Studying Sociopolitical Issues in Sports-Related Graphic Nonfiction: Opportunities and Messages for Young Adults

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session 8
  In Roundtable Session: Critical Analyses of Community, Memory, and Cultural Representation in Children's and Young Adult Literature

Abstract

This study examines opportunities for interrogating sociopolitical issues through graphic memoirs and biographies of professional and amateur athletes. Framed by the perspective that memoir and biography serve as public narratives and that the critical study of sports-related literature is an effective means for engaging youth with sociopolitical issues, we analyze eight selections of recommended and award-winning graphic nonfiction written for middle and secondary youth to identify the issues the authors chose to address and the messages communicated to readers through their stories. Particularly, these selections explore racism, homophobia, and death/dying endured by the authors through their sporting lives. Messages include the pain and persistence of racism, the internalization of dehumanizing practices, and using sport as solace for grief.

Authors

• Luke Rodesiler, Purdue University Fort Wayne

• Mark A. Lewis, James Madison University