Bull fighting is long sustained cruelty and tormenting the beast until death, then they give the ears to the hero and parade him through the streets.
It is an insight into Mexico culture that showed a huge gulf between them and the WASPs of America.
Before the feminist movement, Americans used the word masculine to describe male behavior it was positive, quiet strength, protective of the weak, respectful of women (like Jimmy Stewart, John Wayne), machismo described what was seen as the unmanly, over compensating, overtly masculine behavior of Latin and non-Latin males from cultures where the men seemed to try too hard and always had to be cruel and dominate, especially to females, for more than 40 years though, “macho” has been used against American males, “masculine” has almost disappeared from use.
Bull fighting is the kind of thing that a cowboy who has been branding and butchering cows all day would ask, “why don’t you just kill the thing or leave him alone, why torture the darn thing in a sporting arena and sell tickets”?
Eloquently put which is why I have never seen a bullfight. I went to a cockfight but there was this señorita that caught my eye and while everyone else went in she and I sat outside and talked the whole time. I never made it inside and I never regretted it.