America’s Sport Fans

For professional sport teams to exist there must be fans, or people willing to pay often outrageous amounts of money for a ticket to see the competition. Why do Americans go to professional sport games when (in almost every instance) one can get a better view of all the action by watching television? I think it has to do with the idea of one being in the presence of a truly talented and influential person. Everyone wants to say they were at the Yankee stadium when Alex Rodriguez hit his 600th homerun. Americans love being apart of history, and having a good story to tell to friends and family. If one watch’s on TV the homerun hit by Alex Rodriguez, thousands of people have seen the exact same homerun via television, but if one is actually at the game, the number of people who had that same experience is drastically reduced.

What does all this have to do with sport humor? Well, I first had to rationalize why people attend professional sport games before I can analyze this young sport's fan holding an obnoxious sign above his head. In bold words the sign reads The Guy Behind Me Can’t See, and just bellow the sign one sees the boy’s grinning face, staring right at the photographer. If one is paying to see a professional game, the last thing needed is a person, much less poster obstructing his view. This picture is humorous because it creates irony. Why does the poster have to say it is obstructing the view of the spectator when this is so obvious?

This picture gives us some insight into a hidden truth about many Americans; they consider their own enjoyment first, before the enjoyment of others. This boy is having fun at someone else's expense. Perhaps he has been the victim of not being able to see due to someone else's sign. Now, through humor or the irony of the situation, he has his moment in the lights. Someone might suggest that everyone all over the world makes sure they are having fun before the fun of others. Americans are on a different level. We love to take control of any and all situations. If a room is too cold, we will just turn up the heat. If a boy is holding an irritating sign blocking our view of a playing field, we can do nothing. Not being able to correct a situation is what annoys Americans the most. Americans love to be in control.

A Sport Joke

When a person thinks of humor, what is the first thing that comes to their mind? Jokes. Jokes make the world more joyous and interesting because they can show hidden truths about different subjects, while at the same time lightening up one’s mood. Many jokes are said in a half-joking, half-serious manner. This leads us to another question, what makes a joke funny? What makes a joke especially funny is if the person reading it can in someway relate it to an experience he had at some point in his life. I find sport jokes particularly humorous because they (in a blunt and truthful way) make a seemingly serious and intense subject entertaining. Here is an example of a sports joke.

A senior basketball player at the University of Pittsburgh, 'I'm going to graduate on time, no matter how long it takes.'

To fully understand this joke, one must be fairly knowledgeable about sport recruitment, basketball, and life as a college student. Not always, but most of the time, recruits for serious college sports teams tend to have weaker grades and test scores than other students. Why? Well, for a player to be recruited, that player must be exceptional at his or her sport. In other words, a recruit must have practiced and spent an exorbitant amount of time playing the sport. Thus, one often gives up the time to study.

Basketball is an extremely time intensive sport that requires much practice and discipline for one to succeed, especially in college. So when this quote says, “ I’m going to graduate on time, no matter how long it takes,’” one finds this humorous because that player has probably spent the majority of his or her time playing basketball. This statement is ironic because no person can graduate “on time” if there is not a specific date on which to graduate. This seemingly contradictory statement might allude to the intelligence of the player, just because of his or her illogical thought pattern. Americans love to joke about sports and find any fault they can with athletes who are so good at what they do, because they are seemingly untouchably good. Making a joke of a talented athlete brings that athlete slightly down from their revered, at times immortalized status. Americans do not like to feel as though they are inferior to anyone.

Catching a Baseball: See photo entry below

I know you have been waiting in great anticipation for this moment. Get ready for Americas favorite pastime. Americans sitting around eating doughnuts? No! Baseball, or at least being a fan (i.e. watching TV). Baseball is one of those sports were the player does not have to be in good shape. He just needs to be powerful enough (big enough), and have good hand-to-eye (video gaming) skills. So basically what I am saying is a friend of a friend of mine who plays video games all the time and swings a bat a lot could potentially become a famous baseball player. But, there is one area a friend of a friend of mine would fail at on baseball because he does not take steroids. Baseball players must take steroids to make up for all the working out they don’t do!

What makes this picture funny? Well, usually the circled section of a picture is a good place to start! The man throwing his hands up, sticking his tongue out, closing his eyes, and looking ridiculously similar to a monkey is humorous. This man has put on his “defensive pose” just because a New York Yankee’s baseball player is trying to catch a ball that he probably won’t catch. Everyone who is not in the immediate vicinity of the ball or baseball player observes the proceedings nonchalantly. People who are not involved in a frightening experience see no reason not to make fun of those who are. How can people be so insensitive? Perhaps it is because our culture is so accustomed to making fun of those who scared, as shown in television and magazines. The second reason why this picture might be seen as humorous is the centralized position of No. 20’s buttocks. Any person would be in such an awkward position if they were trying to catch a ball by leaning over a railing. Americans have a fascination with “potty humor,” or anything that is deemed rude to talk about in polite society. What is more abnormal and undignified then to see a picture of a man’s buttocks?

How Frightening is Catching a Baseball?

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