Basketball as the Most Popular Team Sports Essay

Basketball as the Most Popular Team Sports - Essay Example Thus, it can be said that a basketball team, although not too large a group, is a discourse community in that the members have developed a specific institutionalized way of thinking through the use of all forms of communication, be it through speech, actions or text. The very specific language used to communicate between players, between coaches and players, between the referees and players, between the referees and coaches, and between the players and fans contributes positively to the whole experience and excitement of the game. In fact, it is inevitable as is a game that has very specific rules. This perpetuates the creation of phrases, words, signals and actions that are exclusive to the game. Furthermore, because the game is fast-paced, effective communication is necessary in order to be able to play and win the game. It contributes to the enjoyment of fans, as they are able to follow and understand the game and experience a sense of belonging. This paper aims to argue the poin t that the establishment of a discourse community in basketball positively affects the perception, experience and enjoyment of the game and is inevitable through a discourse community analysis based on the observations of this author of several basketball games. Discourse is a concept that pertains to â€Å"all forms of communication,† which means that language as used here denotes spoken language, sign language, and even written language (El Hadi 1). However, because written language is not used much in basketball—unless printed commentaries are analyzed, which is not a part of the observable factors in the game—the word language, when used generally here, will mean words and actions. When discourse is combined with the world community, it now points to how language has been used by groups with  the same social characteristics. This is a testament to the progressive notion that discourse functions within standards and practices that are defined by communities.