By: Kody Burlingame
In the last class we discussed the cool
pose, which talked about black masculinity in sports. According to
Major (1986 and 1987), the whole concept of the cool pose is to
provide a means to show the dominant culture that the black male is
strong and proud and can survive. So like we discussed in class, the
cool pose is a survival strategy.
An example of cool pose that we used in
class was Allen Iverson, my favorite basketball player. I thought it
was interesting how we kind of compared Allen Iverson to Michael
Jordan. Both these athletes are different in many ways, but I think
both of their competitiveness was similar. Some of the differences
between these two are Allen Iverson's attitude and style to Michael
Jordans. Allen Iverson displayed a lot of the cool pose. He had his
corn rose, tattoos, baggy clothes, chains, flat bill hats, and some
say he had a selfish attitude. Michael Jordan on the other hand
didn't display any cool pose, he displayed classiness instead. He
didn't have any visible tattoos, never dressed in baggy clothes, and
he had a polite attitude with the passion to win. Even though these
two athletes had two different attitudes and styles, I think it's
important to see what environment the athletes grew up in. Most the
time the environment will tell what an athletes attitude and style is
going to be like. For example, Allen Iverson grew up in Hampton,
Virginia with his single mother in which he had to help take care of
siblings growing up. So right there displays survival mode because
that's the mode he had to be in growing up. Michael Jordan was born
in Brooklyn, New York but then moved to North Carolina shortly
afterwards. Jordan had a good childhood and didn't have to worry
about much, so he didn't have to be in survival mode and so he
wasn't, and it showed in his attitude and style.
The case might not always turn out to
be what type of environment an athlete is from to have cool pose, but
I think it does make a difference most of the time. Usually when an
athlete grows up in a good neighborhood, they won't exactly have the
cool pose that an athlete that grows up in the bad part of the
neighborhood will have. Like the article said, it is a survival
strategy and the athletes that show off cool pose are showing how
manly and tough they are and how no one should mess with them.
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ReplyDeleteKody,I would have to agree with you that Iverson and Jordan were different players and different people. I believe the way they grew up and how they approach life in general affected the way they portray themselves in society. Iverson has the "cool pose" while Jordan is more classes and professional. I think Iverson was going for that image of "cool pose" because that was the way he was going to get people to notice him. As for Jordan, he wanted people to see him as someone with his life together and a vital person in society
ReplyDeleteJenny Kelley
The Sportscentury clip that we watched in class summed up Jordan the best; it didnt matter where he went or what he was doing, he always felt like he needed to make the best impression possible in the public's eyes. Iverson on the other hand could have cared less about what the public thought of him. Iverson was the original gangster of the NBA, and where he came from is definitely a major factor in that. If you get the chance read his book "Only the Strong Survive." It gives you an in-depth look at the background he came from in Virginia.
ReplyDelete-Derek Zyski
Kody, good blog but I have a question for you. If Alan Iverson has more of a cool pose than Michael Jordan then why is AI not as well known around the world, or even the US for that matter? I disagree with the article where it says the cool pose is a survival strategy. The cool pose is generated from highly talented athletes, which are the funny/odd gestures that seem to stick in people’s minds and the media. Some gestures or moves are blown up by the media and some are ridiculed to the point they become famous. Regardless of who creates them it is not something athletes do because they believe they need it to survive or be well known, that is what their performances on the field/courts do. Fans recognize great players and as a result they pay attention to them more and see how they dress and look and act. The players themselves wear what they like and act how they feel they should and fans will follow and mimic them because they like them. It’s not a survival strategy its simply fans imitating their idols and who they root for.
ReplyDeleteI do agree that the “cool pose” originated from African American athletes, and it’s a great thing early athletes made the statements and actions when they did because now the sports world is rightfully competitive with the greatest athletes to play the games they do. African American athletes, for the most part, are the ones who get teammates excited and play with a lot of energy and emotion and this is what makes people get the idea of the cool pose. In the article, it says “black men often cope with their frustration, embitterment, alienation, and social impotence by channeling their creative energies into the construction of unique, expressive, and conspicuous styles of demeanor, speech, gesture, clothing, hairstyle, walk, stance, and handshake.”(Majors, P-5) These creative energies are what are expressed on and off the court and the unique ones are the ones remembered the most, as long as it is backed up by consistent dominant performance. The performance is what drives a players successful survival. I think Michael Jordan has become the icon of the cool pose in my opinion because of his dominating talents as well as his continued success after he left the league. If there was one athlete who you would have loved to be, I don’t know how you could make a stronger, more compelling case than to choose Michael Jordan.
By: RJ Hefflinger
The cool pose made Allen Iverson into what he is today. Some players embrace the cool pose and that is then something they are known for. Iverson did this very well, and gained popularity because he was opposite of Michael Jordan. The cool pose in today’s NBA is different though. The NBA tried to get rid of the cool pose, you could say. They made a dress code for what you had to wear on the bench. They in my eyes wanted to move away from the cool pose. I think they did do that somewhat but the cool pose also involved. Now athletes like LeBron or Russell Westbrook are wearing sweaters or glasses with no lenses. This in my eyes is the new cool pose in the NBA.
ReplyDeleteJosiah Blevins
I want to go back to Allen Iverson for a second. People widely criticized him as a "thug", "gangster", etc. and claimed that athletes like him were ruining the image of the NBA. The following link is an article from a 2001 issue of Sports Illustrated in which Rick Reilly tries to defend Allen Iverson.
