinity, or is it obvious? I mean, this video just spells out precisely how the influence of D'Amato was a forward-directing force, whereas Don King's let him indulge in the worst parts of the id. Who better to talk about these topics with any measure of authority than someone who's experienced every facet of the curve where masculinity turns toxic?
and Tyson grew up in poverty and emotional, physical, and sexual abuse
@@Potent_Techmology We also had all our memories formed of Tyson with a minimal understanding of mental health. People didn't even know what the spectrum even was...
He was never well the entirety of his career.
I feel like it's similar to what Writers have done with Kratos in God of War. Wouldn't be surprised if Kratos was inspired by Tyson.
How do you continue after falling to rock bottom after being the pinnacle of hyper masculine power fantasy, how does someone who lived that introspect
Sorry you had to completely reupload. This video is killer and got knocked out of the Algo. Will also like to try n boost this channel again.
i thought this was new and was like holy shit does this guy sleep
Happy to watch again.
Effin TH-cam.
ALGORITHM!!
Thanks for sharing this!
3rd que es 5k 4images 5k 4th si
@@dustycomputer1806 we 453
Hearing him say
"I'm the annihilator"
While sounding as though he is on the verge of tear is heart breaking
That's what makes him so relatable to casual fight fans imo, he had a regular geniuses brain, not boxing genius.
Its criminal that YT make yuh affi run this one back, big man but no problem - that just mean we get to watch a rerun that’s actually worth rewatching ✊🏿
Yo, Foreign! Would've thought I'd see big man this channel.
As a survivor myself, the other S.A. survivors in the comments have valid, interesting, and sort of conflicting views of redemption to my own. When I listen to Mike’s story, especially his youth, it feels like a fool proof way of creating a monster. To never have examples of a healthy relationship and also enact in over-indulgence to fill said void is just ugly. People who do ugly things have so much emptiness inside of them, it’s hard for me to not pity them with my sympathy. If someone took something precious from me, do they never deserve another happy moment or meaningful life? I feel it’s selfish to say they can’t. I understand how others can feel differently.
Amen. I went through my own share of abuse and turmoil as an adolescent, then teen growing up in the gang life, And all I have to say is there but for the grace of God go I. 🙏
I've suffered assault and it's really difficult for me to come to a complete conclusion about Tyson. On one hand if my assaulter had an arc like Tyson, wouldn't I want change most of all? Like that's my issue with the prison system- the way we run it doesn't encourage growth and self-reflection, it only punishes for the sake of punishing at best and more often systemically harms those who can't afford to avoid it. So the fact that Tyson managed to pull out of what effectively is a death spiral is amazing. On the other hand... Yeah you're allowed to still feel conflicting feelings, and the fact that he's won't fess up to the assault is still a problem. In the end I have a lot of sympathy towards him because. yeah that's a whole lot of garbage in his life, but I also hope he keeps doing the hard work of chipping away at one's deep problems and eventually faces those aspects of his life as well.
@gibbdude your insight is deep and meaningful. I'm so glad you took the time to comment such a lengthy response. thank you for your brave words, they will be remembered by scholars and poets for ages to come.
i 100000% agree! this is what i think is most indicative of his character. i’ll forever be traumatised from my assault and him doing 3 years and following it up by not confessing or taking public accountability is extremely frustrating because the public views him in a very positive light overall. rich powerful men can do the absolute bare minimum and get away with it and it’s so scary. he’s most likely changed a lot, but nowhere near enough to be admired or widely praised. as a woman the aspect of this video i really struggled with was the creator discussing the gold digger accusations his first wife was accused of, and following it up with her claims he abused her- as if those two things are comparable and not just purely indicative of the widespread culture of misogyny.
Part of the problem with the criminal justice system that you describe is that there's no incentive to admit to a crime. Like if people who committed crimes knew that there was a path that ended with redemption and them being welcome back into society after they do their penance, I think more people would be willing to be honest about crimes . But in our system right now, the minute you're caught you have to plead not guilty if you want a fair trial.
As someone who has been the abusive person in the past, I think this conversation is important. To me it is valuable that the victim has sympathy for their abuser, because no one in this world ever does. I have been the abuser because of my own circumstances growing up, it is what I learned about how to navigate in conflict, and what worked for me for years. I don't know if your abuser ever apologised to you, but I from the bottom of my heart hope he told you this:
You never deserved the abuse I put you through. I myself have experienced it snd it hurts me to realise that I have caused another person this pain. The reason why I did it is, because I felt how I used to feel when I was confronted with abuse, and in my mind I was the victom that had to stand up for themselves, but I was wrong and I should have never even attempted to make you feel how I have felt. I should have apologised sooner, but I never could because I was a fool that denied the idea that maybe I have become the abuser.
I know the world doesn't rewaed abusers for apologising, but I still think it's important that we do and let the people we have hurt, that they never deserved this pain, to end these cycles of abuse. I personally had to sit together with a therapist and learn how to apologise and navogate myself in triggering situations.
