The Rites of Men

'Bingo! Varda Burstyn has done it. This extraordinary book is a first. With great intelligence and insight it underlines the central role sport plays in the "making of men" in modern Western culture. It should be required reading for anyone seriously interested in the pervasive influence of sport today. What she writes is true: major spectator sport creates and reinforces the cultural matrix that underpins our capitalist political economy. If you want to discover how it all came about, read this book.' -- David Meggyesy, Western Director, National Football League Players Association 'Superb! Varda Burstyn combines an historical analysis of the role of sport in the making of white masculinity with a discussion of sexuality, gender, and homoeroticism. The Rites of Men is one of the very best books on sports and masculinity.' -- Michael Kimmel, Professor of Sociology, SUNY Stony Brook, and author of Manhood in America 'This is a must-read, with profound insights into the fascination and power of sports in modern societies. Men and women who love sports may be uncomfortable with what Burstyn reveals, but if we are to realize the liberating potential of sports, we must address her critique.' -- Bruce Kidd, Dean, Faculty of Physical Education and Health, University of Toronto 'Brace yourself! This book will outrage sport. In an articulate examination that includes the entire game - sex, drugs, fatherhood, violence, marketing, and profit - Varda Burstyn gives voice to what many of us have felt at a gut level for years. That voice is bold and exactly on the mark. Bravo!' -- Betty Baxter, former captain and coach of Canada's Olympic Volleyball Team and founding member of the Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport 'A devastating feminist critique of contemporary sport' -- Tariq Ali, The Independent

It gathers more spectators on a global basis than any other activity today. More than just a game, sport has profound political and social consequences, promoting a super-aggressive ideal of manhood and political culture.

It gathers more spectators on a global basis than any other activity today, yet sport is widely regarded as being outside dominant political and social systems. Varda Burstyn challenges this view, showing not only that sport generates an elitist, masculinist account of power and social order, but that it is central to the constitution of political power in contemporary life.

Burstyn begins by describing the emergence of sport as a masculinist secular religion by the close of the last century. Today, she argues, masculine dominance continues to be constructed and promoted by the multibillion-dollar nexus that has harnessed sport as the consummate sales agent. She goes on to show that the super-aggressive ideal of manhood, as practised, modelled, and animated through the culture of sport, has profound social and political consequences.

Combining some of the best insights of feminist theory with the perspectives of history, political science, economics, psychology, sociology, and cultural criticism, this book brings a new dimension to sport as a subject for serious scholarship.