Football and American Culture
Football is as American as apple pie. But is apple pie even American? As many of us know, football (and apple pie) has its roots from that island across the pond, and like everything American, depending on who you ask, is a derivative of the original thing or its final form after a series of evolutions. But this, for nearly all Americans, doesn’t matter. Football is American, there’s only one football (the other is called soccer), and football is as American as apple pie. The sport itself, like the stubbornness of most Americans (myself included), is an embodiment of the American psyche. It’s tough but flashy. It’s dirty but a show. It’s built by the elite but a sport for the people. But most importantly it’s over-the-top, exciting, and a near-religious phenomenon. Fridays, Saturdays, and most importantly Sundays in the fall are reserved for football. There is no debate. The second those Friday night lights come on at high schools across America, it is time for football. But what makes this sport so uniquely American?
American Grit
Football, like America itself was built by immigration, nearly everything that is American is from elsewhere. Football, or gridiron football, is some strange amalgamation of rugby and soccer. What places it in its unique category, aside from its complex rules, are the pads, which allow for contact without apprehension. Like when the first…