About Tyson, I think the person he needs to apologise to and be held accountable for is his victims. He is still just a person in the public eye, and while he should be held accountable, I think we should not be misled to try making him the scapegoat for the abusers we have had in our lives, to project our feelings onto. This type of thinking is what has led me down the path of abusive behaviour in the first place. I truly just hope he has gotten bettet around the coversation about masculinity and how he represents that image for some, and he could take the opportunity to show how someone with the past of an abuser should move on and away from that life, for the abusers in the world that remain in denial of their actions.
" it only punishes for the sake of punishing at best and more often systemically harms those who can't afford to avoid it. "
the problem is not the lack of rehabilitation (although it doesn't help) but mostly the lack of balance in society before the infraction/crime. in that way it reflects the way pro-life is not balanced out with financial support systems for having children.
if you want to (and that is the million dollar question) keep people from going to prison, maybe a society should invest in decent housing and education?
the exceptions - "i was poor and never became a criminal" - only prove the rule.
I have to admit, I relate to another comment on here about feeling challenged by sympathizing w ppl who have been sexually violent, personally as a survivor. I challenged myself to watch anyways cuz I love all your content. I really appreciate the effort you put into opening up vulnerable masculinity for other men to connect w and be inspired by.
The part that you mentioned at the end though, could not help but have it overshadow the vid for me though: how do the women whom he hurt feel about his "redemption arc" and furthermore him profiting off books plays and podcasts about that arc? I know a lot of times for me its painful even just knowing the man who abused me is still alive.
Resources for ppl who have abused other ppl is important, but just a reminder to anyone who happens to be reading this that survivors are constantly asked to empathize w their abusers.
Resources for ppl who have harmed others are important, but a reminder to anyone who might happen to read this that some ppl are not gonna have space for it and when someone expresses they dont please believe them.
Or maybe he didn’t do it. I know it’s hard for you victims to see but some women actually lie about this topic
@@BurnerBoy-mw7txA forensic expert testified that the physical evidence showed she was raped, Tyson has been accused of rape/sexual assault by numerous other women (including Bill Cosby’s daughter), he tried to flee the state after she left his room despite it being like 3am, multiple witnesses testified she was traumatised afterwards. If that’s not enough evidence for him being guilty what would be?
@@BurnerBoy-mw7tx Mike himself has admitted to some of his abuse accusations. It's been proven in court as well. Obviously sure some people lie, but if you look into it most times even real victims aren't able to prove anything in court and it goes no where. There is not an epidemic of SA victims who are liars, it's an exception to the rule throughout 1000s of years.
I agree but also it's complicated, emotions are messy things and we can only do what's best for our own sanity. If a former abuser genuinely wants to change, that's great (and I always believe we have to look at the root cause of what makes abusers in the first place, not every abuser is born that way) but I'd never in a million years ask a victim to be part of that nor would I expect them to be okay with it.
@@BurnerBoy-mw7tx It's actually not hard for victims to see that, in fact no one hates the people who lie about abuse more than actual abuse victims. Sure some of them might be blinded by their own experiences, but in my experience a lot of victims are actually very sensitive and good at picking out when someone is being dishonest about these things.
In the case of Tyson he definitely did bad things, he admitted to that himself though he never said exactly what. I personally don't think he did what he was jailed for, but he definitely had some flaws that extended to the way he treated/viewed women.
The part of his redemption that bothers me is that it is only even allowed because of his past in the hyper-masculine role he played.
I call it the “war hero effect.” A war hero, a decorated veteran of a major war, is allowed to cry or sob or wail during an interview, and no one would dare question such behavior, ONLY because they have “proven themselves” in a theatre of peak masculinity. Only because a man has seen the hell of war can we accept him crying. Only because Tyson was an undeniable athlete can we accept his vulnerabilities. It’s a step in the right direction that still reveals the root problem with our view of all things “masculine.”
I've seen this in real life with many of my friends. They will dog on each other for doing stuff like saying I love you to their kids. Along with enjoying "girly' movies like Annie with their daughters. Yet they accept this same behavior from me and have never dared to question my masculinity. Because I'm 6'3" and 245lbs and they have all seen me systematically destroy men physically in our youth. It's both perplexing and infuriating in equal measures. Loving your children doesn't make you less of a man in fact it's a necessary part of being a good father.
Amazing video as always. There is just one point I want to call you on. At 36:01 you say: "Tyson says he was just as bad in jail as he was out of it having even gotten a female prison guard pregnant while he was inside." I'm not sure if you're referring to Tysons interactions with a prison counselor that he discusses here th-cam.com/video/Kug_8oCm81Y/w-d-xo.html. He says:
"So by passing the GED they would've took that year away. So I flunked the f***ing GED and got mad, and so I had to start dating this counselor and stuff, giving her money and doing really some nasty stuff to her, and she let me pass this test."
Here a member of prison staff offers to take a year from a prisoners sentence in return for sexual favours. That sounds like Tyson was raped to me. Particularly with how under-addressed prison rape is (and rape of men in general). I think this part could have been addressed differently. Anyway this just one issue I had with an otherwise outstanding video. I hope you keep up the amazing work!
