Playing Games

What is sport? Why does sport matter? How can we use philosophy to understand what sport means today? This engaging and original introduction to the philosophy of sport uses dialogue - a form of philosophical investigation - to address the fundamental questions in sport studies and to explore key contemporary issues such as fair play, gender, drug use, cheating, entertainment and identity.

Randolph Feezell is Professor of Philosophy at Creighton University, USA. His classroom and research interests include ethics, philosophy of religion and philosophy of sport. He is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of the Philosophy of Sport and is the author of six books as well as numerous articles and reviews. Feezell played baseball at the University of Oklahoma and has coached baseball at virtually all levels, including over 10 years as a college assistant and hitting coach. He has played semiprofessional baseball, AAU basketball and tournament tennis.

Introduction Dialogue 1. Why Philosophy of Sport Dialogue 2. What is Sport? Dialogue 3. Sportsmanship Dialogue 4. Cheating and Running Up the Score Dialogue 5. Trash Talking and Gamesmanship Dialogue 6. Competition and Winning Dialogue 7. Drugs and Sport Dialogue 8. Gender and Sports Dialogue 9. Fans and Role Models Dialogue 10. Sport and Meaning: Do Sports Matter?