State of play: The political ontology of sport in Amazonian Peru

Building on the importance of "play" in traditional sociality, organized team sports such as soccer are instrumental in promoting a new moral and political order among Urarina people of Peruvian Amazonia, one grounded in notions of roles, rules, and the abstract individual. As a vehicle of...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:American ethnologist 2013-05, Vol.40 (2), p.382-398
Main Author: Walker, Harry
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amazon
Amazonia
America
Anthropology of sport
Bureaucracy
Bureaucratization
Cognitive problems, arts and sciences, folk traditions, folklore
Energy
Ethics
Ethnology
Feasts, sports, games
Football
Morality
Nationalism
Nationalists
Ontology
Peru
political ontology
Political order
Ritual
soccer
Social relations. Intercultural and interethnic relations. Collective identity
Social structure and social relations
Sports
Sports Teams
state
State, Youth, Gender, Play
Youth
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Summary:Building on the importance of "play" in traditional sociality, organized team sports such as soccer are instrumental in promoting a new moral and political order among Urarina people of Peruvian Amazonia, one grounded in notions of roles, rules, and the abstract individual. As a vehicle of nationalist sentiment, highly amenable to ritualization and bureaucratization, sport is central to the process by which the state expands its territory and influence. Like warfare, but unifying rather than fragmenting in its effects, sport harnesses the energy and vitality of youth and co-opts them for other ends.
ISSN:0094-0496
1548-1425
DOI:10.1111/amet.12028