As I think k about it. Any form of sexual interaction between a prisoner and a prison gaurd is coerced and thus an assault. I didn't even know this much. Damn shame
I'm going to be honest, he gets no sympathy from me on this considering the violence women in his life faced, including bill cosby's daughter. And his assault isn't on the level he subjected other women to.
@@akumamakima2280eye for an eye makes everyone blind
I still find it very disturbing. For one as far as I can tell that rapist prison guard was never removed or even punished. Just left in a position with complete control over numerous men's lives for who knows how long. How many victims might she have had? It's honestly disgraceful.
Also Tyson's punishment for what he did was prison. No law or court would sentence someone to be raped. But far too many see prisoners being raped as 'getting what they deserve'. No decent society should use rape as punishment.
@@FGrimmes very good point
I know we should be forgiving and offer people a chance at redemption, but I'm a woman that's been sexually assaulted violently twice I just can't find a way to feel for anyone who rapes another person. It's one of the most monstrous things you can do to another person and the victim will never be the same. The fact he in my view never served a serious enough sentence doesn't help either. I have been told over and over by people in left spaces (and to make it clear I'm on the left as well) that we need to allow a path to redemption and the goal is rehabilitation not punishment but I just can't really get myself to believe that. Rarely do men ever spend the rest of their lives in prison for just sexual crimes, so even with all the stigma and shit they go through they usually get another chance. Yet the pain they caused to victims lasts forever. So part of me feels like, yeah do they deserve a life of pain. I understand people like me are emotionally unable to form unbiased views in this area, but I'm just so tired of people asking for empathy for people that violated another person in the worst of ways. Like Jesus Christ we don't even provide proper care and support to victims yet so maybe we should be focusing on that before asking for empathy for abusers and predators.
I don't necessarily think you're insights in this video are wrong, but I just can't get myself to feel like we should be worried about trying to empathize and rehabilitate sexual abuser's in the public eye. Once women are not shamed and judged for coming forward and doubted every time we speak out then maybe I'd be more inclined to care.
I love your videos, just don't feel like abusers deserve our time or empathy.
There are too many men who get away with sex crimes and remain in powerful positions. Joe Biden, for example, is a rapist but people still make excusea for him. Rape culture is so ubiquitous
Cry more. Mike Tyson’s legend will live forever
@@Chiefteeth1 found the pro-rape guy
I think the "trying to empathize and rehabilitate...in the public eye" is a huge thing. Like, of the very, very, VERY small percentage of abusers who incur jail time (or any punishment at all), people want to say "well, they did their time, they deserve a second chance!" Which...okay, but does a second chance mean "gets to keep being famous"? "Gets to do endorsements"? Wouldn't the second chance be "is no longer in jail for r*pe"?
I find Mike Tyson's case to be very much like R. Kelly's case from the opposite perspective.
People for years defended Kelly despite it being clear what he had done and was still doing. I'm not sure why they did but they did.
On the other hand people will willingly ignore all of the nuance, acknowledged societal predjudices, and the man's own actions and statements pertaining to the case long after any public persuasion would be possible and still just go with what the racist institution decided.
In a society where to this day Brock Turner's and Bill Cosby's and other rapist who don't get away unscathed get slaps on the wrist, no one finds it suspect at all that the richest and most famous American Black man in the world in his prime was jailed for 5 years to set an example?
It obviously wasn't a sentence declaring that rape would no longer be overlooked or tolerated. Definitely wasn't the state showing they now cared about or were wanting to protect black women. It was White supremacists as always showing the black community no matter where we think we can ascend to they can strip it away at any moment.
As a Māori wāhine (woman) thank you for using our haka as an example. For future pronunciation, Māori is two syllables, and pronounounced like the word "mouldy" but the "ld" is a rolled "r". Love your videos and tautoko (support) your inclusion!
Kind of like More-ee?
@@FDSignifire kind of, and we roll our Rs, which can be hard if you're not used to so not that big a deal. Think of Maui from Moana and add an R "Mau-ree". Thank you for taking the time to clarify!
@@reb3578 thanks for helping me
Thank you for teaching us how to say it properly :)
Mao- ree
Kia ora F.D.
Women and men have always performed in Kapahaka and the over emphasising of the warrior culture, violence of Māori cultural expression is a product of colonialism dismissing native art and culture as barbaric and about war. Pre colonial Māori culture didn't have gender role divisions that support readings that conflate them with gladiators or this violent masculine social roles, That is the perspective the British forced on Māori culture. Poi is closer to Māori martial arts. Kapahaka is a form of story telling, oral history and ritual chant, not violence, the british just wanted to see Māori as a warrior race to justify colonialisation and assimilation policies.
Moana Jackson has spoken about this, including in his 'Once Were Gardeners'.
Thank you.
Fellow NZer so thank you so much for the rec of Moana Jackson. I grew up (and was educated) overseas so I am trying to develop a more informed and nuanced understanding of our history.
