Some not so new Arguments in Support of Heterodox Agendas in the Study of Sport 1

Abstract

This essay is not a direct response to the articles of Cole, Dewar, Maguire, and Young. Rather it is an attempt to situate their perspectives within the changing face of sociology and the sociology of sport as fields of inquiry. In this essay, I try to address the conflicts that exist between conventional sociologists (orthodox-mainstream) and those of us who oppose the conventional agenda. I ask the question "Which sociological imagination will prevail?" I ask how we connect political agendas to intellectual agendas, and to practices in physical culture. Using Giddens, I ask whether or not North American sociology has recovered from or has regenerated from functionalism and empiricism après la lutte. The articles of my colleagues are highlighted in my discussion.