An Ethnography of Football and Masculinities in Jamaica : Letting the Football Talk

What can football among young men in Jamaica tell us about class, wealth, age, and concepts of masculinity? William Tantam presents an ethnographic study of the impact of football on men's lives in contemporary Jamaica. He illuminates how the football field relates to social and economic inequalities, and whether playing football in a mixed group has the effect of levelling the playing field between the more and less economically wealthy. Tantam presents insights into the life histories and football biographies of individuals, the relationship between wealth, education, and class, and explores how socioeconomic inequalities are embodied and enacted. With rich ethnographic detail, he analyses how the experience of watching international football matches and the English Premier League locates groups of spectators in relation to wider movements of capital. The book features case studies of individuals who play football in Jamaica, and penetrates an under-examined area in academic discussion of sport and masculinity. This will be a valuable addition to students of anthropology, sociology, football studies, cultural studies and gender studies. Title Page Copyright Page Contents Introduction Situating the field Caribbean masculinities How a goat-keeper taught me to love football The habitus Apprenticeship as a fieldwork method Sport and Caribbean societies Book overview and chapter summaries List of principal research participants Notes Player profile: Cavin Chapter 1: The Jamaican football context: From the plantation to schoolboy football Football, education and class A history of football in Jamaica The class associations of Black River High and Munro Players’ experiences of schoolboy football Conclusions Notes Player profile: Freddy Notes Chapter 2: Shifting boundaries: Learning the rules of the field Getting to the field ‘You shouldn’t even think it!’ Etiquette and the relationship between competition and cooperation The boundaries Aggressive tackles and soft fouls Soft and hard tackles Fights Conclusion Notes Player profile: Mr Bennett Chapter 3: The pass: Older players and embodying middle-class etiquette Different football styles Waterloo bar Buying rounds Which of my friends can’t buy me a drink? Cow cod stew and the dangers of wealth and ageing Conclusion Notes Player profile: Peter Notes The salad: Younger players and the trick as a tactic of resistance The salad Tricks and trickery Boredom and expectations of progress Kills and killing The trick as a response to age and instability Conclusion Notes Player profile: Doc Notes Chapter 5: Watching football: Locating Jamaica within the world of football Chinese food and hotel groundsmen: Jamaican migrants in the United States Football breakfast Why Jamaicans do not watch the JPL ‘It’s hard to develop a fascination with a club you’re not seeing’ Conclusion Notes Player profile: Terry Notes Conclusion Two leaving parties The football ‘habitus’ Football and social inequalities in Jamaica Disentangling class, masculinities and generation Future work Note Bibliography Index "What can football among young men in Jamaica tell us about class, wealth, age and concepts of masculinity? William Tantam presents an ethnographic study of the impact of football on men's lives in contemporary Jamaica. He illuminates how the football field relates to social and economic inequalities, and considers whether playing football in a mixed group has the effect of levelling the playing field between the more and less economically wealthy. Tantam presents insights into the life histories and football biographies of individuals, the relationship between wealth, education and class, and explores how socioeconomic inequalities are embodied and enacted. With rich ethnographic detail, he analyses how the experience of watching international football matches and the English Premier League locates groups of spectators in relation to wider movements of capital"--Back cover Cavin -- The Jamaican football context : from the plantation to schoolboy football -- Freddy -- Shifting boundaries : the rules of the field -- Mr Bennett -- The pass : older players and embodying middle class etiquette -- Peter -- The salad : younger players and the trick as a tactic of resistance -- Doc -- Watching football : locating Jamaica within the world of football -- Terry