Marxism, Cultural Studies and Sport

Ian McDonald editor Ben Carrington editor

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Taylor & Francis Ltd

Published:5th Dec '08

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Marxism, Cultural Studies and Sport cover

The cultural ubiquity, political prominence and economic significance of contemporary sport present fertile terrain for its critical socio-cultural analysis. From corporate and media dominated mega-events like the Olympic Games, to state programmes for nation-building and health promotion, to the cultural politics of "race", gender, sexuality, age and disability, sport is so profoundly marked by relations of power that it lends itself to critique and deconstruction.

Marxism, Cultural Studies and Sport brings together leading experts on sport to address these issues and to reflect on the continued appeal of sport to people across the globe, as well as on the forms of inequality that sport both produces and highlights. Including a Foreword by Harry Cleaver and Afterword by Michael Bérubé, this book assesses the impact of this work on the fields of ‘mainstream’ Marxism and cultural studies. Marxism, Cultural Studies and Sport is centred on three vital questions:

  • Is Marxism still relevant for understanding sport in the twenty-first century?

  • Has Marxism been preserved or transcended by cultural studies?

  • What is the relationship between theory and intervention in the politics of sport?

The result is a unique and diverse examination of modern sports culture. The first book published on the relationship between sport and Marxism for over twenty years, Marxism, Cultural Studies and Sport isan invaluable resource for students of sport sociology, Marxism, and cultural studies at all levels.

"Theoretically provocative and enlightening" -- Leisure Studies

"Marxism, Cultural Studies and Sport is particularly welcome. There can be no better time to examine the ways in which both Marxism and Cultural Studies have enabled an examination of sport that can go beyond the merely biomechanical, the simplistically psychological or sociological descriptions of most sports studies" -- New Formations

"Including editors Ben Carrington and Ian McDonald, the eleven authors in this collection form an impressive team of sociologists, anthropologists, and media, race, and sports scholars...compared to most anthologies, this collection offers a degree of unity and coherence that is rarely found...Overall, the editors’ lofty goals for the volume—to raise the level of theoretical debate within sports studies and to focus the theoretical 'weaponry’ of Marxism and Cultural Studies on the field of sport—have been realized." -- Contemporary Sociology, 2010

"Ben Carrington and Ian McDonald’s anthology Marxism, Cultural Studies and Sport – the eighth volume in Routledge’s admirable Critical Studies in Sport series – successfully addresses all three of the aims outlined in the Series Editors’ Preface. [...]As a means by which to engage intellectually-curious undergraduates with an interest in the critical study of sport, and as a means for attempting to make sense of current sport policy – whereby the country is spending billions hosting the Olympics and bidding for World Cups while depriving its schools of adequate funding for grassroots sport – this volume is indispensible. - Neil Ewen, Independent Researcher

ISBN: 9780415375405

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: 690g

288 pages