Great comment, I love that F.D. saw it too. The pigeonholing of haka as violence was a weird moment in an otherwise great video
To me, as someone who was watching him ascend towards the end of my adolescence, the saddest thing about Mike Tyson is that he was an obviously natively intelligent person who was instead reduced to a vital body and primal senses. How different his life may have been if intervention had come in a different form. I have wondered about this at every turn of this man's life. ThanksForPosting!
I feel this way with a lot of marginalized people groups. It’s frustrating to think about the thousands even millions of minds lost because they were forced to serve in a role that better suited a dominant society’s needs and never able to truly maximize their potential.
@@professorx4966 I think Stephen Jay Gould put it pretty well: "I am, somehow, less interested in the weight and convolutions of Einstein’s brain than in the near certainty that people of equal talent have lived and died in cotton fields and sweatshops."
He was a very quick witted and intelligent guy undoubtedly, but he doesn't get the platform he did to share that with the world without his once in a century physical gifts.
Mike is very very intelligent. Just search on youtube what werner herzog says about mike's intelligence. They didn't discuss boxing or life, they discussed roman republic, pippen the short, machiavelli among other things. Werner said that mike is one of the most knowledgeable person about frankish kings he has ever met.
You kinda hit it on the head, condensed most of this video into a sentence. Also, I mean yeah lots of stuff about men, black men, but not every man and black man is that ridiculously talented at fighting
Didn't realize this was a re-upload and thought we got ANOTHER deep-dive into Tyson and was so hyped. This is my favorite video of yours to date. Shame it had to be completely reuploaded.
My sentiments exactly. Imma rewatch tho 👀🤣
I didn't realize it until the "Baby Boy" future video reference. I was like "Someday? I just watched that video!"
lmao me too. i was like "wait there's even more?!"
dude me too
Same same same when I saw it I was so excited… all the love and effort that went into this makes it worth keeping it on the channel. Thank you for uploading it again, I’ve probably seen it like 5 times 🧡🧡🧡🪶
Tyson’s statement on having to deal with yourself after losing is so relatable. People are often so much more cruel to themselves than anybody else is. Also, the editing and flow of this videos is chefs kiss 👌🏻💋 flawless
I Yay Yay you have
I really like your face to camera videos, because empathy being a large part of your video essay style, it's always interesting to see your emotions travel across your face as you speak and comment. That being said, the editing on this one is truly excellent. Great work
Interesting to see this for the first time today after Mike fought Jake Paul last night.
No other sport demonstrates a relationship as close as a boxer and their coach. It's truly touching.
First video of yours I saw. I'm not just watching this again to support you, I'm watching it because it's just THAT good.
Its back!!!! I honestly love this character study of Mike Tyson. Its so profound and well done.
Listening to Mike Tyson talk about how he’d spent his entire life being trained to fight, to be a warrior, and the sense of dreadful emptiness that comes from when those days are gone reminds me of a soldier who’s been through war. We train men to be warriors; to fight, to kill, to suffer, and to die. We’ve turned the art of making warriors into not only a science, but a perfectly oiled machine. But going the other way is difficult, confusing, and sadly, sometimes impossible.
When I look at Mike Tyson, I see Audie Murphy. Audie was a boy from Texas who was shipped off to the Second World War and came home the most decorated soldier in American history. At that time, he was the ideal warrior, the ideal man. But the war doesn’t end just because the fighting stopped. In his autobiography, he wrote of sleeping with a gun under his pillow and of nearly killing his wife with it when, in a nightmare flashback, he mistook her for the enemy.
Mike Tyson is not a good person. His past is proof of that. But if there’s one silver lining to all that, it’s that even if he couldn’t become a good man, he could at least become a better man than he was.
i actually showed this to my mom months back and she got super into your channel! really enjoy your work especially your takes on being a black man in america, very enlightening to a young black woman like myself! i hope the big bad algorith1m boosts you like crazy! i def share your channel with all my friends and will be commenting more!
Fiq’s pen game is just so on point here. The writing is always so good, so precise but artful. Learning a lot from this man.
Also loved rewatching and catching the “heel turn” reference to Kanye. More wrestling metaphors please lol
"I don't know how this story ends, whether he'll be able to maintain this space of health and humility. But I hope it ends well and that hte character arc of Mike Tyson completes with satisfaction." Mike Tyson's past is such a delicate subject. I really appreciated what you had to say, and how it doesn't downplay the harm he does, while also hoping that he continues to get better.
I'm glad I had the opportunity to watch this. You made me ask myself some really important questions. As an SA survivor myself I do a lot of advocating for victims, but I never really considered the future of the perpetrators. Regardless of my opinion on the matter, rapists will not always suffer public scrutiny throughout every aspect of their lives. They will move on and continue living. At that point we have to ask ourselves, what is best for society. What helps us stop SA from being so commonplace. Would it make things better for victims, or for the world if abusers continued to suffer every day for the rest of their lives? Is SA, DV or abuse worth a life sentence of misery? How do we rehabilitate abusers, and how do we feel okay with them rehabilitating themselves? My abuser never faced legal or social justice. To be honest, personally, if my abuser rehabilitated himself and is happy in his life, I don't care. I don't care if he's still miserable. What he did won't ever go away, but if he's at a place where he is choosing to never do it again, and to teach other men that they can make different decisions, good. I don't care what he does with his life as long as he doesn't hurt anyone else ever again.
