I’ve been fortunate to have done a lot of things over the years. Years ago, I attended a bullfight in Spain. It was quite a spectacle with lots and lots of enthusiastic fans. The matador was dressed in mighty fancy duds and, of course, was equipped with a big red cape.
I don’t think that I’ve ever seen a movie, or even a picture in a book that the bullfighter hasn’t been swinging a bright red cap to incite the bull into a spectacular rage. I’ve heard that the phrase “seeing red” is thought to have originated from the fury that the color red seems to provide to the bull. So why does the color red tick the bull off so much?
Actually — bulls are at least partially color blind and from what I’ve read, don’t respond to the color red at all. Apparently using a red cape is just for the spectators — just like the bullfighters fancy suit.
I’ve heard that the color of the cape doesn’t matter — it’s the motion of the cape that infuriates the bull, but a little of my extensive research seems to shoot that theory down. Actually, nothing that the matador does makes the bull angry — the bull is already in a bad mood before he enters the arena. The bulls used for bullfighting are selected because they exhibit violent and and aggressive behavior. By the time they show up in the bullfighting arena, just about anything will majorly annoy them. So it seems to be the bull’s personality… the color red doesn’t make them angry — everything makes them angry.
Of course, if I had a bullfighter trying to plunge a sword into my neck, that might annoy me little bit too…..
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