Naison (2002) stated “The birth of professional and college sports have served as two of the nation’s most powerful community-building institutions, helping to define American identity on the grassroots level as powerfully as our political system, our broadcast media, or Hollywood film.” The importance of sports cannot be ignored, overlooked, or underappreciated. Our society has proven that sports has helped evolved our culture from facing immigration implications, struggling conflicts with racial divisions, and undergoing the Great depression of economic change unmatched by any society in the world. The emergence of sports served as an escape from the everyday stress, pain, and hardships Americans faced during these troubled times (Naison, 2002). Many of the sports that we as students enjoy so passionately have important significant history behind it that relates to the development of our society. I believe as students enrolled in a History of Sports college course we are responsible for embracing the knowledge of our favorite child hood sports we enjoy so dearly and how the development of these activities came to past.
Sabo’s explanation supports how important patriarchy is and has always been within certain religions. Sabo and Jenkins bring patriarchy and sports together by demonstrating how the two disciplines can potentially share an interdependent relationship. Sabo gives evidence to his claim by recalling that he thought “winning at football meant winning friends and carving a place for himself in the male pecking order” (425).
In the 1870s the game split between the professionals and amateurs; the professional game then gained dominance. Baseball also helped out other sports such as Cricket, which had been popular in Philadelphia to Baseball. American football also has its origins in the English game, with the first set of football rules based directly on the rules of the Football Association in London. Harvard chose to play a game based on the rules of Rugby football. Some historians say that team sports are primarily an invention of Western cultures.
Mexican-American War is a big event in the 19th century, in which the concept of Manifest Destiny was related with war. The Mexican-American War was not only for increased territory, but also a symbol of America's racial misunderstanding. Some White people have the superiority with themselves. [1] They took Mexican people’s land as Manifest Destiny, above all moral and law. Many Americans believe that God give them the power and duty to expand territory, strengthen the United States.
"The thing the sixties did was show us the possibilities and the responsibility that we all had. It wasn’t the answer. It just gave us a glimpse of the possibility." - John Lennon, December 8, 1980 Similar to the reformers, Bowerman and Flood showed absolute allegiance to their causes and, in doing so, had immense impact on modern sport and societal structure. Bill Bowerman’s unwavering message and example of what human beings, with effort and emotion, can accomplish, transformed track and the forthcoming culture of American athletics.
Hakluyt also pointed that the overflow of people, both in need of religious freedom and in want of more business opportunities, within England needed a place to go. America is not only perfect for dumping those excess peoples into, but also exceeds that by also bringing profit from those living in those colonies. One of the major points that Hakluyt drives home is the comeuppance to Spain by creating demand for goods and shipping, and thereby creating profit for England and away from the plundering Spanish. From the profits of the taxes and duties of the new shipping industry, Hakluyt believes a powerful navy can be built for the protection and preservation of the growing British Empire. In 1584, when Hakluyt wrote his Discourse, he says that England at the time was swarming with unemployed youths, men, soldiers, prisoners, and beggars.
The Evolution of the American Dream Before entering the Roaring Twenties, one of the interpretations of the American Dream was about equality amongst all people within society regardless of skin color or education. However, the Roaring Twenties brought forth the birth of mass culture, causing the American Dream to divert to something much different. With his novel The Great Gatsby (1925), F. Scott Fitzgerald reveals the transition of the American Dream from equality to money, which is prevalent through Nick Carraway’s reflection of advice from his father, Tom Buchanan’s feeling of superiority towards George Wilson, as well as Jay Gatsby’s constant wild parties. Racial inequality has always been present and was prevalent in the 1920s. Many felt as if an individual had colored skin, he or she was worth less than an individual who was not colored which brought conflicts with education and social rankings and caused more criticism amongst society.
A land where all were welcome and anyone, from any nation, any social status had every right in pride to be called American and achieve ‘The American Dream’. Even though America advertised for immigrants to pour in and fill the lands, some immigrant groups were restricted access to the ‘land of the free’. In the 1920’s there is range evidence to why a change in attitude could have occurred: Isolationism, Many historians arguing that a stricter policy on immigrants came from a detachment from European affairs. A mass of social and crime fears, nearly every immigrate being on the negative side of white Americans. Even the KKK can be argued as a factor: leading a whole nation prejudice against immigrants.
The American Dream: Fact or Fiction? In 1931, historian James T. Adams wrote a book called The Epic of America, which is also referred to as “The American Dream.” Adams describes how America is a land of dreams in which everyone has an opportunity to achieve what he or she desires according to ability and determination. The question is whether today’s meaning of “The American Dream” truly does give one the life of prosperity that immigrants travel here for, and that citizens expect. Today’s interpretation of “living the dream” is that hardworking citizens are able to take care of and improve their lives. This interpretation of “living the dream,” has begun to fade away, making “The American Dream” unattainable for many.
Inequity In Education In the United States we constantly talk about the idea of the American Dream, one of the most important facts in obtaining this dream is a solid education. That is why the United States has a public education system put in place to supposively give everyone an equal chance at the American Dream. Unfortunately the education system is mainly supported by state education funds and in several states these funds are distributed based on property taxes paid by the district. Due to distribution of state education funds based on property taxes, middle and lower class citizens are placed at an unfair advantage in the public education system. In the 1840 Horace Mann and other education reformist successfully managed to get to US government to pass several policies that supported the formation of a public government funded education system.