East Baton Rouge Parish Library

Knowing the score, what sports can teach us about philosophy (and what philosophy can teach us about sports), David Papineau

eng

Includes bibliographical references and index

index present

non fiction

Knowing the score

bibliography

958798503

David Papineau

what sports can teach us about philosophy (and what philosophy can teach us about sports)

"In Knowing the Score, philosopher David Papineau explores what philosophy can teach us about sports, and what sports can teach us about philosophy. Beginning with various sporting questions and challenges, Papineau digs into modern philosophy's most perplexing questions. For instance, he discusses drafting techniques in cycling to shed new light on questions of altruism, and examines cricket family "dynasties" to help broaden the debate over nature v. nurture. When Papineau began writing this book, he thought he could illuminate sports by viewing it through a philosophical lens. But the more he wrote, the more he realized that it was the other way around - the study of sports clarifies, challenges, and sometimes confuses crucial issues in philosophy. Why do sports competitors choke? How can Roger Federer select which shot to play in 400 milliseconds? Why do fans think God will favor their team over their rivals? Why does motor racing, but not football, run in families? How can it be moral to deceive the umpire by framing a pitch? From all of these questions, and many more, philosophy has a great deal to learn. An entertaining and and erudite book that ranges far and wide through the sporting world, Knowing the Score is perfect reading for armchair philosophers and Monday morning quarterbacks alike"--, Provided by publisher

Part I : Focus. Having your mind right -- In the blink of an eye -- Choking and the yips -- Part II : Rules. Professional fouls and political obligation -- Morality, convention, and soccer fakery -- Cads of the most unscrupulous kidney -- Part III : Teams. The logic of fandom -- Sporting teams, spacetime worms, and Israeli soccer -- Mutualism and the art of road cycle racing -- Game theory and team reasoning -- Part IV : Tribes. Civil society and sporting eligibility -- Sporting nations and political geography -- Race, ethnicity, and joining the club -- Nature, nurture,a nd sporting families -- Part V : Values. Amateur values and ulterior motives -- The Coase theorem and sporting capitalism -- History, tradition, and the meaning of football -- Shankly, Chomsky, and the nature of sport