From Ritual to Record by Allen Guttmann

¶ … Ritual to Record is not the first attempt of Allen Guttmann at sports analysis and writing. He has written three books and many articles on a variety of topics but mostly connected with history and literature. His passion for history probably propelled him in the direction of sports writing in this book where he studies the growth of sports in various cultures and focuses on the concept of modern sports. The author has done a great job at studying the phenomenon called modern sports in the broader context of cultural change and modern America culture. The thesis of the book revolves around modern sports and what makes it distinct and unique. The author argues that since sports have existed since time immemorial, the one thing that sets modern sports apart from ancient and pre-modern games is the "is the scientific world-view." Guttmann maintains that while sports existed in every part of the world, they are inherently different from country to country because of the impact of differing cultures. He argues that ritual has always been an important part of sports and agrees with Carl Diem who wrote that "all physical exercises were originally cultic" (16). The author believes that sports had a ritualistic significance till the 18th century when people focusing more on records, statistics and quantification.

In other words, the mathematical discoveries of the seventeenth century were popularized in the eighteenth century, at which time we can observe the beginnings of our modern obsession with quantification in sport. During the Age of the Enlightenment, we can see the transition from the Renaissance concept of "measure" in the sense of moderation and balance, to the modern concept of measurement. . The emergence of modern sports represents neither the triumph of capitalism nor the rise of Protestantism but rather the slow development of an empirical, experimental, mathematical Weltanschaurtng. (p.85).

Guttmann divides his book in six chapters with each one serving a different purpose. For example the first one focuses on definition of sports while the second one sets modern sport apart from ancient and medieval sports. The second chapter is quite important since it illustrates the seven key characteristics of modern sports. According to Guttmann, modern sports have seven important attributes including religious neutrality, equal opportunity for competition, record making and breaking, quantification etc. these seven characteristics that Guttmann has discovered are "to a remarkable degree the characteristics of modem society as described by Max Weber and Talcott Parsons." (p.69). The author is clearly in awe of American culture and its influence on moderns ports for his final chapter is devoted to American style of competition. He believes that Americans have a better sense of team spirit than other western nations. He feels that the true sense of freedom that American sportsmen and athletes enjoy is due a sense of individualism merged with team spirit. Guttman argues that the same is missing from other cultures especially European countries:

The other side of the liberal tradition, the side which developed into democratic socialism, has stressed the individualism which thrives under positive freedom, when a man is free to choose among alternatives and to act upon his choice. It is the opposite of the Spartan-like reduction of want exemplified by life at Walden Pond. For this conception of freedom, the transition from traditional to modern forms of social organization represents a net gain. An increased opportunity for each person to maximize his or her human potential. Under the conditions of modern democracy, society liberates because man in society is free to do what no man ever did alone. (p. 159).