Sport and the Social Significance of Pleasure

Richard Pringle, Robert E. Rinehart, Jayne Caudwell

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2015
• Print ISBN: 9781138574274
• eBook ISBN: 9781317516576
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Sociology
• Index: Social Sciences

This innovative text's critical examination foregrounds the prime reason why so many people participate in or watch sport – pleasure. Although there has been a "turn" to emotions and affect within academia over the last two decades, it has been somewhat remiss that pleasure, as an integral aspect of human life, has not received greater attention from sociologists of sport, exercise and physical education. This book addresses this issue via an unabashed examination of sport and the moving body via a "pleasure lens." It provides new insights about the production of various identities, power relations and social issues, and the dialectical links between the socio-cultural and the body. Taking a wide-sweeping view of pleasure - dignified and debauched, distinguished and mundane – it examines topics as diverse as aging, health, fandom, running, extreme sports, biopolitics, consumerism, feminism, sex and sexuality. In drawing from diverse theoretical approaches and original empirical research, the text reveals the social and political significance of pleasure and provides a more rounded, dynamic and sensual account of sport.

1 Proem Sport and the Social Significance of Pleasure

Richard Pringle, Robert E. Rinehart and Jayne Caudwell

DOI: 10.4324/9781315719634-1

This is a book about sporting pleasures. It is not a text on how to maximize experiences of pleasure in sport settings, but a critical socio-cultural examination of the significance of pleasure in the constitution of the sporting world, identities and sets of relations of power. The multiple pleasures derived from sport are productive in constituting subjectivities, social belongings, nationalistic fervor and, for some, even reasons for living. However, the examination of sport pleasure has not been a central topic of examination within sport sociology. Given that sport centers on embodied action and the pursuit of excitement, Joseph Maguire (1992) noted it is strange that pleasure, as an integral aspect of human life, has not received greater attention from sociologists of sport.

Within this text we, accordingly, aim to examine the social significance of sport pleasures and promote it as a topic worthy of extensive consideration. Through this examination of sporting pleasures we reveal the importance of pleasure in human lives, and how pleasure is integral to prime sociological issues such as identity formations, power relations and social transformation. In this manner, we gain greater understanding not only of sport, but also of contemporary cultures, humans and social issues.

We view sporting pleasures as productive or constitutive in many of the same ways that Foucault (1990) viewed the workings of power. Foucault did not view power as primarily coercive, but as the inspirational force that underpinned the production of actions, relations, identities and ways of living. Power and pleasure, in this respect, can be understood as discursive, enacted and embodied. We, correspondingly, signal our linkages to post-structural and postmodern theorizing, but stress that we examine pleasure through multiple theoretical and methodological approaches throughout the text.

Our interest in examining pleasure arose in part from our recognition that the sociological study of sport had been predominantly focused on issues and problems, such as the critical excavation of racism, sexism, nationalism, violence and homophobia. We applaud such examinations, yet also recognize that humans primarily play or watch sport in pursuit of pleasure. Our concern was not simply that sporting pleasures have been typically marginalized as a topic of examination, but that they have not been widely understood as playing an important role in constituting sporting contexts, politics and identities. As critical sociologists with a desire to transform rather than just know the social world, it became apparent to us that it is also important to examine how sporting pleasures are connected to the development and maintenance of various sporting problems. We tentatively suggest, as examples, that the sexualization of sportswomen in the media is likely produced in relation to the instrumental pleasures of objectification and voyeurism (see Chapter 5), that the tight restrictions associated with performing gender and sexuality in sport are linked to the rewards of social acceptance and normalization (see Chapter 9) and that the risk of sporting pain and injury is negotiated in relation to the potential of experiencing a diverse array of pleasures (e.g. the rush of BASE jumping, the production of a comforting sense of self via continued sport participation, the friendship of teammates, the stoke of surfing, the joy of burning muscles after a workout or the freedom of thought that the banality and aesthetics of jogging can produce). Each of these forms of sporting pleasure, given the social dynamics that they constitute and are constituted by, deserves in-depth examination.

Within the last two decades there has been what some have called a turn to emotion and affect within academia. This turn has spurred the development of new fields of study (e.g. hedonic psychology, happiness studies), theorizing (e.g. affect theories, life satisfaction theories, the concept of subjective wellbeing) and political actions. The United Nations (UN) has recently adopted, as an example, a resolution for all member states to give greater consideration to happiness in their economic and social development policies. In relation to this resolution, the UN proclaimed March 20 the International Day of Happiness with the aim that this day will be observed in an appropriate manner, via education and public awareness-raising activities, to promote happiness, wellbeing, poverty eradication and sustainable development.