I think your last line hits the nail, at least from a victim POV, one should be safe knowing that the perpetrator can't hurt anyone like that ever again, the how to is a detail that as a society we can't expect victims to chose in an unbiased way because it's just really a tall order, I believe in rehabilitation (to a point) and if not, a life sentence, you just can't have people like that runing around without at least a path for them to change.
This shit was easier when we were just animals that could kick someone out of the pack if they did something this shitty, closest thing we have nowdays is jail for life, but it ain't the same.
You are not defined by one action. As humans we are capable of doing incredibly good things and evil things. Not saying you have to forgive him. I think forgiveness is optional. Still he is not defined solely by his failures.
@@rances4418 my opinion has changed slightly since I wrote that post but my realistic attitude is still there. If consequences eventually abate, it works to normalize SA and DV. It makes it more likely and more acceptable that it not only will occur more frequently but also that perpetrators will face no consequences. There’s already very few consequences for perpetrators currently. Reducing the amount of public backlash they face will not contribute to rehabilitating them. But it also might contribute to making them more bitter, angry and their feeling of justification or entitlement might increase. I’ve witnessed many abusers develop martyr syndrome. There’s no real good option in these circumstances. The best option starts with education and upbringing. So that acts like these happen with less frequency.
Come on, his conviction was a gold diggers scam, most folks saw that
@@tesmith47 a CONVICTION is decided by a judge and jury based on sufficient evidence that the convicted person committed a crime.
As someone who also made a career of violence (twenty years in the Army in my case, as well as boxing... though I was REALLY bad at the boxing part), I can identify with him and his journey. Many of us have gone through our own journey of finding out we are very good at violence, and thus, make a living at it. And then being appalled by who we were, at that time. And through self awareness, reflection (and psychedelics), only THEN coming to terms with it... Thus, many of us broken fools love him deeply because of it. Great video, man. As usual!
Your channel is teaching me so fuckin' much about blackness, it's truly changing the way I'm connecting with pop culture, as a Brazilian Proud Black Man, I thank you so much. Keep teaching.
There's a conversation somewhere in here about how men are socialized to be great rather than be whole.
reliking and appreciate your work as someone who is coming of age and finding their place in the world as a black man. thank you so much.
Great timing! I’m cleaning houses rn and binging you. I just finished the Kanye episode then BAM! This is out. Whoop whoop!
seeing his blank stare at 27:40 made me want to cry, he was so clearly trying to understand his wife’s emotions, looking to her and trying to read her face. he knew what he did but it’s clear he didn’t understand why :(
he said in an interview he was stunned to silence bc she was lying about it lol he wasn't trying to read her, I guess he was just like "oh shit, is she going to ruin my career?"
I think the good woman will heal you trope comes from the fact that a lot of times people in these situations lack any sort of health or positive safety net that can otherwise help them, and the partner is a chance at bringing in a new unit of aid that they trust and might be different from the current system. Now, that is not healthy for all the reasons we can think of (Don King in this very vid pulls this as a new surrogate father that then drains him dry), but I think it speaks to a lot of the systemic problems here in the states & the west with finding & maintaining beneficial support and how our cultural system reinforces the toxic parts through shit like this.
One of my favorite youtube videos I've seen this year. It's thoughtful, and it feels like every minute of screentime is EARNED (which I don't necessarily feel about all of the hour long video essays we seen on this website). I hope it ends up in everyone's recommended tab, and I hope it gets a million views.
Love your work, keep doin what your doin. I am hung up on the rape trial - with not too much prior knowledge about Tyson it was sad to hear the pain that he ended up inflicting on others (especially women) in his destructive years. you’ve provided a nuanced discussion on the accusations and tried to shed light on both sides of the issue for sure. Although this is literally a video about his life and what to make of his story, I can’t help that so many celebrities end up getting their mistakes explained away so that they make sense. powerful men end up causing suffering to the women, children, and people in their lives (from trauma etc etc etc) and end up retaining a narrative where they are the good guy in the end. As long as they repent, the hidden trauma handed down from his actions can be explained. I’m Just left thinking of the people who suffered from his actions, and watch him still have the ability to captivate the world with legendary status that in some ways as a result of his violence and mistreatment of others. Sexual assault is no joke, and it’s crazy that that part of the story got forgotten about by so many.
Your mistakes don’t define you unless they are repeated. Continuous offenses without remorse or self reflection is what displays our true character.
@@ChiefChokeAHoe that may be true (I think it is), but it's really important to remember that people still have to live with the consequences of his actions. There's a balance between understanding the pain and trauma that caused somebody like Mike to hurt others, and understanding the pain inflicted.
