A Portrait of 2014 Fifa World Cup Television Football Commentary As Narrative
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A PORTRAIT OF 2014 FIFA WORLD CUP TELEVISION FOOTBALL COMMENTARY AS NARRATIVE BY TITUS M. KIOKO A THESIS SUBMITTED IN FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN LITERATURE DEPARTMENT OF LITERARY STUDIES MASENO UNIVERSITY ©2019 DECLARATION Declaration by the Candidate I confirm that this thesis is my work and has not been presented for the award of a degree in any other university. No part of the work may be published without the author‘s or Maseno University‘s permission. Titus M. Kioko PG/PhD/042/2013 Sign …………………………………. Date ……………………………………. Declaration by the Supervisors We, the undersigned, confirm that this thesis has been submitted for examination with our approval as University supervisors. Professor Kitche Magak Department of Language, Literature and Culture Maasai Mara University, Kenya Signature: .............................................. Date:.............................................................. Professor Jack Ogembo Department of Linguistics, Language and Literature University of Kabianga Signature: .............................................. Date:............................................................ ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I express my heartfelt gratitude to my supervisors and academic mentors: Professor Kitche Magak of Masai Mara University and Professor Jack Ogembo of the University of Kabianga. This thesis became a reality in large measure because of their unremitting dedication, motivation and patience. I‘m greatly indebted to their professional guidance that helped me navigate the unpredictable world of television sports literature. I sincerely appreciate my colleagues at the Department of Literary Studies, Maseno University: Dr. Jane Bwonya, Bryson Omwallo, Adalo Moga, John Midega, Pamella Odhacha and Dr. Victor Ouno. They were a ready source of inspiration and constructive criticism, and without their enthusiastic participation, this work would have remained a dream. I thank Dr. Bwonya especially for devoting her time and energy to read my work and offer valuable advice. I am immensely grateful to Dr. James Ogone of Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology for his invaluable ideas and relentless camaraderie in the course of the study. I would like to thank my loved ones, daughter Anne Ashely Nthenya and son Jeremy Wambua, for their unwavering love, compassion and fortitude during this long period of research and writing. Finally, for all those who contributed in one way or the other to the realization of this undertaking, may the Lord bless you … and be gracious to you. iii DEDICATION I dedicate this work to my father, Mzee Daniel Mwana‘a Mutunga for stirring in me the hunger for knowledge which has found gratification in the completion of this study. iv ABSTRACT The role of television in human endeavours has significantly heightened in the recent past. Lately, the media has assumed the role of the traditional story teller. Narratologists readily acknowledge the narrative qualities of fairy tales, novels, epic poems and films. These narrative forms incorporate various thematic concerns, literary aspects and other narrative ingredients. What television football commentary shares with film and other narrative forms is the ability to present events to an audience. However, the genre differs from other filmic narrative forms owing to its narration of factual events happening in real time. Consequently, narratologists have often overlooked the narrative and other performance qualities of the genre. It was, therefore, necessary to examine television football commentary‘s application of literary and other performance features in the transformation of the real time proceedings of football matches into narrative. The aim of this study, therefore, was to create a portrait of the 2014 FIFA World Cup television football commentary as narrative. The specific objectives were to: investigate the discernible thematic concerns embedded in the utterances of commentators during the 2014 FIFA World Cup television football commentary; examine literary techniques inherent in these commentaries; explore the use of focalization to infuse a multiplicity of perspectives into narration; and examine the 2014 FIFA World Cup television football commentary‘s adoption of Aristotle‘s Arc to create a narrative structure. The study adopted the theoretical framework of postmodern narratology as propagated by Currie (1998). The study was restricted to the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. The suitability of Brazil 2014 was informed by the eminence of the football World Cup, the status of Brazil in world football and the coincidence of staging the event in the course of the research. The study drew on analytical research design. Using the design, research questions concerning the 2014 FIFA World Cup television commentary were formulated. It was from these questions that the objectives for the study were devised. The sixty four matches that were broadcast live defined the scope of this undertaking. Purposive sampling was utilised to select nine information-rich match commentaries for analysis. Primary data was collected from the SuperSport TV channel, and involved viewing pre-recorded commentaries and noting down the desired words and phrases. Secondary data was assembled from the Soccernet internet site. It encompassed reading selected commentary transcripts and documenting the required information. The data collected was codified according to the specific objectives and analysed using content analysis. The study concluded that the use of artistic devices and the presentation of discernible thematic concerns transform football commentary into narrative. The findings of the study may offer literary scholars and football viewers a springboard from which to appreciate the narrative elements inherent in the utterances of football commentators, and to examine the social, economic and political pre-occupations prevalent in these commentaries. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Contents Page DECLARATION ....................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ....................................................................................................... iii DEDICATION .......................................................................................................................... iv ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................................... v TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................................................................................... vi DEFINITION OF TERMS…………………………………………………………………….x LIST OF FIGURES……………………………………………………………………..…….xi CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………1 LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................... x 1.1 Background to the Study ...................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Narrative Features .............................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. 1.2.1 Thematic Concerns ......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 1.2.3 Literary Aspects .............................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. 1.2.3.1 Narration ...................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 1.2.3.2 Temporal Manipulation ............................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 1.2.3.3 Spatial Manipulation .................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 1.2.4 Focalization ..................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 1.2.5 Narrative Structure .......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. 1.3 Statement of the Problem ..................................................................................................... 6 1.4 Research Questions .............................................................................................................. 7 1.5 Objectives of the Study ........................................................................................................ 8 1.6 Scope of the Study ............................................................................................................... 8 1.7 Significance of the Study ..................................................................................................... 9 1.8 Theoretical Framework ........................................................................................................ 9 1.9 Literature Review.................................................................................................................. i 1.9.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 13 1.9.2 Radio versus Television Commentary ............................ Error! Bookmark not defined. 1.9.3 Postmodernism and Sports .............................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. 1.9.4 Narrative Elements in Sports Commentary .................................................................... 33 1.9.4.1 Themes and Motifs in Sports Commentary ................................................................. 15 1.9.4.2 Sports Commentary and Political Expression.............................................................