Sport and Society Topic 1 Theme 1 Sport is a cultural phenomenon Theory is an interpretation that leads to explanation of a social phenomenon ization the process of something The ization words are theories concepts and ideas through which you interpret and understand sport physical culture in American society Theme 2 Understanding the sport conundrum Definition of sport Structured goal oriented clear identification of winners and losers competitive ludic involving elements of freedom of expression and playful creativity and physical o McPherson Curtis and Loy o Elite highly structured and competitive prolympic sports mlb nhl etc Theme 3 Sport as a physical culture Physical culture ontologically mixed entity o Ontology The nature of being in the world o No one true way to be physical recreation and leisure sport dance etc The Active body o An instrument used in participation o An object consumed being looked at watched etc Looking at LeBron James when he plays his body is being consumed Gramsci s notion of culture as contested terrain o Dominant cultural practices and meaning constantly struggle for their position of ascendancy against residual and or emergent practices and meanings Sport can be a contested terrain Dominant sporting practices o The big 3 5 football baseball basketball and hockey Emergent sporting practices Residual sporting practices o Up and coming joke example extreme ironing o Cock fighting and boxing At one point was popular not really anymore Theme 4 Toward a sporting sociological imagination Sport isn t substantial it s relational o It s a societal construct o It is NOT a mirror of society Sport in connection to economy technology politics and culture Approaches o Sport is a world in and of itself Sport and society are separate and mutually exclusive entities REJECTED Sport Fetishization Sport is divorced from the world Not a product of culture o Sport as a mirror of society The reflection thesis REJECTED Sociological imagination C Wright Mills Imagination that encourages the thinker to understand how the individual is shaped by the social relationships they are a part of o Sport as a produce and producer of society Dialectic thesis ACCEPTED Sport influences and is influenced by sport Watching sports influences how you think about society Theme 5 Sport Mapping Utilizing the Sporting Sociological Imagination Sport as a product and producer of society o Two way and mutually reinforcing relationship between entities What type of American society do we live in o How is that culture linked to sport culture Interconnection 1 o 2012 Olympics Interconnection 2 o Super bowls Interconnection 3 o Cycling doping scandals Interconnections 4 o Physical activity and consumer culture o The fitness industry obesity etc Interconnection 5 Interconnections 6 o Physical inactivity and consumer culture o The Hunger Games and Panem society Readings Reading 1 Andrews Situating Sport Sociological Imagination C Wright Mills o There is a need to anchor any examination of social existence within the historical movement and conditions that frame it Sport is connected to the society around it and therefore cannot be viewed independently o American Sport Culture is considered a product and producer of the social formation in which it is situated o The corporatization of sport leagues reflects the corporatization of the society around it Sport is becoming controlled by the media reflects society Reading 2 Sinnott Lance Armstrong s demise Lance Armstrong was held up by American society after becoming widely successful in cycling after his testicular cancer which resulted in removing his testicles When it came out that he was doping he lost all tour titles from 1999 through 2005 o Armstrong s words might be true but there can be no doubt that the sport he seemingly did so much for has never been in a hole quite as deep as the one his fall from grace has created Topic 2 Theme 1 Sport and the Neoliberal Political Order Focus on Sport and Politics o Micro level politics you and your friends o Macro level politics nations and the world o Politicians use sports to sway voters Obama playing basketball in North Carolina a swing state Palin using images like hockey mom and emphasizing her as being a starting point guard Trying to connect with a certain group of people o Sportization of politics and the politicization of sport Sports may be viewed as politic neutral but it isn t What is politics o How we organize our lives and how they are organized for us by someone else o Political power is the ability to control shape other people s lives Olympic Games are highly politicized global sporting spectacles o 1936 Games Hitler Aryan supremacy o 1980 Games Communism supremacy Sport can be used to reproduce political system o Political System type and structures of governance and rule o Political ideology values beliefs and ideas related to the political system There has to be a degree of ideological consensus o Antonio Gramsci s notion of hegemony Subtly coercive operations of ideological and political power A dominant group can win support via manipulation of public opinion Sport can create and produce hegemonic relationships Theme 2 China State Capitalism and the sport and politics relationship China s government capitalism o Authoritarian state and privatizing economy are interconnected which creates the state The government is very active in regulating or not regulating labor conditions Gives a competitive edge things can be cheaper The government can control the currency Most currency is controlled by the free market Two Chinas are presented by the government Especially by Beijing 2008 Games o Authoritarian politics Police were used to quell public dissent and carefully monitored image Coercing the Masses Demolished the central slums in Beijing and pushed out the poor Controlling the information o Consumerist culture The booming economy of the world o Used the games as propaganda Theme 3 Rollerball Corporate Autocracy and the Suppression of Individualism The 1970 film Rollerball o A dystopic future and the role sport plays in it o Set in 2018 society is run by corporations Corporate Monopolies the Majors Transportation food communications housing luxury and energy Everything is provided by the Majors o Rollerball is a political tool of corporate society o It becomes cathartic a way to deal with the stress of everyday life o Rollerball i e sport promotes an idea of group ethic and teamwork o It