@@ChiefChokeAHoethis is quite frankly so easy to say this when you are not the victim who is forever armed
“It’s just one action it doesn’t define you” is one of the biggest cope an abuser will ever have. He just did it “only one time and didn’t do it again”
Rubbish
This was a very thorough and compassionate analysis of Mike Tyson’s life and “redemption arc”. Thank you.
Kindness and knowledge are one in the same and I feel like you extended kindness but sharing knowledge and giving in depth analysis of an often parodied figure.
I learned a lot about masculinity from this video, and I’m grateful for the self reflection it encouraged me to do
i watched this video when it wasn't deleted and im again watching to support the channel because you deserve it brother! get them and preach
I remember in an interview he said after he was taught to be mean in the ring and no one ever taught him how to turn that off when he got out of ring, he had to learn that years later on his own.
In most video games, the last boss is always this crazy imagined monster or being of such vast imaginable strength that it makes you feel as if it's insurmountable.
In Punch-out they literally took a real life person and made them the last boss. His power was awe-inspiring that he was a literal final boss. Not to mention his influence in games like Street Fighter where his inspiration continued. He's named Barlog here in the US but it's well known in Japan he was known as M.Bison for his resemblance to Tyson and the character reflects that. Powerful, rush down in your face character with even his bob in weave in Street Fighter V.
The only other fighter that has had this kind of legend, at least that I can immediately think of, is Bruce Lee.
George Foreman and Sonny Liston
Bullied insecure kid in his teens. Heavyweight boxing champion by his twenties.
Deranged monster by his thirties.
Philosopher by his fifty.
His introspection is almost at Nietzche's level.
There is really something special in him. I hope he managed to bring it out even more.
You forgot sexually abused as a child.
Wouldn't compare him to Nietzsche but you're right.
nah he was monstrous as a teen. particularly a late teen. he almost got shot by Atlas as a new teen for some sexual shit as well. by the time a man gets to his adult phase, if he has enough entitlement... he is already controlling and manipulating people around him at that point.
It really sucks when great informative videos get taken down. Great research in this one, gladly watching it again
4:56 - Conversely, here's Tyson getting into street brawls....
Is that Tyson wrestling an actual tiger? That's what you call a street brawl? What kind of streets did you grow up in????
Like damn, your streets had to be the roughest neighborhood in the entire planet if you write off a grown man wrestling an apex predator as a street brawl
Not only is he wrestling a tiger, but he is also the tiger’s closest companion. As in, he had a TIGER AS A PET
I knew almost nothing about Mike Tyson. This was an impressively nuanced overview of his life!
I knew almost nothing about Mike Tyson before this and just wow, what a story. The depth and feeling you put into telling it really hits me.
I hope this gets to stay up this time, it's a story worth telling and that there's a lot of benefit to be had from exploring it. And it's important that people who seem to both understand and care about those discussions, like you, are the ones to lead them.
This is a beautiful video. I hope TH-cam does it's thing with the algorithm after this fight tonight
Sending gratitude from a Daoist monastery near Seattle! We appreciate your perspective of compassion and clarity. 💙☯️👍🏻
im sorry that youtube keeps taking this down! i'm gonna let this play in the background for a while because honestly you deserve all of the views! nothing but love
It is such a bummer that you have to re-upload this but I'll watch it again because you absolutely deserve the view this breakdown was amazing
same
You know it's a good video when you finish it and immediately begin reading through all the comments just to get more insight. As for me, I see within Tyson almost an archetype of patriarchal brainwashing: fear cultivated into domination, the victim made into a victimizer. After all is said and done, the wounds that have been inflicted may never properly heal, a series of damaged humans all seeking to limp by in the ruins.
Thank you for your work. You strike a crucial balance between empathy and accountability that is very difficult to find.
Watched on Nebula. Tyson's life story is a Greek tragedy. Your examples at the start of character arks was very on point. He may as well be Kratos.
This was such a raw, beautiful, hard to watch video. I usually like to analyze my thoughts when I’m done with a piece but this time I found that profoundly difficult. It made me feel a lot of deep emotions that I don’t even know if I can fully categorize, and at the end of the day I don’t know how I feel about Tyson. Sadness, pity, respect, revulsion, and more. This is one of the best video essays I’ve ever seen, if not the best. Great job and keep up the good work!
I'd like to think that I'm always trying to move forward and make myself better. Seeing someone like Tyson seemingly come out the other side a better man and force for positivity is pretty inspiring. Awesome video. Thanks for making it. 🤘
I love to hear him talk about himself & his life. It's so inspiring.
This video is criminally underrated. You really knocked it put of the park with this one man!
This seriously needs more views, what an amazing job, like really high standard, presentation, script, tone, loved every minute!
This is one of the best video essays I've ever seen. Happily rewatching
This is such a good examination of a really complex topic. I'm happy to watch it again.
