Why Sports?
September 3, 2008 9:55 AM | 0 Comments
It's the first day of school, the annual transition time from lazy, lackadaisical summer to face-paced, structured Fall. This period of time always makes me pensive. Naturally, a topic which I frequently ponder is: Why Sports? Why are so many people, largely men, obsessed with sports? So, here are my mostly unscientific musings.
Men Connect With the World Differently Women are all about connections. They talk a lot. They do a lot together. They're very communal. Sports is a way for men to connect, to develop a common bond, to feel a sense of identity and membership to a club.
Nostalgia How many times have you heard: "My Dad used to take me to (fill in sport) games" or "My Dad and I used to watch them (fill in team)." It provides a sense of continuity with their pasts, a sense of stability.
It's Black & White The world is full of gray, dull, drab gray, but in sports there's a clear winner and a loser, the victor and the defeated. There must be something very reassuring about this. One of my new friends, a colleague named Rhonda, thinks this is a big driver behind sports obsession.
Vicariousness How many adult men have ever had truly great moments in their athletic history? Yet, they have all yearned for them or learned to savor the smaller-scale events. Through athletes, and frequently their own children, they can rewrite history or relive the past. They can pretend for an instant that they ARE that player in all his splendor.
Escape Sports are the great distractor. Is he tired of work? Does he really want to take out the recycling? Does he really care about that list of "Honey-Dos" you've prepared for him? Is he in the mood to play with the kids right now? No, he'd much rather click the mouse, turn the sports page, man the remote, tailgate in the parking lot or sit in the stands. And, it's always important.
So, now I ask you: Why Sports?
The Sports Widow(aka Nan Hall)
Want to know more? Check out......
The Meaning of Sports: Why Americans Watch Baseball, Football, and Basketball and What They See When They Do
By Michael Mandelbaum
The Meaning of Sports offers everyone—from Sports Widows to the most seasoned Sports Fan, from novice sports fans to Scholars of American History—a deep, compelling and thoroughly readable book of baseball, football, and basketball.
Highly recommended.
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