The World of Lucha Libre: Secrets, Revelations, and Mexican National Identity. HEATHER LEVI: Durham and London: Duke University Press, 2008

Abstract

Lucha libre, or professional wrestling, is a tremendously popular sport and spectacle in Mexico. In May of 1997, Heather Levi began what would be a year of anthropological fieldwork investigating the world of lucha libre, training with other wrestlers (men and women), attending live matches, viewing televised matches, and interviewing both male and female wrestlers. 

Luis Jaramillo, a trainer retired from the wrestling ring and his masked identity as Águila Blanca, or White Eagle, agreed to take on Levi as an apprentice only if she understood that he dealt in the true lucha libre, not the spectacle for television viewers. Clearly Levi operates on the participant-observer model common to anthropological research. But she is not content to simply report on her field work. She wants to study lucha libre as "performance ... subculture...and symbol" in Mexican culture and politics.