Although the topics of pleasure and happiness are currently receiving increased attention within academia (including sport studies), these topics have been of interest to a diverse range of distinguished scholars, religious leaders and politicians for centuries. Aristotle, Jeremy Bentham, Sigmund Freud and the Dalai Lama, as diverse examples, all agreed that the attainment of happiness was the prime goal and purpose of life. Thomas Jefferson justified the need for government, in part, by his belief that the pursuit of happiness is an inalienable right. Transnational corporations are also well aware of the marketing importance of pleasure and happiness. The Coca-Cola Company has long striven to connect the consumption of their products with the apparent pleasures of youthful, active, athletic bodies that are (perhaps ironically) toned, thin and fit. The company’s recent global marketing campaign simply advises consumers that they can ‘open happiness’. In neoliberal times, happiness and pleasure are states of mind that can seemingly be purchased. Indeed, consumers are routinely ‘informed’ that their lives will be better, happier and more pleasurable if they drink a certain beer, drive a particular car, join a gym, lose weight, have whiter/straighter teeth or support the (men’s) national or regional sporting team. Yet if we fail in our pursuit of pleasure we are still told ‘don’t worry, be happy’. The ubiquitous happy face ‘☺’ now populates the ends of text messages and emails. Happiness, as such, has become an imperative for (post)modern life and irrespective of our inner state of mind, there is increased pressure on people to at least appear happy. Despite such moral imperatives, official rates of depression have grown in recent years.

Although there is much agreement that humans strive for happiness and are motivated by pleasures, there is also considerable debate about how to achieve these emotional/affective states. Socrates, for example, argued for the higher pleasures of the intellect, whereas the Cyrenaics (an ultra-hedonist Greek school of philosophy) countered by asserting that bodily pleasures, being easier to attain and more vivid, were superior (Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2013). The Cyrenaics even encouraged ‘living for the moment’ rather than worrying about the future and, thus, advocated the pursuit of whatever caused the greatest pleasure now. Needless to say, this crude form of hedonism that countered mainstream Greek ethics did not have a long existence, yet it can be considered as a precursor to Epicureanism, which has had more lasting impact. Indeed, many notable figures have identified with Epicureanism, including Thomas Jefferson, Jeremy Bentham, Christopher Hitchens and French philosopher Michel Onfray.

Regardless of these lifestyle/pleasure debates there appears a widespread, but typically unquestioned, agreement that playing sport is an important activity that can produce pleasure and create social and physical benefits. Indeed, many parents/guardians encourage their children to play sport due to these beliefs. Yet, somewhat erroneously, the first question they often ask their children upon returning from sport is ‘did you win?’ as opposed to ‘did you have fun?’, thus emphasizing the benefits of competition rather than the potential joys of movement. Many governments (e.g. England, Scotland, New Zealand, Australia, Canada) now also promote sport participation as a biopolitical strategy to allegedly enhance their population’s level of wellbeing and happiness (see Chapter 10). Sport Scotland, for example, primarily aims to help more people enjoy the benefits of sport.

Whether or not playing sport is a prudent strategy for attaining pleasure and happiness, we acknowledge that scholars of sport and physical education—such as biomechanists, exercise physiologists or sociologists— have all been typically seduced by the pleasures of sport at some stage within their life trajectories. These pleasures have subsequently shaped their identities, lifestyles, educational and career pathways. Douglas Booth (2009: 133) even contended that pleasure can be understood ‘as a potential pillar of disciplinary coherence in physical education’, as sporting pleasures act as a glue to connect interdisciplinary scholars of disparate beliefs.

Some critical sociologists of sport also appear to be sport fans. At a relatively recent conference for the North American Society for the Sociology of Sport (NASSS) it was announced that a professional ice hockey match was being played that evening and if anybody wanted to attend that transport was being arranged. A palpable buzz subsequently circulated among some of the delegates. Yet this announcement seemed somewhat out of place, as the day’s program of papers had overwhelmingly revolved around densely theorized critiques of sport. Concerns, for example, had been raised about the connections between violence on and off the field of play, various problems within National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA), inequitable gendered relations of power and even the need for greater political activism among sport sociologists. Hence, the encouragement to attend a ‘men’s only’ professional ice hockey match, no doubt replete with acts of violence, seemed to be in opposition to the underpinning politics of the conference program. We do recognize, however, that one can be a social critic of sport but still enjoy participating in or watching it. George Sage (1990), paraphrasing US Senator J. William Fulbright, even argued that he was critical of sport because he cared for and wanted to improve it. Sage accordingly portrayed critical analyses of sport as acts of redemption in the service of sport.

