IS NOT ALWAYS WHAT YOU GET” The American sports: football, basketball, and baseball are depicted as violent activities where football is the most aggressive, basketball is fairly unfriendly, and baseball is the least combative. In contrast, the performance ofviolent contact in these sports does not always dictate their use of violent language. The difference between exchanging violent communication towards an opponent isdetermined by the physical level of a sport. Similarly, using battle language andweaponry to describe sports action can make events sound exciting. While baseballis viewed as the least violent sport between football and basketball, all sports usethe same vulgar terminology. The activity of violent contact in these sports does not always result inviolent speech, but violent terms are also found in game situations where nophysical contact is made. Football is a sport that is inherently violent, so it isexpected to be reflected in their language. Baseball is perceived to be the leastviolent, so we bypass baseball terms that can be determined as violent, and thesame baseball language, also used in football and basketball, as being peaceful. Infootball and basketball, the term “beat” does not refer to the violation of strikingsomeone. Baseball also utilizes the term “beat” as football and basketball use it toget past an opponent, only that a baseball player’s opponent is a ball. The usage of“bomb” in football carries a similar meaning of a “bomb” in baseball. The method of“bomb” in both sports is not directed toward violent contact, but to describe a longpass or hit. If I knew nothing about the sport, I would automatically assume thatterms such as “drop-kick,”“free-kick,” or “spike” meant to intentionally hit anotherplayer, because of the way football is illustrated. Although if I was at a baseballgame, I ...
