John Nauright

Timothy John Lindsay Chandler

This volume is concerned with how an understanding of rugby football can provide insights into what it has meant to 'be a man' in societies influenced by the ideals of the Victorian upper and middle classes. The essays chart rugby's development from its origins in the English public schools and ancient universities to its acceptance in the farthest reaches of what was once the British Empire. Despite widespread geographical and cultural diffusion the game remained resilient in upholding the Victorian qualities of self-sacrifice and manliness. Making Men highlights the changes and continuities which the game of rugby and its masculine traditions have undergone in different times and places. It shows that, while rugby has been used as a means of promoting male exclu-sivity it has also been a means of cultural incorporation. The book concludes with a discussion of the present and future of rugby and the impact of the World Cup, professionalism and commercialism on the game.

Rugby and Masculine Identity

Making Men

Tara Magdalinski

'Sport' and 'religion' are cultural institutions with a global reach. Each is characterised by ritualised performance and by the ecstatic devotion of its followers, whether in the sports arena or the cathedral of worship. This fascinating collection is the first to examine, in detail, the relationship between these two cultural institutions from an international, religiously pluralistic perspective. It illuminates the role of sport and religion in the social formation of collective groups, and explores how sport might operate in the service of a religious community. The book offers a series of cutting-edge contemporary historical case-studies, wide-ranging in their social and religious contexts. It presents important new work on the following fascinating topics: * sport and Catholicism in Northern Ireland * Shinto and sumo in Japan * women, sport and the American Jewish identity * religion, race and rugby in South Africa * sport and Islam in France and North Africa * sport and Christian fundamentalism in the US * Muhammad Ali and the Nation of Islam. With God on their Side is vital reading for all students of the history, sociology and culture of sport. It also presents important new research material that will be of interest to religious studies students, historians and anthropologists.

Timothy John Lindsay Chandler

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