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Essay

Decent Essays

English 1100
Compare and Contrast of “African National Identities Can’t be Built on Soccer Fever” and “Na Na Na Na, Hey Hey, Goodbye” In Jonathan Zimmerman’s essay “African National Identities Can’t Be Built on Soccer Fever” he describes how soccer brings the people of Africa together. He talks about the unity of Africans and how much soccer is a part of their lives. He also describes the underlying reason of why soccer is so heavily pushed. The perspective in the essay “Na Na Na Na, Hey Hey, Goodbye” Tim Bowling discusses his passion for hockey and his hate for the violence. Both show the passion countrymen have for their sports as well as the ugly side of the sport as well. In “Na Na Na Na, Hey Hey, Goodbye”, Bowling describes how …show more content…

Though their writings show similarity in the negativity that surround these sports, their essays differ for the feelings the writers feel now. Bowling refuses to watch hockey, whereas, Zimmerman still has a passion for the sport. For Bowling the sport has been ruined by the violence, the marketing, and the ways it has changed from a sport to business. He says, “ When I was a boy, the boards, ice, and score clock were free of advertising; goals and assists meant more than salaries; and players and teams had distinct character” (Bowling,215). For Bowling, he was still looking for the same sport that he watched growing up, what he sees today, he does not recognize. According to him young boys are being sexually abused by coaches, players are badly hurting others and people like Don Cherry are exploiting others for a good laugh. He sees violence everywhere in the sport now, not the good, old, pure sportsmanship he saw growing up. He also says, “Why should I follow a sport whose foundation in this country is made of blood and beer and an empty rhetoric around outdated and destructive notions of patriotism and manhood” (Bowling, 215). He loves the sport but cannot support what has become of it. Zimmerman shares the love for soccer as other Africans, he says, “my heart will break too, if Ghana fails to win the Africa Cup” (Zimmerman, 346). He wishes for the best, for both the country and the sport. He doesn’t want them to build an identity around

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