Being a fan

Inspired by Brian of Redbird Nation's analogy, here's some thoughts about being a fan.

What does it mean to be a fan? History can help. The word "fan" comes not from "fanatic" but from "fans" which derives from "fancy." This word, "the fancy," was used to describe the enormous crowds that assembled to watch the epic bare-knuckle prizefights of the nineteenth century. The fancy was a diverse mix of men from all social stations. They interacted as equals and had a grand time watching the fight, betting on it, drinking and getting drunk, fighting with one another, and doing all the other fun things people would do at such things. If the sun was shining and you had a spare dollar and the day off, you wanted to go and be a part of that crowd. "The fancy" became "the fans" and an individual member of the crowd became "a fan." The play on "fanatic" was obvious from the beginning of the usage of "a fan," I'm sure.

The sports fan is often caricactured as a man of id. And no doubt we do turn to sports because it allows us to indulge certain passions and self-delusions that we couldn't possibly indulge in our regular working lives. But sports does far more than deliver that high or sanction that rowdyism.

Being a fan means different things for different sports and in different places. A given team might have a fan culture that breaks down into a wide range of subcultures, too. At Wrigley Field, for example, not all Cubs fans are there to gratify their id's directive to swill beer and holler. Uh ... bad example. You know what I mean.

The basic thing that sports does is bring people together for diversion. The basic characteristic of a fan is not some lack of self-control but an eagerness to go and be a part of that crowd. It's an eagerness to be with lots of friends and lots of like-minded strangers in a setting where everyone agrees to ignore all the usual and painful objects of our attention - work, illness, pain, war - and enjoy all the amenities and distractions of the arena together.

After all, why are you reading this, right now? Not because you're still high off last night's Pirate game. And not because you are jonesing for a hit of irrationality, and not because you feel a duty to perform your religious devotions. Odds are, you're goofing off. You're at work, or you should be at work. You are taking a break. You have gone somewhere that's characterized by lots of people ignoring work. It feels good to be among such people, when you are so inclined. Even if you don't leave a comment or read some comment written by some total stranger, you still have the luxury of knowing you're among other people who are also goofing off.

That said, more Ruben Mateo please!