Football and Philosophy: Going Deep (The Philosophy of Popular Culture)

Over the past forty years, football has surpassed baseball as America's favorite game. The game has become an institution of our national culture: the Super Bowl is regarded as an unofficial national holiday, and our annual Thanksgiving Day celebrations would be incomplete without it. The sport brings in massive amounts of revenue to high schools and both public and private universities as spectators enjoy a unique and celebratory social scene. Professional football teams across the country cultivate and foster a sense of community in urban areas. Surely a game this influential, with its hallowed traditions, treasured festivities, and clearly defined cultural presence, resonates far beyond recreational importance. Football and Philosophy: Going Deep, edited by Michael W. Austin, reveals how a sport followed by millions reflects our deeper values, beliefs, and priorities. Austin and other contributing writers bring unique perspectives to this thought-provoking collection of essays. Divided into "four quarters" of reflective writing, the book covers many topics frequently debated by football fans. Sharon Ryan asks "What's So Bad about Performance Enhancing Drugs?", while the book's editor argues for a playoff system in college football. Daniel Collins-Cavanaugh ponders whether the salary cap makes the NFL a fairer league, and Joshua Smith offers his own review of the instant replay. Football and Philosophy also forays into some time honored issues as it considers the philosophy of winning in light of the NFL's most legendary coach, Vince Lombardi, and contemplates the concepts of sportsmanship, virtue, friendship, and failure. While the book is unafraid to tackle serious topics, touching on ethics, religion, and the nature of reality itself, the collection is designed to be accessible for any interested reader and was written, first and foremost, for fans of the game. As Austin notes, football fans and philosophers definitely have one quality in common: they both love to argue. Football and Philosophy engages in the debates of both groups, illuminating how the fields are intertwined. So whether they love or hate the college bowl system or disagree on whether the NFL has an ego problem, readers of this book will undoubtedly find much to ponder about America's favorite game. The South Has Always Been One Of The Most Distinctive Regions Of The United States, With Its Own Set Of Traditions And A Turbulent History. Although Often Associated With Cotton, Hearty Food, And Rich Dialects, The South Is Also Noted For Its Strong Sense Of Religion, Which Has Significantly Shaped Its History. Southern Crossroads: Perspectives On Religion And Culture Takes A Broad, Interdisciplinary Approach That Explores The Intersection Of Religion And Various Aspects Of Southern Life.--jacket. Religious Aspects Of Southern Culture -- Just A Little Talk With Jesus : Elvis Presley, Religious Music, And Southern Spirituality / Charles Reagan Wilson -- Miami's Little Havana : Yard Shrines, Cult Religion, And Landscape / James R. Curtis -- The Archaeology Of African American Slave Religion In The Antebellum South / Charles E. Orser, Jr. -- Prime Minister / William Martin -- Contextualizing The Apocalyptic Visions Of Mckendree Robbins Long / William D. Moore And Walter H. Conser, Jr. -- Flannery O'connor And The Southern Code Of Manners / Matthew Day -- Encounters In Southern Religion And Culture -- Meetings At The Buddhist Temple : Signposts To A Changing South / Barbara Lau -- Feeding The Jewish Soul In The Delta Diaspora / Marcie Cohen Ferris -- There Is Magic In Print : The Holiness-pentecostal Press And The Origins Of Southern Pentecostalism / Randall J. Stephens -- Scottish Heritage, Southern Style / Celeste Ray -- These Untutored Masses : The Campaign For Respectability Among White And Black Evangelicals In The American South, 1870-1930 / Paul Harvey -- Religion And Markers Of Identity -- Purgatory In The Carolinas : Catholic Devotionalism In Nineteenth-century South Carolina / Diana Pasulka -- Baptist Women And The South : From The Woman's Sphere To The Pulpit / Bill J. Leonard -- Lynching Religion : Why The Old Man Shouted Glory! / Donald G. Mathews -- Fundamentalism In Recent Southern Culture : Has It Done What The Civil Rights Movement Couldn't Do? / Samuel S. Hill. Edited By Walter H. Conser, Jr. And Rodger M. Payne. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. “Vince Lombardi—who relished his undergraduate studies in philosophy—would have loved this book.” — Booklist Football and Philosophy: Going Deep investigates many of the issues surrounding the nation’s biggest sport. From a review of the flaws of the Bowl Championship Series, to a study of the violence inherent in the game, to an examination of Vince Lombardi’s views on winning, to the problems created by the development of instant replay, the essays in this collection tackle the moral and philosophical principles behind gridiron competition. The result is an insightful, humorous, and original book that will engage all fans of the game. “Insightful and informative, as well as provocative and entertaining.” —Charles Taliaferro, author of Consciousness and the Mind of God "Over the past forty years, football has surpassed baseball as America's favorite game. Surely a game this influential, with its hallowed traditions, treasured festivities, and pronounced cultural presence, resonates with aspects of humanity that are far more significant than mere recreation. Football and Philosophy: Going Deep, edited by Michael W Austin, reveals how a sport followed by millions reflects our values, beliefs, and priorities."--Jacket