Perceptions of Sportsmanship: Clark vs. Reese

 

At first glance, with no context, these two photos seem like two women's basketball players doing the same celebration, but they have not been understood as the same in the media. On the left is a controversial photo taken after the 2023 NCAA tournament in which Angles Reese is doing the "you can't see me" taunt toward Caitlin Clark, indicating that LSU won. At this moment, Reese follows Clark while doing the "you can't see me" taunt and points to her ring finger after the game, causing an uproar on social media. Many people were shaming Reese for doing this, most notably David Portnoy of Barstool Sports, calling her a "classless piece of sh*t." However, a week prior, the photo on the right was taken, and a different response from the media followed. Clark doing the same taunt toward Hailey Van Lith, a player on Louisville, elicited a positive response, with people calling her a passionate player and a remarkable person. After Clark did it, she was praised and celebrated for being a passionate player, but Reese was characterized as classless. This moment sparked discussions about sportsmanship and the place of taunts in sports, especially when certain players use them.




In The Civil Sphere, Jefferey C. Alexander argues that there is a subsystem of democratic societies, such as civil society, where individuals exist in solidarity and are guided by a collective obligation that slightly limits their autonomy. This collective obligation is characterized by binaries that separate the civil and anticivil, and it depends on "self-control and individual initiatives" (Alexander 57). Those who are deemed as anticivil pose a threat to civil society and themselves, so they are excluded. However, Alexander argues that the distinctions society has created around the pure and impure are not real, and they are not something inherent within individuals. Additionally, the aspects of a given civil sphere are dynamic, and different groups are considered civil or anticivil. Groups can be categorized based on "primordial qualities that have nothing to do with one's status in civil society" (195), and depending on these qualities, can be automatically deemed anticivil. Alexander also discusses the role of language in civil society as being able to "[form] the cultural core of civil society and can be isolated as a general structure" (56) because it creates cultural understanding and solidarity. More specifically, language contributes to the idea that there is an "us" and a "them."




In sports, an individual's place in civil society is typically determined by their sportsmanship and skill. However, these distinctions can be distorted when primordial qualities are considered. In this situation, Portnoy was quick to label Reese as classless, pushing the criticism past her sportsmanship and skill to question her morality and position in civil society. I believe that his call to repress her is related to her race because Clark did the same taunt a week prior but can remain a member of civil society because she is a self-controlled and honorable white woman. Descriptions of Reese, like self-interested and wild-passionate, use the other side of the binary code and also align with stereotypes often attributed to Black women. This use of language can be traced back to Alexander's assertion that there is an "us" and "them," as those attacking Reese employ "dog whistles" to announce their perception of Reese as part of the "them" category who needs to be excluded from civil society for the protection of Clark.




Alexander, Jeffery C. 2006. “Contradictions: Uncivilizing Pressures and Civil Repair.” Pp. 193-209. The Civil Sphere. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Alexander, Jeffery C. 2006. “Discourses: Liberty and Repression.” Pp. 53-67. The Civil Sphere. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

Maddie, Meyer. April 5, 2022. “Angel Reese of the LSU Tigers gestures toward Caitlin Clark of the Iowa Hawkeyes toward the end of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament championship game in Dallas on Sunday” From NPR. Retrieved March 28,2024(https://www.npr.org/2023/04/03/1167704651/angel-reese-caitlin-clark-you-cant-see-me-gesture).

Robert, Zeglinski. March 27, 2023. "Caitlin Clark seemingly telling Hailey Van Lith ‘you can’t see me’ after 41-point triple-double was so cold" From FTW USA Today. Retrieved March 28, 2024 (https://ftw.usatoday.com/2023/03/caitlin-clark-hailey-van-lith-iowa-louisville-you-cant-see-me-savage-video)