Contemporary sport: an antithesis in ideology

Abstract

'There are two sides to every question' (Protagoras IX). Before the two sides to any question can be analysed, the central concept must be understood. Hence, the first chapter of this thesis defines and presents a conceptual model of contemporary sport. Within each of the elements that comprise sport, polarisation occurs and is reflected in ideological contradictions: for every claim made for sport being 'good' there is a counter-claim for its being 'bad'. The second chapter presents the two sides of sport, to illustrate and clarify the resultant complexity. Chapter Three examines both positive and negative claims of the purported moral and educational virtues embodied in sport which are made by the media, politicians, educationalists, coaches and public at large. Recently, assumptions about the positive values of sport have been seriously questioned, especially by the media, educationalists and theorists. Their focus has been on deviance and unethical practices: violence, drug-abuse, cheating, poor sportsmanship and an over-emphasis on competition and winning at all costs. It is concluded that sport is neither inherently good nor inherently bad; the key to whether it is a positive or negative phenomenon, is not so much the nature of sport itself, but rather the objectives, attitudes and actions of educators, politicians, media personnel, coaches, administrators, and, as a consequence, of the players themselves.