Introduction to the Philosophy of Sport

by Heather Lynne Reid

This comprehensive text examines the history, significance, and philosophical dimensions of sport. Introduction to the Philosophy of Sport is organized to reflect the traditional division of philosophy into metaphysical, ethical, and sociopolitical issues, while incorporating specific concerns of today's athletic world, such as cheating, doping, and Title IX, where they are applicable. This approach provides students with a basic understanding of the philosophy of sport as a whole and better equips them to investigate specific issues. Introduction to the Philosophy of Sport is not only an outline of the discipline and a summary of much of its pioneering work, but also an invitation for students to join the conversation by connecting it to their own athletic experience.

Genres: Sports, Philosophy

264 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2012

Reviews

[Shelly Dee · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is nice as an introduction to problems in the philosophy of sport. It is written for undergrads and would be a good starting point for structuring a class on sport. The book contains its own sets of discussion questions.

I appreciated Reid's attempts to include both Eastern and Western traditional perspectives on sports, games, play, and leisure. Ultimately, though, I don't think the book is particularly interesting (probably even to undergrads) perhaps because it is too superficial to be of interest to those interested in details but too detailed to make a great introduction. This is probably colored (for me) by the seeming slap-dash treatment concerning the metaphysics of sporting, games, and play.

[Shawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reid’s text does exactly what the title says: introduces the philosophy of sport. She covers the main stays of the discipline: the leading thinkers, the primary themes, and the central arguments. It does not go into great detail in any of these; the goal seems more to lay out the main elements and leave readers with enough context and direction to pursue particular issues on their own.

I have my quibbles with particular arguments: both in terms of presentation and content. Nonetheless, I think Reid presents and sticks to the standard main line of philosophy of sport. I think it could serve quite well as the primary text for an introductory level philosophy of sport class.