Sport, Play, and Ethical Reflection - Hardcover

Feezell, Randolph

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0252029550 ISBN 13: 9780252029554

Publisher: University of Illinois Press, 2004

Synopsis

A philosophical analysis of the nature, attraction, and limits of sport

About this title

Book Description:

 

A philosophical analysis of the nature, attraction, and limits of sport

Randolph Feezell's Sport, Play, and Ethical Reflection immediately tackles two big questions about sport: "What is it?" and "Why does it attract so many people?" He argues that sports participation is best described as a form of human play, and the attraction for participants and viewers alike derives from both to its aesthetic richness and narrative structure. He then claims that the way in which sports encourage serious competition in trivial pursuits is fundamentally absurd, and therefore participation requires a state of irony in the participants, where seriousness and playfulness are combined.

Feezell builds on these conclusions, addressing important ethical issues, arguing that sportsmanship should be seen as a kind of Aristotelian mean between the extremes of over and under investment in sport. Chapters on cheating, running up the score, and character-building stress sport as a rule-governed, tradition-bound practice with standards of excellence and goods internal to the practice. With clear writing and numerous illuminating examples, Feezell demonstrates deep insight into both of his subjects.

About the Author:

Randolph Feezell is a professor of philosophy at Creighton University. He is the author of Faith, Freedom, and Value: Introductory Philosophical Dialogues and other books.

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Illinois Press
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0252029550
• ISBN 13: 9780252029554
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 192