1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910814035303321

Autore

Butterworth Michael L

Titolo

Baseball and rhetorics of purity : the national pastime and American identity during the war on terror / / Michael L. Butterworth

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Tuscaloosa, : University of Alabama Press, c2010

ISBN

0-8173-8397-2

Edizione

[1st ed.]

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (248 p.)

Collana

Rhetoric, culture, and social critique

Disciplina

306.4/83

Soggetti

Baseball - Social aspects - United States

War on Terrorism, 2001-2009

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Description based upon print version of record.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Contents; Preface and Acknowledgments; Introduction: Rhetoric and the American Game; 1. Ritual in the "Church of Baseball": Performing Patriotism at the Ballpark; 2. "Baseball as America": Nostalgia and Public Memory through the National Pastime; 3. Purifying the Body Politic: Steroids and the Rhetorical Cleansing of Baseball; 4. Headed for Home: Bringing Baseball Back to the Nation's Capital; 5. Making the World Safe for Baseball: American Mission and the World Baseball Classic; Conclusion: Reconstituting the National Pastime; Notes; Bibliography; Index

Sommario/riassunto

Baseball has long been considered America's "national pastime," touted variously as a healthy diversion, a symbol of national unity, and a model of democratic inclusion. But, according to Michael Butterworth, such favorable rhetoric belies baseball's complicity in the rhetorical construction of a world defined by good and evil. Baseball and Rhetorics of Purity is an investigation into the culture and mythology of baseball, a study of its limits and failures, and an invitation to remake the game in a more democratic way. It pays special attention to baseball's rol