The Chrysanthemum and the Bat by Robert Whiting. 1977. Avon Books.
So I've been talking a lot about how baseball differs from America to Japan. I found the perfect quote which does a great job of contrasting the two countrys' leagues by offering two contrasting similes for each one.
"American pro-baseball teams are run like corporations, with their members united by a common ability to play and their desire to make money. Not so in Japan, where a baseball team is more like a cohesive extended family unit held together by a complex web of interlocking personal obligations. The kind of intersquad bickering that characterizes some U.S. teams is virtually unknown."
This quote was great. It took the ideas I was already getting and put them on paper in a way that just presented information staright up through two similes.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Independent Reading Journal 10-21-08
The Chrysanthemum and the Bat by Robert Whiting. 1977. Avon Books.
In the last blog I touched on "Baseball Samurai Style." The game really is quite different in Japan. There is such an overwhelming sense of honor involved with Japanese players, where often times American players in the MLB would lack self responsibility and refuse to admit their accountability. Here's a couple of quotes:
"(On losing seven in a row): 'I apologize to the fans for this disgrace. I just hope we will get better. I don't know what has come over my pitching staff. they have lost their fighting spirit.' "
An American player would have expressed disappointment, but they probably would have said something like "well you know things happen and lady luck just wasn't on our side tonight." Not nearly as much responsibility is taken by American players.
"(A pitcher on pitching while sick and winning): 'It was very painful...From now on I am not going to think about my health anymore. I vow to think soley about pitching to help the team win the championship for our fans.' "
Rarely do you find such devotion in American baseball. I am not saying that pitching while sick is a good idea, but there is a difference between the two country's styles.
In the last blog I touched on "Baseball Samurai Style." The game really is quite different in Japan. There is such an overwhelming sense of honor involved with Japanese players, where often times American players in the MLB would lack self responsibility and refuse to admit their accountability. Here's a couple of quotes:
"(On losing seven in a row): 'I apologize to the fans for this disgrace. I just hope we will get better. I don't know what has come over my pitching staff. they have lost their fighting spirit.' "
An American player would have expressed disappointment, but they probably would have said something like "well you know things happen and lady luck just wasn't on our side tonight." Not nearly as much responsibility is taken by American players.
"(A pitcher on pitching while sick and winning): 'It was very painful...From now on I am not going to think about my health anymore. I vow to think soley about pitching to help the team win the championship for our fans.' "
Rarely do you find such devotion in American baseball. I am not saying that pitching while sick is a good idea, but there is a difference between the two country's styles.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Independent Reading Journal 10-14-08
The Chrysanthemum and the Bat by Robert Whiting. 1977. Avon Books
This is yet another book dealing with Japan that my dad recommended. I was in need of a nonfiction and I enjoy baseball and Japanese culture, so this book seemed like a nice fit. Though a bit dated, this book still offers an interesting look at Japanese culture through the game of baseball. The title is a play on words which alludes to a book entitled The Chrysanthemum and the Sword, which was a book which presented studies on Japanese culture.
The subtitle of the book is "Baseball Samurai Style," which made me laugh at first, but it actually makes sense. The sport is played in a completely different style that can be related to the ways of the samurai. There is an incredible sense of honor in Japanese baseball. After a terrible defeat or finishing last in the division, managers, coaches, and sometimes players will resign from their position rather than accept defeat and live in shame. This makes one think of the way samurais used to commit suicide when defeated because they could not live in shame. There are quotes from players cited from Japanese newspapers which convey this extreme sense of honor. I will touch on these in the next blog.
This is yet another book dealing with Japan that my dad recommended. I was in need of a nonfiction and I enjoy baseball and Japanese culture, so this book seemed like a nice fit. Though a bit dated, this book still offers an interesting look at Japanese culture through the game of baseball. The title is a play on words which alludes to a book entitled The Chrysanthemum and the Sword, which was a book which presented studies on Japanese culture.
The subtitle of the book is "Baseball Samurai Style," which made me laugh at first, but it actually makes sense. The sport is played in a completely different style that can be related to the ways of the samurai. There is an incredible sense of honor in Japanese baseball. After a terrible defeat or finishing last in the division, managers, coaches, and sometimes players will resign from their position rather than accept defeat and live in shame. This makes one think of the way samurais used to commit suicide when defeated because they could not live in shame. There are quotes from players cited from Japanese newspapers which convey this extreme sense of honor. I will touch on these in the next blog.
Independent Reading Journal 10-14-08
The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. 1971. MacMillan Company
I finished Screwtape Letters a while ago, but I haven't blogged about it in a while, so I'll get in one more blog before I move on to the book I am currently reading.
Screwtape: "We produce [a human's] sense of ownership not only by pride but by confusion. We teach them not to notice the different senses of the possessive pronoun–the finely graded differences that run from 'my boots' through 'my dog', 'my servant', 'my wife', 'my father', 'my master', and 'my country' to 'my God'. They can be taught to reduce all these senses to that of 'my boots', the 'my' of ownership."
