I have just finished the book How Soccer Explains the World: an Unlikely Theory of Globalization
by Franklin Foer.
When I picked out this novel, I was expecting something
eccentric and unbelievable. I expected
that Foer would explain all the theories of globalization by using an extended
metaphor of soccer. For instance, maybe
the 4-4-2 formation represents how China’s nation building creates a threat to
the Unites States of America, or maybe the rivalry between Real Madrid and
Barcelona represent the civil wars raging in Africa. Unfortunately, this is not the novel I
received. Instead I read a book about
globalization with a couple references to soccer in the places of interest. I felt, during my reading, that this was a
recount of what and how globalization happened with some references to
soccer. I think the biggest failure by
Foer was his failing to connect the ideas of soccer and the ideas of
globalization. I feel as though Foer
wrote two separate books: one on the history of some soccer clubs, and another
on the theory of globalization.
Don’t get me wrong, the writing in the book was very
good. Foer has a nice style of writing
that made for an entertaining book. If
you want to learn about globalization, this book is a very good one to read. My biggest complaint may have been a
self-inflicted one: my expectations were far different from the result. Regardless, Foer used an interesting and
advanced diction to truly get his point across.
For instance, he writes, “No longer do these moguls really have to
compete with state-owned television networks, r fight for market share against
state companies, which have been enfeebled by privatization and deregulation”
(Foer 172). The big words such as
enfeebled and deregulation clearly make his point without any confusion. While it may scare off inexperienced readers,
most educated people can understand his writing without any trouble.
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