Volume VI Special Issue V June 2026

Name of Author : Mr. Livinston E F, Dr. Daryl Cressida G

Title of the paper : Playing Masculinity: Decolonizing Male Athletic Identity in This Sporting Life

Abstract: This paper examines This Sporting Life by David Storey as a critique of colonial masculinity within professional sports culture. Set in postwar industrial Britain, the novel portrays Arthur Machin, a rugby player whose identity is shaped by aggression, physical endurance, and emotional repression. The study argues that the novel exposes how sports institutions construct hegemonic masculine ideals rooted in patriarchy and colonial notions of strength and dominance. Using Raewyn Connells theory of hegemonic masculinity and Michel Foucault’s concept of body discipline, the paper analyzes how the male athletic body becomes a site of control and commodification. It further explores the psychological consequences of toxic masculinity, including isolation and emotional silence. By situating sports literature within decolonial gender discourse, this study demonstrates how This Sporting Life deconstructs the myth of the invincible sportsman and critiques patriarchal constructions of male identity.

Keywords : Sports Literature, Hegemonic Masculinity, Decolonial Gender Studies, Body Politics, Athletic Identity.

DOI :

Page Number : 122-133