I have been a student and instructor of offensive and defensive knife skills for over 15 years. I have been exposed to numerous methods of knife defense and use, some good and some bad. I have read dozens of books and viewed hundreds of video clips regarding this subject. However, I am still amazed at how many knife instructors I see on youtube and other sites demonstrating these fast and flashy knife techniques, dancing around their “opponents” slashing and stabbing while their “opponents” remain still like statues. Sure, such techniques are very impressive to watch.  In fact, viewers of such videos are often lead to believe that these instructors actually know what they are doing. Well, that may be true…but only to an extent.  

The knife is a lethal force tool designed for lethal force situations and should be treated as such. Keeping that in mind, I have no use for those flashy techniques that require dancing around an attacker while wildly slashing and stabbing at random targets. Often these video demonstrations show the instructor slashing at the arms, the torso, or the legs in a haphazard fashion with no obvious objective in mind. Other times the instructors can be seen targeting vital areas only to turn their focus back to non-vital areas. A good example of this is the application of the blade to the neck immediately followed by fancy slashes to the front or back of the torso, often times using both hands to accentuate the power used for the slash.  I honestly don’t understand the purpose for such tactics other than the fact that they look cool to unsuspecting students and onlookers. They provide that WOW factor that so many people search for in their training. In reality these types of techniques have little carryover to true survival altercations where every move we make could mean the difference between life and death. Like everything else in life, we should strive for quality over content, especially when our lives may be on the line.

Like a firearm, a knife should not be wielded or applied in a haphazard manner. Neither of these tools should be deployed unless the situation warrants their use.  Once we have determined that the situation legally supports the use of lethal force, each move we make should be based on one simple objective…to end the altercation as quickly and efficiently as possible. This means emphasizing those targets that offer the highest potential for stopping the threat. Choosing targets that don’t fit this objective are nothing more than superfluous movements designed for show. I am sure that many instructors will claim that it doesn’t really matter what we aim at. After all we are using a knife and in most cases it‘s likely to cause damage to anything it touches. That is true, BUT the overall objective isn’t just to cause damage, it’s to end the altercation as quickly and efficiently as possible …period. 

Many instructors of these flashy dancing-style techniques are quick to point out that real attackers are rarely incapacitated by direct shots to vital targets. They claim that they teach their students to continue their movements until the threat has stopped.  I understand and promote this concept myself. However, if these instructors truly believe this then why do they train against cooperative “opponents” that just stand there getting slashed and stabbed? Why do they focus on non-vital targets that offer next to nothing for actually stopping the threat? 

Instructors that promote some of these techniques often neglect important points regarding this topic. One thing often neglected is the legal ramifications of using such haphazard techniques. Obviously they have never had to use their knife or justify it's use in a court of law. While these types of techniques would be acceptable in war they would be frowned upon elsewhere. The resulting damage of wild slashes and stabs would in fact make the attacker look like the victim. Who else would have injuries to the limbs, the upper torso and the back, if not the “victim”? What these instructors fail to realize is that many of the wounds that they inflict on these random targets are often considered by the courts as “defensive wounds”. These are wounds sustained by the intended victim while trying to protect themselves. If the attacker appears to have more defensive wounds than the actual defender, it could be turned against them in court. They could be considered the aggressor and end up facing jail time. Therefore many of these techniques would not be considered appropriate for civilian self-defense situations, even when lethal force is justified.

What about war? Would these techniques be appropriate for battlefield situations? Yes and no. The overkill mentality would definitely be appropriate for war. However, in many cases the techniques themselves probably wouldn’t. Why not? Simply because there is an emphasis on too many non-vital targets. Also, on the battlefield many of these targets are well protected by heavy clothing, body armor, and battlefield gear. A wild slash to the chest or back will most likely go unnoticed, even when two hands are used to increase slashing power.

With all of this said, the objectives of using a knife for war or self-defense must be considered carefully and the techniques and tactics taught should be appropriately geared toward that objective. While there are many flashy and fancy skills that we can perform with a knife, we should instead focus on the basic essentials that are most likely to save our lives when we need them most.

Take care and stay safe,

Steve Zorn, ICPS

www.personalsafetyunlimited.net