Keeping the score: The hegemonic everyday practices in golf
Title:
Keeping the score: The hegemonic everyday practices in golf
Author:
Hundley, Heather L.
Appeared in:
Communication reports
Paging:
Volume 17 (2004) nr. 1 pages 39-48
Year:
2004
Contents:
Because of the taken-for-granted, common sense position, it is often difficult to examine what is naturalized in our culture. Semiotic analysis is one method in which scholars may apply to common everyday practices revealing subtleties about what our culture perpetuates and values. Golf is no exception, for the game contains naturalized phenomenon privy to examination and representative of larger social issues. This essay contains a semiotic analysis of the language used on golf course scorecards. Specifically, the tee box nomenclatures stated on the scorecards traditionally designate a location from which women should tee off; however, for men, this designation is determined by ability. Thus, men are offered more semantic choices, while women are instructed to tee off from the same location as junior golfers (the red or forward tees) regardless of their abilities. Further, symbolic decoding of scorecards represents “men's continued attempts to retain power and privilege over women” (Messner, 1988, p. 207) in the sport of golf, while indexical decoding disengages hegemony deeply rooted within the game of golf.
Journal description