Elizabeth Devore
ENG: 21011-206
02-06-13
Reflections; Rhetorical Analysis
In “Reflections: Why We Play the Game” by Roger Rosenblatt, the author discusses and elaborates on three sports; baseball, basketball, football and why baseball is more of an American sport than the other two sports. Mr. Rosenblatt gives great detail about each sport and how each player’s option played can affect the outcome of the game. He gives great detail of how we chase the ball in these games. He is somewhat poetic when he speaks of baseball. He explains how baseball is more of an American sport than basketball or football. He also elaborates about how they have become regulated and structured. He used some theories with American history, the constitution, and the Bill of rights to explain why baseball is America’s national sport. He explains how teamwork can affect the delicate balance of how a game and the American structure goal are achieved.
The author of this essay wanted to show how baseball is more of an American sport than any other country. He described how baseball, basketball, and football are all deeply embedded in the citizens of America. Baseball is about the individual; Rosenblatt stated, “The rules are unbending; indeed, with a very few exceptions, the rules have not changed in one hundred years” (Rosenblatt 4). In other sports, the ball does the scoring. In baseball, the person scores usually by a confrontation between the pitcher and the batter and a round ball traveling over ninety miles per hour. He mentions the thrills, beauty of baseball, nature, warmth sunshine, the feeling of youth, and memories one would never forget. He then cleverly crafted his writing and talked about having seen the nation’s dream in the game, how it fought against integration, and all that Americans stood up for including our Founders and the Bill of Rights.
When he talks about football and basketball, he describes football like our infantry and officers. The two games
Cited: Rosenblatt, Roger. “Reflections: Why We Play the Game”. Sports Talk. Ed. Lisa Beckelhimer. New York City: Pearson Education Inc. Year 2009.3-10. Print.