One Essay. One Poem. Two Meanings.

I have dedicated the past couple of hours reading and analyzing the essay by Chuck Klosterman called "Three-Man Weave", along with a poem by James Wright called "Autumn Begins in Martin Ferry, Ohio". And I have to say; I am very inspired and dying to read more. 

First, I'll begin with the essay the "Three-Man Weave". Posted on the sports and popular culture website, Grantland.com, Three-Man weave chronicles the underdog story that took place in North Dakota in 1988 between two schools that, according to the article, you've (probably) never heard of. Yet, to the author Chuck Klosterman, this basketball game went down as the "greatest sporting event [he] ever witnessed." You must be wondering how a barely recorded basketball game between two unknown competitors became Klosterman's all-time greatest sporting event he has seen in his lifetime. I mean, even I questioned it at first. How could this miniscule basketball game compare to all the other major-league sporting events that take place across the nation? Once I read that the winning team, The United Tribes Thunderbirds, won with only three players on the floor in the last 66 seconds (making it 3 on five) with a score of 84-81. Shocking right? I know to me it was. I couldn't fathom the dedication and the drive it took for these players (who lost their star player, Barry Webster, due to him fouling out in the last few minutes of the game) to win this game. It opened my eyes even more to the fact that nothing is impossible. 

Although much shorter, the poem by James Wright, "Autumn Begins in Martin Ferry, Ohio" still had the same affect on me as did the essay. This poem chronicles one man's outlook on fall and the type of atmosphere that surrounds the local high-school football games. This poem, in my opinion, shows the struggles in which the working class in the small town of Martin Ferry, Ohio, must look towards the talented, athletic youth of their town in hopes of, one day, having one diamond-in-the-rough become their shining jewel that makes it out of their small town to the big leagues. Yet, there is a cycle of those once celebrated and worshiped youth who fail to make it to the big time and fall into the jobs of their fathers of the working class; now waiting on someone of a younger generation to accomplish a dream they failed to complete. It's sad in a way that the "proud fathers" who once had a dream and expectations now rely on their "suicidally beautiful" sons to fulfill their personal dreams. This entire poem contrasts their present lives to the past expectations of their old lives. The only thing that these men can hold onto are the fond memories of their "golden years" in which they revisit to temporarily forget about their present situation. Memory becomes the key to their drive to push for the next generation to reach their expectations and goals. 

Basketball and football are both one the most watched and played sports in the nation. Almost everyone that lives in the USA know what basketball and football are and what they represent. On a universal level it's harder to determine the popularity and knowledge among other countries and cultures. Although there are different variations of the sport across the world, the concept of Basketball is universally understood. For instance, some spin-off games such as Korfball, Netball, and Slamball all derive from basketball and use the same techniques and skills you would use in basketball; they're just variations of the sport. Basketball's popularity in America compared to its popularity in other countries on a national level is noticeably very different. In America, Basketball is a sport many people cherish, worship, and watch religiously because of the culture built upon it in the past 100+ years. Whereas, in other countries basketball is not really recognized as a major sport on a higher level than the regular past time you would play in your spare time. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying other countries don't have serious basketball teams or don't respect the sport as much as we do in America, I'm only saying that the following of the sport in America is so much more stronger than the following in other countries. In the sense, this is not the same for Football. There are so many sports that use the word "football" in it's name such as American football, Association football, Australian rules football, Canadian football, rugby league, etc. There are so many forms of the sport that makes it universal in the sense that people all around the world experience and enjoy the sport. It may or may not be the same form of football, but it's still football. Now is American Football as popular as it is in the USA in England? No, not one bit. This is because England's form of football, rugby, is regionally played and celebrated more in England than American football is. 

Now back to the two pieces of works. Both the essay and poem deal with the topic of nostalgia and memory; these two factors play a major role in each work. In the poem, it is nostalgia and memory that haunts the failed youth of the small town of Martin Ferry, Ohio, yet it is that same nostalgia and memory that allows for that failed youth to remain at peace in their past in order to follow the new generations journey to their dreams. Whereas, in the essay, nostalgia and memory plays a major role in the ability of the men who played in the game to remember the exact number of points they individually   scored. Memory is what allows the losing team's coach to remember the game he disappointedly lost without hesitation. And nostalgia is what allows for the star player, Barry Webster, to proudly express his self-admiration for contributing to such a big win for his team. Not only are nostalgia and memory important in these two pieces, but also they're very important in sports as a whole. These two things are what drive the following behind sports all across the globe. Most people's fondest memories include some sort of variation of sports and in addition to this they usually equate it to a time of leisure, easiness, and pure and outright fun. Our love of sports is driven by our memories and the nostalgia that follows those memories. 

The re-tellings both in the essay and the poem, in my opinion, define a culture. I say this because globally we all live in the same culture, the human culture. All around the world people fail or accomplish their dreams. Along with this, people talk about a past defining moment till the day they die with no regrets. It's a culture done across the globe, not just regionally. Before, I thought to myself and asked the question, "What do people do with these memories?" Now, I understand that people do so many different things with their memories. For example, they form new memories off of their old ones; they recite them to others to share the experience, and so much more. 

To be a little bit off track, yet not really, in a few days I'm going to start my first college essay. I'm a bit frightened but, hey, if I could get through the last few grueling years of AP English I'm sure I can get through my English class. Well, I sure hope so. Anyways, to be brief, this essay has to be on my first account with sports and how it affected me in (I think) anyway possible. After reading both pieces, I've come to the conclusion that I will be closely relating my experience with the poem and working it into my essay as much as possible. For some reason I related more to the poem than I did the essay. I guess the poem inspired me more and made me think harder because of all its possible meanings. I also probably relate more to the poem because I too wish I could've been a star athlete when I was younger. Although it wasn't a main goal of mine or not even something that I lose sleep over nowadays, I still wish I could’ve been apart of a team. And because of this I now will make sure my nephew will be put into sports so he can experience the one thing I never fully engaged in, and in my opinion, that is what the poem is all about; which is to take from your past failures and mistakes and guide the younger generation to success. I would take advantage of the concept of memory and nostalgia that play a major theme in both pieces and work it into my essay. In addition to this, I would maybe incorporate another one of my favorite poems into my essay in order to give it a variation in structure or I would distance myself from the norm and write out of my comfort zone in order express some things about my experiences with sports that I would never have written about before. In my first real college paper I want to branch out and incorporate content from the papers, magazines, etc. This is one thing I've barely done in the past and want to do in the present. I hope it all works for the best.