My favourite personal essay

Introduction:

From the days of merely hitting the ball with ones hand, Tennis has undergone an impressive transformation since the 19^th Century. Many rules have been introduced to increase the regulation of the sport - for example the introduction of the racquet - conforming to the theory of ‘sportization’.

Elias proposed that a process occurs whereby the framework of rules in sport becomes stricter which, in turn, provides equality in sport as a whole. The theory stemmed from the political confliction of the time between various European societies, relating to the imbalance of power between the ruling classes of the time. This thus reflected the need for a structure to politics, as well as in a sporting sense, with rules seemingly becoming a necessity for stability. Regulation of the sport served to abolish the idea of inequality in sport as the leisured class and the poorer working classes were able to, essentially, play the same sport.

Background Information:

Tennis formed one of the major sports in the second-wave of sportization of pastimes, with the modernised version of the sport primarily emerging in the 19th century. Elias concluded that sports like tennis had become an integral factor of the civilisation process, suggesting that other games followed tennis’ role of becoming more regulated to avoid high levels of violence, which were evident in Greek and Roman sports such as ‘Folk’ Football, boxing or wrestling.

An argument about the theory: 

One critique of Elias’ figurational sociology theory is the argument that the perception of modernity is too narrow-minded. It seemingly refuses to acknowledge the idea of capitalism in society at the time, tying in with Berman’s proposal that modernity was primarily concerning “a Promethean vision of human possibilities based on the necessity for constant growth and continual revolutionizing of production."

 This theory would appear to be a clearer indication of the link between different types of tennis and different social classes. For example, the poorer, working classes would have been forced to play on an ad hoc basis in the 19^th century, as opposed to the wealthier contingent, who were able to afford the correct equipment and use the correct courts freely on a regular basis. This links in with the idea of capitalism playing a vital part in tennis, as it is still seen, even today, as a predominantly upper-class man’s game.

Conclusion:

The idea of the development of sport can be typified through tennis. From basic court markings to wooden tennis balls, the 19^th century version of the game reflects the idea of a lack of standardisation and regulation. Through the ‘sportization process’, tennis and other sports have been able to establish themselves as a proper force in the sporting infrastructure and ultimately lead to a more commercialised sporting age.