The writing of this text would not likely have eventuated if it were not for our own formative experiences of sporting pleasure. Richard acknowledges that it was his identity-affirming experiences on the rugby field as a ten year-old, in his red colored jersey for Tahunanui School, that eventually led him to study physical education at university. Although now a stern critic of rugby, he still gains pleasure (and pain) on the tennis court. Robert swam competitively from age six, broke his collarbone twice playing ‘pick-up’ football with his brothers’ friends, loved the aggression, the joy of physical contact and tackling, and yet ended up concentrating on swimming and more solitary pursuits, like training for (running) marathons. Jayne has a long-term, often intense and troublesome, love affair with numerous forms of physical activity. Over many years, she struggled to disengage from the competitive nature of human movement and now finds solace in the non-serious and playful aspects of sport.

Explaining how we Wrote the Book of Pleasure

Despite growing up and living most of our lives in different parts of the world (Jayne in England, Richard in Aotearoa New Zealand and Robert in California), we developed similar research interests, approaches and axiolo-gies. Although our topics of examination were different, we all drew from qualitative research methods, adopted postmodern and/or poststructural sensibilities and had an interest in critical analyses of sport that we hoped would challenge injustices and inequities. It was somewhat serendipitous, therefore, that in 2010, when Jayne was on leave from the University of Brighton, we found ourselves living in close proximity to each other in Aotearoa New Zealand. Robert had recently begun work in Hamilton at the University of Waikato, Richard was based ‘up the road’ at the University of Auckland and Jayne was in Raglan, a town with a renowned left-hand surf break within a 30 minute drive of Hamilton. We subsequently had an opportune get together at a party held in Raglan, and eventually found ourselves talking about the sociological significance of sporting pleasures. Not long after, we came to a general agreement to write this book.

Discussions concerning the writing of this text took place at each other’s places of residence, in various cafes, at conferences and via Skype. Within the initial meetings we debated, among other factors, whether we wanted to produce a text akin to a handbook of the sociology of sporting pleasure (with various chapters exploring topics such as sporting pleasures and the media, politics, gender and identity formation) or a text that better represented the ‘feel’ and malleable nature of pleasures. Inspired by Susan Bordo (1999: 29), who claimed that ‘cultural interpretation is an ongoing, always incomplete process, and no one gets the final word’, we opted for the latter style, and subsequently developed a text that reflected the somewhat chaotic and, at times, contradictory nature of pleasure. As authors, we had noted, for example, how we had each gained differing sporting pleasures in pursuits that were often painful or repetitive, from running marathons (Jayne), playing rugby (Richard) or staring at the bottom of the pool in swimming lap after lap (Robert).

We also discussed whether the book should be underpinned by one or multiple theoretical approaches. At first we thought there would be greater coherence within the text if one theoretical approach dominated. Yet we eventually decided that there was value in examining pleasure from multiple perspectives. We accordingly drew on diverse theories, concepts and research approaches to examine and reveal the multifaceted, varied and changing nature of sporting pleasures. We also drew from differing disciplines (e.g. philosophy, history, psychology and even biology) yet our prime interests remain grounded in sociology and cultural studies.

We also debated whether to present the chapters as co- or individually authored. Given that our understandings of pleasure had been shaped by our differing lived experiences and theoretical lenses, and that we each have different writing styles, we agreed to write the chapters as individuals. We did, however, carefully read, discuss and debate each other’s chapters and, at times, ideas/paragraphs or sections were swapped into other chapters. In this respect, the various chapters reflect a combined effort, but we decided to state that the chapters were ‘primarily’ written individually. With reflection, we agree that our different interests, writing styles, philosophies and theoretical underpinnings have helped produce a rich, diverse and, hopefully, pleasurable text.

