By Kim Seong-kon, Professor of English Literature

In 1976, a movie called"Rocky" stole viewers' hearts and won the Oscar for best picture. This monumental film, which made Sylvester Stallone an overnight success, is a moving account of a part-time boxer, Rocky, who leads a boring, solitary life, talking to his pet turtles and occasionally collecting money for a local loan shark. Rocky is a pathetic bum with a dead-end future.

One day, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity comes. To gain publicity, heavyweight champion Apollo Creed decides to pick a"nobody" and give him a chance to win the title. Rocky is inadvertently chosen for this stunt. Rocky is fully aware of the fact that he cannot win, and yet he decides to take the chance.

On the eve of the big fight, Rocky suffers anxiety and insomnia. He whispers to his girlfriend Adrian:"I can't do it. I can't beat him." Then he speaks out the theme of this movie:"I was thinking it really don't matter if I lose this fight, 'cause all I wanna do is go the distance. Nobody's ever gone the distance with Creed and I can go that distance and that bell rings, and I'm still standing, I am gonna know for the first time in my life, see that I weren't just another bum from the neighborhood."

Rocky is not afraid of losing the fight because he knows he cannot win. Rather, he is afraid that he cannot prove himself, and that he will go down before the final round and remain a local bum for the rest of his life. However, Rocky not only endures till the last round, but also fights well enough to discourage the champion. That is why Rocky is so happy at the end of the final round, even though he loses the fight. Trying to see with his horribly swollen eyes, Rocky calls out"Adrian! Adrian!," the name of his girlfriend, as if he were saying,"I did it! I did it!"

Rocky instantly became one of the most important cultural icons in the 1970s, inspiring many young people around the world, including me. At that time, I applied for a Fulbright grant which was the only means to pursue my graduate studies in the United States. However, it seemed almost impossible for me to win the scholarship; only five applicants from the country would be selected through intense competition. To me, it was like the fight between Rocky and Apollo, or"nobody" and the champ. But I wanted to prove that I was"not just another bum from the neighborhood," even though the chance of winning was so slim.

On the eve of the final screening interview at the Fulbright Commission, I watched"Rocky" and was greatly encouraged. I decided to challenge the seemingly invincible competitors and was able to stand until the final round and win the prestigious scholarship. And that made all the difference in my life.

In 2006, when he turned 60, Stallone made another movie,"Rocky Balboa." In this charming, nostalgic film, the aging former champion with droopy eyes, mumbling tongue, and arthritic limbs now runs a cozy Italian restaurant,"Adrian's," entertaining his customers by telling them the same old stories and posing for memento pictures.

One day, Rocky is challenged by the current champion, Mason"The Line" Dixon, who needs to use Rocky for publicity. There is no chance for Rocky to defeat the younger, stronger champ, and yet once again he accepts the challenge to prove that despite his squeaky joints, he still has something left in his wrinkled body. This time, also, Rocky does not care about winning; all he cares about is standing until the final round. And he does it again. Now Rocky can truly retire, marking his name in boxing history forever.

I saw"Rocky" in 1977 and watched"Rocky Balboa" three decades later. In both movies, I saw a mirror image of myself - as an aspiring young man who boldly challenges the champion, and as a pathetic aging man who bores people by telling the same stories of the good old days over and over. These days, my titles are increasingly beginning with the prefix,"former," like the former champion Rocky Balboa. Nevertheless, I, too, want to prove that I still have"some stuff left in the basement," as Rocky says.

The"Rocky" series can be deemed a timeline of our lives from youth to old age. Depicting a cross-generational title match,"Rocky Balboa" beautifully captures the psychology of all aging men on the verge of fading away. Living in a country where seniority is no longer esteemed, aging people may often feel sad and embarrassed. But"Rocky Balboa" shows us how old people can retire with nobility and dignity, winning back respect from the younger generation.