The Trickster, the Transformer, and the Culture Hero: Michael Jordan as a Mythical Figure

• Authors: Muniowski Łukasz

Title variants

PL

Kuglarz, kameleon, bohater kulturowy. Mit Michaela Jordana w ujęciu antropologicznym

• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

Sports stars are modern-day mythical heroes, showcasing their skills on fields and courts all over the world. Their mythical status translates to their market value, which is proof of an athlete’s exceptional status. For the fans he is a hero, for the sponsors a brand, and Michael Jordan was the first one to exemplify the relation between these two apparently distinct aspects. Drawing on anthropological theories, this article presents Jordan as the culture hero – the one that has set the standards for modern-day sports stars.

PL

Gwiazdy sportu to współcześni mityczni bohaterowie, prezentujący swoje umiejętności na stadionach i w halach całego świata. Ich mityczny status przekłada się na wartość rynkową, stanowiącą wyznacznik wyjątkowości danego atlety. Dla kibiców jest on bohaterem, dla sponsorów zaś marką, a pierwszym, który ucieleśniał zależność między tymi dwoma na pozór wykluczającymi się sferami był Michael Jordan. Artykuł, odwołując się do teorii antropologicznych, przedstawia Jordana, jako bohatera kulturowego, który stał się punktem odniesienia dla współczesnych sportowców.

Keywords

EN

Basketball; Jordan; Myth; Trickster; NBA

• Publisher: Wydział Neofilologii, Uniwersytet Warszawski
• Journal: Acta Philologica
• Year: 2015
• Issue: 47
• Pages: 98-105

Contributors

author

Muniowski Łukasz

• Uniwersytet Warszawski

References

• Barthes, Roland. Mythologies. Trans. Annette Lavers. New York: The Noonday Press, 1972.
• Bellah, Robert N., Richard Madsen, William M. Sullivan, Ann Swindler, and Steven M. Tipton. Habits of the Heart: Individualism and Commitment in American Life. New York: Perennial Library, 1985.
• Boas, Franz. Race, Language and Culture. New York: MacMillian Company, 1940.
• Carter, David, and Darren Rovell. On the Ball: What Can You Learn About Business from America’s Sports Leaders. New Jersey: Financial Times Prentice Hall, 2003.
• Chase, Richard. Quest for Myth. New York: Greenwood Press, 1976.
• Cunningham, Carson. American Hoops, U.S. Men’s Olympic Basketball from Berlin to Beijing. Lincoln: University of Nebraska, 2009.
• Grover, Tim S. Relentless: From Good to Great to Unstoppable. New York: Scribner, 2014.
• Halberstam, David. Playing for Keeps. New York: Broadway Books, 2000.
• Holt, Douglas B. How Brands Become Icons: The Principles of Cultural Branding. Boston: Harvard Business School Publishing Corporation, 2004.
• Holt, Jason, and Robert Pitter. “The Prostitution Trap of Elite Sport in He Got Game.”The Philosophy of Spike Lee. Ed. Mark T. Conard. Lexington: The University Press of Kentucky, 2011. 15–26.
• Horne, John. Sport in Consumer Culture. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006.
• Hynes, William J. “Mapping the Characteristics of Mythic Tricksters: A Heuristic Guide.” Mythical Trickster Figures: Contours, Contexts, and Criticisms. Ed. William J. Hynes and William G. Doty. Tuscaloosa: The University of Alabama Press, 1997. 33–45.
• Hynes, William J., and William G. Doty. “Introducing the Fascinating and Perplexing Trickster Figure.” Mythical Trickster Figures: Contours, Contexts, and Criticisms. Ed. William J. Hynes and William G. Doty. Tuscaloosa: The University of Alabama Press, 1997. 1–12.
• Jackson, Steven J., David L. Andrews, and Cheryl Cole. “Race, Nation and Authenticity of Identity: Interrogating the ‘Everywhere’ Man (Michael Jordan) and the ‘Nowhere’ Man (Ben Johnson).” Sporting Nationalisms: Identity, Ethnicity, Immigration and Assimilation. Ed. Mike Cronin and David Mayall. London: Frank Cass, 1998. 84–104.
• Johnson, Roy S. “The Jordan Effect: The World’s Greatest Basketball Player Is Also One of Its Great Brands. What Is His Impact on the Economy?” Fortune. Time, Inc., 22 June 1998. Web. 18 Mar. 2015.
• Long, Jerome H. “Culture Heroes.” Encyclopedia of Religion. Ed. Lindsay Jones. Vol. 3. Detroit: Thomson Gale, 2005.
• McDonald, Mary G., and David L. Andrews. “Michael Jordan: Corporate Sport and Postmodern Celebrityhood.” Sports Stars: The Cultural Politics of Sporting Celebrity. Ed. David L. Andrews and Steven J. Jackson. London: Routledge, 2002. 20–35.
• Radin, Paul. The Trickster: A Study in American Indian Mythology. New York: Philosophical Library, 1956.
• Rein, Irving, Philip Kotler, and Ben Shields. The Elusive Fan: Reinventing Sports in a Crowded Marketplace. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2006.
• Simmons, Bill. The Book of Basketball. New York: Ballantine Books, 2009.
• Smart, Barry. The Sport Star: Modern Sport and the Cultural Economy of Sporting Celebrity. London: SAGE Publications, 2005.
• Smith, Sam. The Jordan Rules. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1992.