Our examination of pleasure, as such, might seem ‘messy’, yet we believe that this is an apt representational style given that we were examining an intangible, often ephemeral feeling that is often taken for granted and difficult to define, but is of considerable social significance. We use the word messy in relation to John Law’s (2004) ideas on messiness in social science research. He argued that social science researchers have developed robust ways of examining some relatively ‘stable realities’ (p. 2), such as income distributions and terms of trade, yet the traditional methods have not worked well to capture the realities of more slippery phenomena such as ‘pains and pleasures, hopes and horrors, intuitions and apprehensions, losses and redemptions, mundanities and visions … things that slip and slide, or appear or disappear, change shape or don’t have much form at all …’ (p. 2). Pleasure is clearly one of these slippery phenomena, as last night’s ‘pleasure’ can be this morning’s ‘horror’. Law argues that when social scientists try to simplify the realities of messy phenomena they make more of a mess, as they oversimplify and do not capture the fluid complexities. He accordingly advocates methods that do not provide tidy conclusions or single answers and encourages greater methodological variety, the blurring of disciplinary boundaries and innovative ways of knowing, such as forms of knowing via embodiment, ‘private’ emotions and poetics. Our text subsequently employs a variety of methods, the use of poetics and autoethnography, and boundary crossing in its examination of sport pleasures. A recognized advantage of a messy text is that it can work in an ethical and political manner to reflect ‘diverse and potentially contradictory experiences—rather than reducing them to a singular Truth or voice’ (Avner et al., 2013: 2).

Introducing the Text

Our broad aim in co-writing this text, as already stated, was to reveal and promote the social significance of pleasure. Yet we also wanted to illustrate that by examining sporting issues via a focus on pleasure, one can gain a new way of looking at these issues. In other words, we wanted to show how a ‘pleasure’ lens could encourage ways of seeing things afresh. A pleasure lens in this sense could be understood as akin to a theoretical tool, as it can direct our attention and change our social and sociological imaginations (cf. Mills, 1959), allowing new insights and possibilities.

To achieve these broad aims we decided to examine the importance of sporting pleasures by linking them to an array of diverse topics. We explored the ubiquitous ability of pleasure to shape human lives by connecting the relevance of pleasure to topics as diverse as biopolitics and the governing of active citizens and sexuality pleasures within sporting contexts. We also illustrated the importance of lived experiences of pleasures, those that are perhaps the most tangible, by examining the pleasures of moving (running) and consuming mediated sport (watching the Olympics). We also complicated the place of pleasure by examining topics that some might mistakenly believe have little connection to sporting pleasures: feminism and aging.

In order to do justice to this diverse array of topics, the first section of the book introduces and examines the concept of pleasure. This is a concept that many feel needs no introduction, as people know ‘pleasure’ when they feel it or live it. Yet there is overlap, and at times confusion, between synonyms such as pleasure, joy, fun, happiness, ecstasy, jouissance (cf. Barthes, 1975) and satisfaction. This blurring of terms exists not only in the literature but also within people’s life trajectories, as Aristotle explained: a life of gratification and pleasure does not necessarily constitute a life of happiness, yet a happy life can be pleasant.

In Chapter 2, Robert delves deeper into the concept of pleasure by illustrating its complex and diverse nature and its dis/connections to hedonism, happiness, delight and even shame and guilt. He provocatively notes that pleasure requiring a detailed introduction ‘speaks volumes to our Western, hegemonic Judeo-Christian approach to the subject’. In other words, he argues that the influence of religion in Western societies has contributed a sense of shame to select bodily pleasures (e.g. dance, sport, alcohol and sex) and that this shame is one reason why pleasure has been marginalized as scholarly topic of analysis. Robert subsequently contends that as pleasure can be regarded as a prime mover within human life, we should strive to make pleasure the default setting so that the quality of pleasure becomes a key focus of examination and the development of social policies. Robert concludes by drawing from Foucault to suggest that the prime task of the book is to prompt awareness of the social significance of pleasure by luring ‘pleasure’ out into the open...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Half Title Page
• Frontmatter
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Figures
• Acknowledgements
• 1 Proem Sport and the Social Significance of Pleasure
• 2 Pleasures Small and Large
• 3 A Short History of Pleasure
• 4 Theorizing Sporting Pleasures across the Disciplines
• 5 Studying Sport, Feminism and Pleasure
• 6 Aging Bod(ies) and Pleasure Poetic Orientations
• 7 Running for Pleasures
• 8 When the Pleasurable Is Political An Affective Analysis of Viewing the Olympics
• 9 'I Just Love Watching Football'
• 10 Aesthetic Pleasure and Sport The Case of Love + Guts: Skateboarding Killed the Art Show
• 11 Anhedonia and Alternative Sports1
• 12 Be Happy, Play Sport? Governing Happiness via the Promotion of Sport
• Authors
• References
• Author Index
• Subject Index