This quote really caught me by surprise. I had never thought of any such idea before. Never before had I thought about the significance of "my God." Do people really use all these possessives the same way? I think not. While Screwtape's point may be interesting, I do not think it is entirely accurate. People do not use all possessives in the sense of "my boots." Otherwise there would be nothing wrong with saying "my God." This is often seen as swearing by many Christians, because the significance is much greater than a simple "my boots" possessive. Althoug, looking at it again, I see that Screwtape states that humans can be taught to reduce them all to "my boots." So, this is probably true.
I finished Screwtape Letters a while ago, but I haven't blogged about it in a while, so I'll get in one more blog before I move on to the book I am currently reading.
Screwtape: "We produce [a human's] sense of ownership not only by pride but by confusion. We teach them not to notice the different senses of the possessive pronoun–the finely graded differences that run from 'my boots' through 'my dog', 'my servant', 'my wife', 'my father', 'my master', and 'my country' to 'my God'. They can be taught to reduce all these senses to that of 'my boots', the 'my' of ownership."
This quote really caught me by surprise. I had never thought of any such idea before. Never before had I thought about the significance of "my God." Do people really use all these possessives the same way? I think not. While Screwtape's point may be interesting, I do not think it is entirely accurate. People do not use all possessives in the sense of "my boots." Otherwise there would be nothing wrong with saying "my God." This is often seen as swearing by many Christians, because the significance is much greater than a simple "my boots" possessive. Althoug, looking at it again, I see that Screwtape states that humans can be taught to reduce them all to "my boots." So, this is probably true.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Independent Reading Journal 10-7-08
The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. 1961. Macmillan Company.
Screwtape: "Your man has been accustomed, ever since he was a boy, to having a dozen incompatible philosophies dancing about together in his head. He doesn't think of doctrines as primarily true or false, but as academic or practical, outworn or contemporary, conventional or ruthless."
This statement seemed interesting to me. I think, for the most part i agree. There are so many different doctrines and philosophies people are introduced to now a days. Mostly people see new ideas as conventional or contemporary. For instance, Scientology. Scientology may be seen as wrong to some, but I think mostly people look at Scientology as unconventional and contemporary. Christianity isn't necessarily seen as correct by most Americans. It's just been around long enough that people have accepted it as conventional.
Screwtape: "Your man has been accustomed, ever since he was a boy, to having a dozen incompatible philosophies dancing about together in his head. He doesn't think of doctrines as primarily true or false, but as academic or practical, outworn or contemporary, conventional or ruthless."
This statement seemed interesting to me. I think, for the most part i agree. There are so many different doctrines and philosophies people are introduced to now a days. Mostly people see new ideas as conventional or contemporary. For instance, Scientology. Scientology may be seen as wrong to some, but I think mostly people look at Scientology as unconventional and contemporary. Christianity isn't necessarily seen as correct by most Americans. It's just been around long enough that people have accepted it as conventional.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
List
Things I Like: Soccer, Baseball, English Premier League, Newcastle United, Atlanta Braves, Video Games, Movies, Music, The Outdoors- Camping, Hiking, Canoeing and Kayaking, Food- Pizza, Subs, Chicken, Chinese Food, UGA, GT, Appalachian State, Traveling, Foreign Countries, Maryland, Georgia, Japan, Television- Discovery Channel, ESPN, AMC, Daily Show, Colbert Report, Hanging out with Friends, Sleeping, Chilling and doing Nothing.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Independent Reading Journal 10-1-08
The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. 1961. Macmillan Company.
So I was talking the other day and I mentioned I was reading Screwtape Letters. I had always heard a lot about it because of people I knew and my family all knew about it, but this person I was talking to had never heard of it. it occurred to me that maybe not everyone knows about this book even though it's pretty well known. Here's the basic premise of the book: Screwtape a demon working for Satan writes a series of letters to his nephew Wormwood. Wormwood is sort of a demon in training, so Screwtape's letters usually talk about how to handle human subjects (people the demons are responsible for getting to Hell). He gives Wormwood lots of good demon advice of how to sway the person and defeat their enemies working for Him (God). So far I have only seen Screwtapes side of the correspondence between the two, but apparently Wormwood writes back because Screwtape references letters he received. It's interesting, witty, and philosophical. At times some things seem to go over my head and I need to go back and re read and re think for a while. It's definitely a book that makes you think.
So I was talking the other day and I mentioned I was reading Screwtape Letters. I had always heard a lot about it because of people I knew and my family all knew about it, but this person I was talking to had never heard of it. it occurred to me that maybe not everyone knows about this book even though it's pretty well known. Here's the basic premise of the book: Screwtape a demon working for Satan writes a series of letters to his nephew Wormwood. Wormwood is sort of a demon in training, so Screwtape's letters usually talk about how to handle human subjects (people the demons are responsible for getting to Hell). He gives Wormwood lots of good demon advice of how to sway the person and defeat their enemies working for Him (God). So far I have only seen Screwtapes side of the correspondence between the two, but apparently Wormwood writes back because Screwtape references letters he received. It's interesting, witty, and philosophical. At times some things seem to go over my head and I need to go back and re read and re think for a while. It's definitely a book that makes you think.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)