ReplyDeletehttp://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/inside_game/magazine/life_of_reilly/news/2001/05/22/life_of_reilly/
In this case, I will agree with Josiah. The cool pose as represented in "today's NBA" is completely different from the one in which Iverson was a key figure.
-Kevin Meyers
I really like how you pointed out the reason why Allen Iverson and Michael Jordan's attitudes were sort of different. Like you said they were both the same as they were both super competitive. However, I agree with you when you said that Iverson may have seemed more "thuggish" in his attitude because of how he grew up. This made his game probably more fierce. He always felt like he had something to prove or that he was always fighting for something. It was the only thing he knew because sometimes in his past he was fighting for his life. I think Jordan also had more of an image to uphold. With the way Iverson was if he messed up, it was expected. However, no one was used to Jordan doing anything wrong so if Jordan messed up it seemed like it was the end of the world.
ReplyDelete- Tim Love
Hey Kody,
ReplyDeleteI like that you incorporated the environment aspect when talking about athletes. It is important to remember where and how they were raised. You can't expect all of the popular athletes in sports to dress and act the same way. Everyone, even at Bowling Green has different mannerisms in how they act. Michael Jordan and Allen Iverson were two completely different people, yet were both respected for their gameplay on the court. I'm not saying Iverson's style or how he acted was incorrect, I'm just trying to point out that everyone is entitled to have their own opinion in how they want to act. Clearly Jordan and Iverson had different views on how they wanted the public to perceive them, yet they both were very successful on the court as well.
-Brett Creamer
Kody,
ReplyDeleteIt was really interesting that you compared Iverson to Jordan. They both well known in their own way and I think it's important that regardless the path, both became very well known within popular culture/media. I compare Iverson to the Fab Five from Michigan. In the ESPN documentary about the Fab Five, the players on the team could've compared their background to that of Iverson. They wanted to define an era in their own way through trash talk, baggy pants and black socks. Iverson was different from everyone else when he entered the NBA and quickly made a name for himself even though he was the smallest guy on the court (That speaks volumes right there) I think a lot more intercity kids looked up to Iverson more than they did Jordan because it showed them that coming from an environment like Iverson did and still make it big, it gives anyone hope.
Nate Dudzik
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ReplyDeleteKody,
ReplyDeleteI liked the points you made. I agree somewhat that cool pose is used as a survival strategy. I think it is more of a way for athletes to show personality and in a way, prove themselves. I think this is especially true in the case of Allen Iverson. He came up from such a rough background that he had to prove how tough he was to come all the way to the NBA after growing up in an environment like that. Michael Jordan on the other hand, didn't have quite as much to prove, so he put on less of a "tough guy" front. I think these two athletes are a great example of the different ways cool pose is displayed among athletes.
Jennifer Zoellick
Kody,
ReplyDeleteI agree with the points that you made and I also think that Allen Iverson was a good example of someone who used 'cool pose.' I wasn't aware that Allen Iverson had the childhood that you explained but he definitely did display those survival characteristics that make up cool pose. If however, cool pose consists mostly of surviving in tough environments, then I would have to disagree with your point that Michael Jordan doesn't display any cool pose. The term 'survival' to me means fighting through adversity and Michael Jordan did that on more than one occasion on the basketball court. One of the most famous moments in NBA history was when Jordan battled through flu-like symptoms to help his team win a playoff game. My point is that the term 'survival' can have different meanings for different people and that to say Michael Jordan didn't have cool pose because he never 'survived' might be seen as wrong to others.
(Chris Cournan wrote the comment above.)
DeleteI disagree with Kody's comment that only Allen Iverson displays the cool pose. Like he said Iverson and Jordan were two very different individuals, and that is how they expressed the cool pose. Differently. Iverson had that survival swagger where he wouldn't take s***t from anyone. Jordan on the other hand displayed the cool pose through confidence and what some call cockiness. To say that Iverson didn't have confidence and Jordan not have survival would be completely false. Just when it comes to demonstrating the cool pose, that is how these two differed.
ReplyDelete-Michael Discipio
I also thought it was interesting that we compared Iverson to Jordan in class. I think they both demonstrate cool pose in completely different ways also. Like the video stated we watched in class, I think what makes Jordan so great with his cool pose is that it was always on his mind, he was always thinking about how he will be remembered. I doubt that Iverson is the only NBA player to have a cool pose as he did. I forgot to mention that I liked that you described there background that they grew up in, there could be a little correlation there.
ReplyDelete-Joey D'Agostino
I agree that Jordan and Iverson have a completely different "cool pose" and it may attribute on where they were raised a little bit, but I don't think it has everything to do with it. I think that because Jordan wanted every person to like him and was always worried about how he was perceived made him act in a different way than Iverson. I think that having that much pressure on you makes you act like a different person and that may not even be how Jordan really is. Iverson on the other hand was never worried about getting people to like him, so he didn't put pressure on himself to act a certain way or carry himself a certain way. Which is why many people see Jordan as classy and professional and Iverson as selfish.
ReplyDelete- Jacob Beverly
I agree with you that Iverson and Jordan were different players and different people. I believe that way they grew up and how they approached life in general affected the way they portray themselves in society. Iverson's style has classes and rofessional more than Jordan. I think Iverson is always good but Jordan want to show to people and also he want to receive a lot of attention from people. Thus, Iverson and Jordan were different players and different people.
ReplyDelete-Junho Song-