Axel Honneth on the Boxing Ring: The Struggle for Social Recognition in the Rocky Movies

This paper discusses the insides of Axel Honneth’s theory “The Struggle for Recognition” on the basis of Silvester Stallone’s Rocky movies, whereby Rocky Balboa holds himself out against the 1970s American Society throughout his fight with the then world champion Apollo Creed. The present paper especially questions the sudden escalation of violence during the fight between Apollo and Rocky in order to illuminate the social meaning of the Rocky history. The main argument the present paper puts forth is that the ongoing and escalating violence throughout the Rocky movies can be interpreted as the struggle for social recognition. Rocky, as protagonist, is the symbol of this struggle of recognition.