Watched on a previous upload. Thought there was more! Honestly one of the most impactful documentaries I’ve seen. Took me from zero investment and minimal knowledge, to a really informed position of increased empathy and understanding for a lot of things. Thank you.
Wow, what a video dude. An unbiased look at a truly fascinating person who at the very least seems to be trying to be better than he was, and I don't think there's anything more relatable than that.
I wasn't a subscriber when this first went up and I don't know how long it was down, but thanks for putting it back up. Knowing this I'll be going back through all the old stuff. I appreciate you.
Interesting timing on this recommendation 🤔
“men are not meant to be humble, men are meant to be humbled” OOOF. this video is so emotionally visceral on sm levels, holy fuuuck
here from your convo with @Olurinatti ! i loved how you maintained a balanced and nuanced view on tyson's life, he definitely deserves it.
You’re a gifted and empathetic storyteller. I don’t know much about Tyson at all and this was a really compelling portrait. Thank you for your work ✌️
Bro you have to be the best video essay producer I’ve seen on this website
Im glad i found this video after that tyson vs paul fight.
Man, some of those Mike Tyson Podcast clips left me breathless. Amazing essay.
Why does yt say they take this down? It just reminded me to watch it, so thank you.
I wish my dad was still around to show him this. He’d be 71, I’m 43, he passed in 2012, but he loved the psychology of boxing and he was _mesmerized_ by The Boxer. I think he would have said, “Wow” and shook his head a little after he saw it, which always meant his mind had just been shown something he didn’t think was possible. Previously unbelievable. My dad was a professor for the last third of his life, but he couldn’t stand elitism. 😂 I mean he liked to talk and create dialog but he hated staying in the house w it. He would’ve appreciated this. Being fully genuine, in one video essay, you’ve rehumanized this man. I’ll be honest, I never realized I had dehumanized him, or he had become dehumanized in my eyes. I figure I dehumanize all ppl I believe are rapists, or used to anyway. Was I introduced to Mike as an already dehumanized persona? Plus I was only a young teen girl, a white girl- I wasn’t racist, but I was not yet an anti racist. I didn’t even kno I had a backpack to unpack yet-sooo I was that amount of racist. But besides that I couldn’t even recognize the SA’s that were happening to ME as SA’s. But stories like Mike Tysons? That was rape.
I didn’t say that tho, like I said WE were a pro-boxing household and Poor Iron Mike was gettin a raw deal.
It’s abuse that Mike’s trainer only fed one side of him, exploiting him for his physical power and focus and didn’t nurture any other part of his being or mental health. Actively suppressed it. That’s no mentor, That’s no friend. That’s a fxkcing predator.
I remember when Mikes one man show came out, I wanted to see it, still do. I noticed the way you speak, as if you haven’t watched his material…I’m going to make a huge presumption ~ Is this because you don’t want to support a convicted rapist? Or am I way off 😆
Thank you so much for putting this out. I’m very happy to have this viewpoint to be able to look thru
Daaaammmn! Heading MT talk about missing his fiercest self but afraid of what he becomes in that mode.... that hits like his punches!
Respect!
I love this one, FD. I watched it recently when I was reading a book called Circe which is about the Greek gods and characters such as Achilles during the Trojan war. I see so many parallels here….a hero’s journey indeed.
This was incredible. Im on a FDS binge and I admire how much care and detail you put into your craft! so inspirational, humane, and refreshing. Thanks Fiq!!
I think this is my favorite video you've ever done. Wish more videos on here were this thoughtful.
Team member out here commenting for the algo. Didn’t know that helped, but can’t let YT kill this channel…shit is TOO good. Cant stop the truth
Just a quick comment, i want to congratulate you on how good your thumbnails have been on your recent videos, they definitely improved from the older ones, which weren't bad per say but didn't look that much appealing, and if i'm being honest i watched the videos bc i already knew that you were the one doing, so back to the compliments, they are looking really good, appealing and interesting!
I am a 40 ys old South African woman with zero interest in boxing and even less in Mike Tyson but you have kept me glued the whole 53 mins. You are an extremely talented and engaging video essayist FD👏👏👏
Your videos keep getting better and better, I'm gonna recommend them in the future to others
Who here after the fight?
FD needs to make an update
You were right, this _was_ a good one. Thanks for the rec.
I started watching this dudes channel at like 8 it's 3am now and I'm still going.
The same people who say "Men should talk about their feelings, show vulnerability and seek help" are the the ones who will say that men who do or say the evil things need to be shut up, denied help and punished. The same people who will tell others to "seek help" and "do better" will then opine about how easily society forgives wrongdoers who do just those things.
Just as when women speak their truth, talk about their emotions and air their grievances it can feel repellent, ignorant and cruel to men, when men talk about their emotions there's going to be cruelty, ignorance and ugliness. To think that someone who was raised in a brothel, bullied and abused for his superficial femininities, adored and desired by both men and women for being a hulking brute, then punished and ridiculed for his brutishness can ever have a truly "healthy" attitude towards women (whatever that means) is very naive...
Anyway, great video!
