Example Of Essay On Dont Use We When Referring To Your Favorite Pro Sports Team

Annemarie Jutel vide her book Running Like a Girl: Women’s Running Books and the Paradox of Traditions attempts to demystify the involvement of women in running, a sporting activity that was previously dominated by and believed to be the forte of men to the extent that any woman wanted to be associated with running let alone taking part in the running itself. She posits, and emphatically so, that even those who dared to partake in such activity, did so cautiously and with utmost restraint for fear of becoming more muscular and less feminine and thus less appealing. Her article is replete with references to literary works on women’s progressive involvement in sport by various prominent and prolific women sports writers who all contend that women should focus less on the masculinizing effect of running and more on the health and aesthetic benefits. She critically analyses the impact and implications of the women’s running books on the uptake of running as a sport and a way to stay healthy particularly by women. She also highlights her understanding and internalization of the concept of women’s involvement in running either as a sport or as a normal or usual health riff-raff. Her focus lies more on the worrying and almost religious dedication of women to traditional feminine values of delicate beauty, grace and feminine charm as the only hallmarks of a better woman. This paper seeks to carefully and keenly interrogate the rather incisive ideas and analysis of the import of women’s running books by Jutel with the view to developing a more refined understanding of women and sports, more so running.
Jutel, in page one of her essay Running Like a Girl: Women’s Running Books and the Paradox of Traditions runs us in on studies that allegedly found out that historically, women, and girls in particular, engaged their bodies in far less strenuous physical activities due to the misplaced misconception or perception that either their bodies were generally too fragile or that such engagements had the potential of impacting their feminity. Running would therefore, in such circumstances, be least of the activities they would find pleasure in. Her contention however, is that, with the advent of the many running books, coupled by incessant prodding from the rather adventurous sisters, women have come to appreciate running not just as a healthy exercise but also as a sport and which sport their involvement in has been on an upward trajectory. She, for instance refers to a survey of women’s running books from their conception in the 1970s that revealed a persistent tension between the traditions of femininity and the increasing opportunities available to women today particularly in sports. The strong woman is no longer labelled as deviant or tagged as exceptional; such image is not only appreciated but also jealously adored. As Heywood and Dworkin retort in their book Built to Win, it is nowadays common-place to find extremely confident women sporting athletic or ripped bodies with executive titles to boot. They are not only sexy and powerful but also confident, and aggressively so.
It is noteworthy that the interplay between the expectation of the society and the general belief in the misplaced assertion that women were generally weak immensely contributed to their poor and/ slow uptake or involvement in sporting activities, This was further compounded by the general perception that only men could partake certain activities particularly those that were considered strenuous or energy supping. In assessing and celebrating the ever-rising rates of involvement of women in sporting activities particularly running, Jutel refers to Judith Halberstam who posited that such involvement is a sign that the world is making major advancements towards gender parity. She contends that running books reveal the persistence of feminine movement in the contemporary women’s experience of exercise and that such books remain vital in empowering women, at least in the sporting context. There is however, and interestingly so, a trend towards what was previously considered acceptable in terms the roles of women and the sporting activities they could or were allowed to partake in. As Zimmerman, Holm and Haddock put it, the most popular and best-selling self-help books are those that are most overt and extreme in their endorsement of traditional gender relationships.
The depiction of the modern athletic woman by Jutel as sexy, fulfilled and powerful can however, only be summed up as inaccurate and manifestly misleading. Indeed she strangely admits that women’s participation in sport is seldom a kind of panacea as many people tend to believe thanks to extensive lobbying by advocacy groups. Moreover contemporary writers of women running books, whose aim, over and above the making of profits, is to strongly convince women into believing in their ability to run, agree to a large extent their efforts serve to empower the woman rather than force or push her into getting involved in running. Jutel however gives a crystal clear explanation that the corporate woman today, despite not being a runner, gets involved in running with an end in sight- to build
This paper agrees with Jutel that the modern woman, be she a runner or corporate mogul appreciates running as it makes them more assertive, confident, alert, self-aware or better still, progressive. The rather interesting bit is that even the female runners would still, even now, want to be identified first as wives or mothers and not as runners first.
Both early and contemporary writers of women’s running books push their readers into believing in their ability to take the first running strides. They do this by establishing the credibility of the writer or the author as a woman who has achieved much as a runner. For instance, these books introduce the woman runner author whose life has been to a greater extent, changed by running. She gives the example of Olympic champion marathoner Joan Benoit Samuelson who, she says downplays her sporting performances in her Running for Women. While she acknowledges and appreciates her competitive sporting skills and the great passion with which she has been competing for over twenty years, she reassures her readers that she is like all other women, with her biggest challenge being the quest to remain, feel and act normal and to be seen as such.
Jutel while echoing the sentiments of Kathryn Switzer contends that though running may have been a relatively new activity and experience for many women, it was not one whose implication of effect was to force women out of their traditional roles in the society and as such they could engage in it while maintaining their femininity, a factor which is entirely at home both with them and the public at large. It should be noted however, this paper finds this contention hollow and completely lacking in practical basis. The involvement of women in sport, either directly or indirectly has not affected much their otherwise traditional roles. The impact of such sporty engagement is nowhere near that of corporate. The fact that some men are not involved in sport does not make those involved more of men than those who don’t. Put more clearly, women should not classify their involvement in sport as emancipation as Jutel wants to make everyone believe. In fact, all writers whose articles she has heavily relied on have assumed and wrongly so, that people admire women involved in sport on account of their athletic bodies. The truth is no gentleman or lady will tell at face value whether a woman is a runner not unless she makes a pronouncement of the same or when she is actually seen running; otherwise there are nowadays many people who are naturally blessed with athletic bodies. The loss of femininity that Jutel associates with involvement of women in sport is, in my considered view, misplaced. It is my belief, all the scholarly work aside, that men and even women admired athletic look on someone regardless of whether the bearer of that look was actively engaged in running or completely new to even the running concept.
The only logical benefit of running, as outlined and explained by Jutel is that of a stay-healthy guarantee. It is common knowledge that he or she who exercises the mind and the body, the method, including running notwithstanding is always set or on a path to good and healthy life. The exception that Jutel and other female authors attempt’ at creating, disguised as perceived emancipation of women who engage in sport, is more academic than it is real. No woman will be considered unique on account of having taken part in a run or on the fact that she is a runner.
On the conside ration, the involvement of women in mainstream sports including running is one that has not grabbed as much attention as Jutel endeavours to make us believe. Though involvement of women in the mainstream corporate career is a justifiable manifestation of their emancipation, the same cannot be said for games or running altogether.