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Sports in America have many different levels of competition, each with a particular purpose that correlates to their philosophical position. However, I believe that the overall philosophical trend of the sports construction in America is one of Social Darwinism. Social Darwinism is an extension of the theory of natural selection made famous by Charles Darwin. The idea is that the fittest individuals are the ones that are be capable of leaving the most amount of offspring, in turn having an impact on the future direction of the particular species. This is where the mantra of “only the strongest survive” originates from. While it is true that at the younger competition levels this philosophical idea does not hold well to sports, however, consider the following analogy: A large pool of athletes in the younger age groups are like the starting population size of a species. However, as the age groups rise, like to high school, college, and maybe to professional leagues, the pool of athletes becomes vastly depleted. This is very similar to individuals in a species dying out to various causes, the idea is that only the strongest survive. Athletes competing at the professional level are so competitive that sometimes they will seek to circumvent the rules of the sport in order to survive and thrive. That is why the philosophical construct of sport in America is that of Social Darwinism. Professional athletes are at the top of the food chain and are under fierce competition and scrutiny from their fellow athletes, and the ever watchful eye of the media. The result is athletes tend to treat their sport more as a game of survival and compete ruthlessly in order to be the best instead of playing for a pure love of the game.
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Pfister, G. (2009). The role of german turners in american physical education. The International Journal of the History of Sport, 26(13), 1893-1925.
Sports for everyone. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.accadi.org.ar/english/obje_3.htm.
Whitner, R. (2013, Apr). Athletics for all. Retrieved from http://www.districtadministration.com/article/athletics-all
Winter, T. (2003). Muscular christianity: manhood and sports in protestant america, 1880-1920. Journal of Religion, 83(4), 636-637. Retrieved from http://web.a.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=8&sid=91caac71-9111-4c9b-ab8e-60b1c2ae3cf1@sessionmgr4004&hid=4112.
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Hult explains that in the era between 1890-1920, women physical educators were a tightly knit, dedicated group committed to a tradition of restricted competition, self-governance, and a feminine approach to individual and team sports. They believed that all girls and women should have the opportunity to participate and enjoy sport, not only the talented elite as in the competition-driven male philosophical structure (87). Play-days and sport-days with emphasis on team building games were a means of perpetuating an image of an ideal American female athlete: feminine, beautiful, strong, yet always 'aware of her delicate reproductive system' (89).
Dramatically different percentages of blacks and whites engaged in various sports are not random events. It appears that blacks concentrate on sports in which future economic incentives exist, and in which exclusive training facilities, equipment, and personalized coaching is not necessary during the developmental years. On the other hand, whites tend to gravitate toward individual sports in which developmental expenses are relatively high; they tend to engage in team sports in which future employment as professionals is minimal.
In the United States today the age for a kid to start playing competitive sports continues to get lower and lower. Parents in America have started to get their children involved in sports at a much earlier age than they used to, hoping that their child will be the next superstar. Parents are placing too much emphasis on winning and being the best, instead of teaching their children how to have fun. Parents in the U.S. are also placing too much pressure on their kids to be the best. Parents in America are becoming much too involved in youth sports and are starting to get out of control, sometimes even resorting to violence and vulgarity.
“…America’s entry into the Second World War and the desire this bred on the part of some English teachers in the Jewish parochial schools to show the gentile world that yeshiva students were as physically fit, despite there long hours of study, as any other American student. They went about probing this by organizing the Jewish parochial schools in and around our area into competitive leagues, and once every two weeks the schools would compete against one another in a variety of sports.”
“Show me a good loser and I'll show you a loser,” Vince Lombardi once said. This saying could be the unsung anthem of American sports for children and teenagers. Everyone loves to win. In sports there is always competition. Is there too much emphasis on “the win” for kids and teens? This issue is important because it essentially develops the way children and teenagers think and react; it will affect them later on in life. Too much emphasis on winning is a problem because there is extensive pressure from parents and coaches, and the consequences can be severe.
Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream, but so Cassius Clay, Jackie Robinson, and Bill Russell. Long before King’s famous “I Had a Dream” speech or Rosa Parks famous stand came something much simpler: sports. Sports have always had the ability to open people’s eyes in a way that is more impactful than words or actions. The way that athletics can shape a persons mind, or open their eyes to something beyond what they already believe, is incredible. They can get everyone to root for a common purpose, a common goal. And for some, that was freedom. The integration of professional and collegiate athletics not only changed sports history, but helped shape American history.
