Book critique: Season of Life by Jeffery Marx
Season of Life appeals to the readers’ understanding of masculinity in so many ways that it is difficult to identify any one aspect of the book as being the most positive influence. Masculinity has to be one of the most stereotyped concepts. This applies all the more to the male dominated sport – football. I appreciated the fact that Jeffery Marx not only challenges the traditional concepts of manliness, but dedicates and entire book to it! What makes this effort all the more laudable is the fact that Marx belongs to the very sports fraternity whose views he is questioning. It is very intriguing that Marx uses this fact to his own benefit, relying on the popularity of college football to drive home the point that, football players are human beings first, men later. American’s love football and most of the population that religiously follows the sport will be aware of the self-worth issues that these men face, often resorting to substance abuse in order to cope with the demanding lifestyle and expectations of maintaining a ‘manly’ image at all times. Marx draws in the audiences’ sympathies towards their football heroes, tackling a potentially controversial subject with such sublime sensitivity that his point is made, and no one gets offended.
One of the points that I did not like about the book is its scope for appealing to those readers who are not football fanatics. Season of Life is a fairly short book and I personally liked the fact that it was not too wordy. Yet, I feel that Marx could have given some more thought to those readers who will not be able to relate to everything that he is conveying as they are not familiar with the world of college football. Considering the fact that the book aims to change mindsets about what is traditionally accepted as manly behaviour, keeping the content to short defeats the purpose if it is not able to convince readers that there is a need for change. Finally, I somehow cannot visualize the college football fraternity accepting the ‘love each other’ philosophy with open arms! It is the aggression and team rivalry that makes the sport so exciting. Football is not what one would call a ‘gentleman’s sport.
Having said that, just because the acceptance of a message by its audience is doubtful, that does not mean that the message is insignificant. Season of Life conveys a very significant message and calls for a change in perception that could change the lives of college footballers for the better, a lot better. Marx first reveals the world of football as a place men need to be promiscuous, strong and filthy rich in order to be considered real men. He then breaks this image of material success by revealing the shallow, unfulfilled lives that these men are often forced to live as a result of the need to adhere to the masculine stereotype. Joe and Biff’s story and their ‘Build men for others’ idea teaches us that thinking differently, and addressing issues of these men instead of pretending that they do not exist, can greatly improve the footballers sense of fulfilment and happiness in life. Just because these men are not outwardly aggressive all the time, or are loyal to their sexual partners, does not mean that they cannot be a winning team.
Stereotypes are nothing but how the world sees a section of the society. However, if these ‘norms’ do not give you happiness, then thinking differently and acting on change can lead to are more fulfilled life where relationship matter more than money.
Works Cited
Marx, J. (2003). Season of life - A football star, a boy, a journey to manhood. New York: Simon & Schuster.