Exactly!
People create monsters and then get mad when they do monstrous shit...
HOW SWAY???!!
This comment is 2 years old, but I'm responding anyway. I get what you're saying, but I don't think it's a stretch to define "healthy feelings towards women" as "not assaulting them." That's a good basline definition. Like, yeah that's what he grew up seeing and his childhood was awful. I wish he had learned better waaaaay sooner to prevent more pain... but better late than never I guess.
Here from the Olay interview. Just finished the vid honestly, FD you really did that with this video. It's overlooked for sure.
I don’t ever comment on videos but wanted to be sure I supported here! Your channel has been wildly important to me this year and I hope this is the last time you have to re-upload. Good luck!!
I've watched this one a few times, thinking I'll walk away with some sorta parasocial closure, but I only manage to end it with more complex feelings about someone I don't even know. I can say that I genuinely appreciate all the grace and honesty while telling Mike's story, without swaying the verdict either way. This particular video is one of your All Times.
This re-upload just gave me an excuse to watch it again. Love it.
The insight Mike Tyson has into himself is truly wonderful
These videos are so moving and humanizing. I loved hearing the stories that surrounded his biggest matches, as I usually think of sports and storytelling as different things (where we think about the numerical results of sporting events and not about the lives of the humans competing).
It really is hard to hold complex opinions about people like Tyson, where there is no one simple way to feel - when one person's story can make us feel so much inspiration (on both ends of his career) and disgust at the same time. Regardless, I find value in the telling of these nuanced stories, and maybe making a final judgment on Tyson's character isn't what I have to gain here.
This made me cry.. I genuine felt Mike when he talked about being an student and the embodiment of war and not being that anymore. I felt Tyson's sadness at that moment and couldn't stop the tears because I think as men, and especially men who come from trauma and lived the consequences of that trauma, it resonated with me.
Thank you for this video, the quality of this video along with your psychological analysis of a gladiator and later a very broken man was absolutely beautiful.
I was born in 1999 so I’ve known pretty much nothing of his life, aside from the ear thing. So this video was really cool to see and learn a lot about an unique person.
I was born in dec 2001 and I've heard a lot more, just from older people tho
Tyson is legitimately a fascinating person.
Since I was young, I followed Tyson and learned what i could from him. I saw parts of myself in him, I grew up a farm kid, a boy lonely with older brothers who didn't care and a father that hated me. I saw Tyson as someone far stronger than I and my goal. I became a boxer and a wrestler to learn how to take my power, to use my size so I wouldn’t hurt anymore. I wanted other people to hurt because of how much I hated myself, how much I hated my world, how much I hated living. I fought people from my school, from nearby schools, just because the pain made me feel so good and alive. I stopped fighting because I nearly lost my arm and I felt so weak again. I was unable to be strong and I became abusive, I became more hateful and more toxic than I was. I remember seeing Tyson in The Hangover and being confused because I saw a man more broken than me, a man who I watched shatter to pieces pick himself back up. I couldn't do that because I still hated myself more than I could ever love something or someone else. Tyson brought himself up because of his love for Kiki, I fell further. It wasn’t until I heard my wife call me by the name I always wanted and see me how I begged God I would have been. I am now on my way to being the woman I need to be for myself, and I still look to Tyson for that strength because he is Strength. He is Strength to change, to be better, to grow, and to show the world that falling apart is okay. I still look at Tyson because I see parts of myself and feel like I am strong, that I can be the parent my daughter needs and the partner my wife needs.
I cried. This composition is a work of Art, you should be extremely proud of yourself 👑
Mike Tyson and D'amato have a warrior-monk vibe about them that I, as an aspiring LARP samurai, have always been drawn to. Combat sports are, in my opinion, the most holistic expression of mind and body working together, and I don't think it's any coincidence that the fighters and athletes who philosophize are often those who are the peak performers in the arenas in which they choose to compete. Reminds me of Musashi in a lot of ways, except he came from a lower place in society and actually achieved the fame, wealth and accolades in his youth that Musashi chased after through his whole life. The start of your video about story arcs is a perfect metaphor for Mike's story as we get to see it, that you can come from nothing and achieve excellence, and that you can fall from greatness, be humbled by your weaknesses, and be redeemed through introspection.
I guess I missed this one the first time around, but I'm glad it was re-uploaded, because I doubt I'd have caught it.
As someone who boxes this hit the nail on the head of why people fight over and over. Thank you so much for this compelling study.
I'm so glad I rewatched this video. Your storytelling interspersed with Tyson's audio recordings is haunting and captivating. I'm seriously considering watching it again.
Third watch!
What the heck YT?! Well, this is an excuse to re-watch this amazing analysis of Tyson and culture. Thanks for all the work you do!
Definitely the best video essay I've watched so far! I've been developing an interest for boxing lately (all thanks to Hajime no Ippo) and somehow hadn't looked up for anything related to Mike. I know he's been through and might have caused some shit, but we gotta respect who he's become by learning from all that. Thanks for the perfect video man!