There are many repercussions that are projected upon both men and women when they enter into a sport that typically isn’t thought of as gender appropriate. Some of those cultural and social stigmatisms may be abandonment by your peers, and friends questions regarding your sexuality, and even in some cases criticism as to how you are living your life. In some cases, it may lead to you not being accepted by either group, theone whose norems you are not following, of as well as the one with whom you are trying to get involved. This paper will address all of these issues and how these seemingly negative situations can, will, and are, leading to growth. It will also discuss how this is a situation where repercussions are not just in the sports arena, but is prevalent in everyday life, in areas far beyond that of sport.
In Introduction to the Philosophy of Sport, Heather L. Reid presents a discussion of how ethics is treated in the arena of Olympism and some of the struggles of defining and how or if the ethical guidelines should be enforced. Reid notes, “Some would say that ethical principles are always the product of a particular culture, so there can no more be universal ethical principles than there can be a universal culture” (Reid, 22). I disagree with the notion that there cannot be universal ethical principles for athletes to follow in sport because even across cultures there are general morals that shape the lives of people from all over the world. For example, murder and cheating are inherently immoral actions, no matter where someone comes from;
Can cheating be an excuse for the phrase; survival of the fittest, or is it an epidemic moral corruption? Since the advent of modern competitive sport, winning has always been the bottom line. Honesty, honour and fair play have taken the backseat. The purpose of the essay May The Best Cheater Win, by Harry Bruce, is to inform how cheating has become widespread and accepted in America. Sports are an integral part of American culture and indeed an entire industry exists because of these competitive sports. The result of these competitive sports has led to the moral corruption of most athletes, as they would do anything to win. Harry Bruce discusses the distortion of right and wrong that has penetrated all levels of sports, from children's league to regional division. He confidently informs his reader that organized sports not only "offer benefits to youngsters" but "they also offer a massive program of moral corruption".
Coakley, J. J. (2007). Sports in society: issues & controversies (9th ed.). Boston: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
Sports have been around for thousands of years. The history of sports in United States began back in the 1840s. United States is a very unique country when we look at its sports, just like every country has a different structure of sports so does US. This paper will be taking about the Sports Organizations and Governance, the sports industry, sports organizations, and Structure of sports in the United States. It will also cover the Sport in the United States vs. Other Western Democracies by taking a look at the State Political, historical context, team objectives, and sports organizations. It will also cover the uniqueness of American sport as well as cover the mass participation and give recommendations on how to increase participation and success.
In conclusion, the sports world society is basically structured like every other civilized nation throughout the world. In means of income, gender, race and the sports fan wanting more then they can get any where else.
Sports may have impacted our culture much more then we thought it would, and keeps impacting. Sports have affected some of the most important aspects of life, such as jobs and money. It has also affected things as little as who we look up to and how we dress. Culture means “the arts and other manifestations of human intellectual achievement regarded collectively.” The definition of sports is “an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment.” So when we put two and two together we get a a nation or world that has changed due to sports. Back in the mid and late 1900’s sports were used to see whose way of life was better. As time went on and keeps going on, we
I remember that when I was five, when I used to live together with my cousins in a village near Baclaran Church, we had this tiny ring outside our home. I used to shoot hoops with my little brother and older cousins, since then I wanted to famous for playing Basketball. Recently, during the FIB League my name ended up on the news paper and it felt like I am so close to achieving my dream, and I am kind of there.
Sports, a very popular past time today, have been around since ancient times. Greek Olympic Games featured events from chariot races, javelin throws, to wrestling. In addition, a game similar to soccer was played in China by the second century BC. In England, a violent rugby type game was even played to settle feuds between villages. With the development of the industrial revolution and the creation of the first public schools, sports decreased in violence and were played more recreationally and constructively. Basketball was invented to help the youth in New England spend their energy in the winter months. Since the early 1900’s sports have been a key experience in the United States (“History of Sports”). I have played sports for many years, and the experience has helped me grow significantly as an individual.