John Hoberman
Encyclopedia
Dr. John Hoberman is a Professor of Germanic languages
within the Department of Germanic Studies at the University of Texas at Austin
. He is the author of numerous books and articles on sport
s, specifically on their cultural impact, their relationship with race, and the issue of doping
.
treatments for lifestyle and performance enhancement during the last century, in the context of an analysis of modern society's ever-increasing use of chemical enhancements in general and its effect on human self-image. It focuses in particular on the early commercial marketing of the hormone testosterone
, which is considered representative of all the performance enhancing drugs that followed it.
culture. Accusations of racism
and ethnocentrism
were leveled at him; however, actual excerpts from the book seemed to show his extreme opposition to racism, and in later materials (see "How Not to Misread Darwin’s Athletes") he acknowledged his unfortunate naïveté regarding how a white author would be perceived when writing on such a topic. Overall, the scholarly and critical reactions to the book were largely positive.
Germanic languages
The Germanic languages constitute a sub-branch of the Indo-European language family. The common ancestor of all of the languages in this branch is called Proto-Germanic , which was spoken in approximately the mid-1st millennium BC in Iron Age northern Europe...
within the Department of Germanic Studies at the University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
. He is the author of numerous books and articles on sport
Sport
A Sport is all forms of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical fitness and provide entertainment to participants. Sport may be competitive, where a winner or winners can be identified by objective means, and may require a degree...
s, specifically on their cultural impact, their relationship with race, and the issue of doping
Doping (sport)
The use of performance-enhancing drugs in sport is commonly referred to by the term "doping", particularly by those organizations that regulate competitions. The use of performance enhancing drugs is mostly done to improve athletic performance. This is why many sports ban the use of performance...
.
Testosterone Dreams
His most recent book, Testosterone Dreams, is a history of the use of hormoneHormone
A hormone is a chemical released by a cell or a gland in one part of the body that sends out messages that affect cells in other parts of the organism. Only a small amount of hormone is required to alter cell metabolism. In essence, it is a chemical messenger that transports a signal from one...
treatments for lifestyle and performance enhancement during the last century, in the context of an analysis of modern society's ever-increasing use of chemical enhancements in general and its effect on human self-image. It focuses in particular on the early commercial marketing of the hormone testosterone
Testosterone
Testosterone is a steroid hormone from the androgen group and is found in mammals, reptiles, birds, and other vertebrates. In mammals, testosterone is primarily secreted in the testes of males and the ovaries of females, although small amounts are also secreted by the adrenal glands...
, which is considered representative of all the performance enhancing drugs that followed it.
Book excerpts
"Testosterone dreams are the fantasies of hormonal rejuvenation, sexual excitement, and supernormal human performance that have been inspired by testosterone since it was first synthesized in 1935."
"Within a generation, sports audiences around the world were enjoying record-breaking performances achieved by athletes whose "productive power" was boosted by testosterone-based anabolic steroidAnabolic steroidAnabolic steroids, technically known as anabolic-androgen steroids or colloquially simply as "steroids", are drugs that mimic the effects of testosterone and dihydrotestosterone in the body. They increase protein synthesis within cells, which results in the buildup of cellular tissue ,...
s. The "doping" of athletes with androgens and other hormones can thus be understood as one of the human enhancements that will precipitate an unprecedented crisis of human identity during the twenty-first century."
"As more drugs are finding new and often unexpected uses, the distinction between illegitimate doping and socially acceptable forms of drug-assisted productivity is gradually disappearing. One consequence of this vanishing boundary is that the de facto legitimizing of a drug can also create an implicit or even explicit obligation to use it for purposes society or certain subcultures define as desirable."
"Such scenarios show how hard it can be to determine where therapy ends and performance enhancement begins. This uncertainty about the boundary between healing and enhancement changes our sense of what is "normal" and what is not. If I become fatigued while my drug-taking coworkers stay alert, their "supernormal" stamina may well recalibrate the very idea of normal functioning. Their greater productivity might eventually legitimize their doping habit and make it compulsory for everyone. In this work environment, it is the drug-free worker who is in a state of deficiency."
Controversy
In 1997, Dr. Hoberman became a source of controversy with the release of his book Darwin's Athletes: How Sport Has Damaged Black America and Preserved the Myth of Race, over its highly critical analysis of the relationships between sport and African AmericanAfrican American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
culture. Accusations of racism
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
and ethnocentrism
Ethnocentrism
Ethnocentrism is the tendency to believe that one's ethnic or cultural group is centrally important, and that all other groups are measured in relation to one's own. The ethnocentric individual will judge other groups relative to his or her own particular ethnic group or culture, especially with...
were leveled at him; however, actual excerpts from the book seemed to show his extreme opposition to racism, and in later materials (see "How Not to Misread Darwin’s Athletes") he acknowledged his unfortunate naïveté regarding how a white author would be perceived when writing on such a topic. Overall, the scholarly and critical reactions to the book were largely positive.
Book excerpts
"[T]he presence of large numbers of black athletes in the major sports appears to have persuaded almost everyone that the process of integration has been a success. This sense of closure is an illusion that is rooted not in the fact of racial equality but in a combination of black apathy and white public relations efforts."
"The Jackie Robinson story has long served white America, and liberals in particular, as a deeply satisfying combination of entertainment and civic virtue that has simultaneously permitted disengagement from less tractable and more important interracial tasks, such as the pursuit of educational and military equality."
External links
- The Testosterone Dreams page at The University of California Press
- Curriculum Vitae for Dr. John Hoberman
- University of Texas website article from 2004 about the writing of Testosterone Dreams
- "How Not to Misread Darwin’s Athletes: A Response to Jeffrey T. Sammons"
- "Steroids, Sluggers, and the War on Drugs" - DRCNet, March 2005