Stephanie Jane recenzis Headstrong de Patrick Link
Thought-provoking
5 steloj
Not a book as such, but a full cast recording of a short play which I listened to in 2015, Headstrong by Patrick Link examines the phenomenon of high numbers of brain damage cases among men who play American Football. Its small cast of four characters manage between them to convincingly portray both the compelling arguments for change towards a safer sport, and the counter-arguments that the existing spectacle is more important to the game than the health of its players. I liked the Beowulf analogy, particularly as I am planning to revisit that saga soon, that Beowulf would not have become a popular hero had he not confronted danger, countered with his awareness of said danger being the salient point to argue.
The characters in Headstrong are all excellent and I found it easy to picture each one as they spoke and to understand why they behaved as they …
Not a book as such, but a full cast recording of a short play which I listened to in 2015, Headstrong by Patrick Link examines the phenomenon of high numbers of brain damage cases among men who play American Football. Its small cast of four characters manage between them to convincingly portray both the compelling arguments for change towards a safer sport, and the counter-arguments that the existing spectacle is more important to the game than the health of its players. I liked the Beowulf analogy, particularly as I am planning to revisit that saga soon, that Beowulf would not have become a popular hero had he not confronted danger, countered with his awareness of said danger being the salient point to argue.
The characters in Headstrong are all excellent and I found it easy to picture each one as they spoke and to understand why they behaved as they did. The sadness at the waste of lives is poignant and, despite knowing pretty much nothing about American Football, I felt angry on behalf of the affected players and their families.
The play is followed by an interview with an 'expert' which is interesting although does seem oddly over-rehearsed. I found it amazing that CTE brain damage was first being discussed thirty years ago, but was hushed up and ignored and it has taken so much negative publicity surrounding the problems of affected players to force the NFL to implement changes. As such Headstrong is an important and accessible play which I hope reaches a wide audience worldwide.