Supporting Women
Even though women have made incredible leaps physically and socially in sports over the years, the female body causes ostracism of women in sports because sports culture is historically male dominated. The female body requires sports bras which not only support the breasts of athletes as they pursue great physical endeavors, but also call attention to the prominent female gender expectations in sports. In her essay, “You Can Only Hope to Contain Them,” Amanda Hess sheds light on the struggles female athletes must persevere through while they perform through elements of humor that focus on depicting how female athletes transcend the human body.
In short, Amanda Hess’s essay is about how, because of their gender, female athletes have been historically neglected and must struggle through physical limits such as having breasts. She begins her essay with an intro featuring Ronda Rousey in the middle of a fight in which her flimsy sports bra had accidentally been pulled down her chest by her opponent, Marine Liz Carmouche. Rousey eventually had to figure out a way to beat her opponent and adjust the bra barely covering her chest. Hess is effective in capturing the audience’s attention with this scene because it took the audience to a place they didn’t expect to go right in the beginning of the essay. The vivid images of Rousy’s struggle with her bra are mildly embarrassing and humorous, however, it is told in a tone of seriousness that ultimately highlights the need to recognize women in sports.
Hess continues her serious tone throughout her essay as she covers the experiences of numerous athletes such as runners, gymnasts, tennis players, and more to intentionally exaggerate the victory of persevering through physical barriers. Overlapping with her serious tone, she alternatively incorporates elements of humor such as satire and hyperbole to enhance the themes of gender expectations and sports as a male dominated culture..
Satire aims to expose and criticize foolishness in individuals, situations, or society as a whole. Hess incorporates satire in her examination of the sports bra manufactures and in the story about the first female to have a bib at the Boston Marathon in 1967. In her section about the sports bra manufacturers, Hess discusses the arduous process of creating a sports bra that works well in containing all types of unique breasts. During this discussion, Hess specifically uses a quote from one of the sports bra’s innovators that is about how difficult it is to develop a sports bra; “We can’t take them out to the park to do a decathlon,’ White says” (Hess 227). This quote is an example of satire that aims to point out the struggles involved with women in sports due to societal gender expectations. In another instance of satire occurring in the story about Kathrine Switzer in the Boston Marathon, Hess utilizes an idea produced by critics of females running in the marathon. The idea that “the repetitive movement could cause her breasts to atrophy and her uterus to drop out of her vagina” (Hess 226) is used in a satirical manner because repeating now with hindsight makes fun of the foolishness of these critics that were incorrectly critical about females running. This satirical idea draws attention to the theme of sports as a male dominated culture.
Hyperboles also emphasize the themes of sports as a male dominated culture and are weaved throughout her essay. An example of a hyperbole is in her epiphany that “It was further confirmation that the world’s best athletes are those who have managed to transcend the limits — the addendums — to the human body” (Hess 229). Not only does this epiphany make the situation of adapting to the female body better and more grand than it seems in actuality, Hess presents females overcoming the female body as something outstanding that people need to be aware of. Her comment forces the audience to become aware of the amazing physical feats women are able to accomplish while dealing with their body, breasts in particular, as a possible detriment to their ability to compete. Another instance of hyperbole is when Hess discusses how as young athletes develop breasts, they tend to drop out or change their sport to something they can do without their breast size being an issue; she says specifically that “if all else fails: yoga” (Hess 228). This hyperbole works to demonstrate the struggles females go through to remain active just because of their gender.
Gender as a theme propels the story forwards and allows for Hess to conclude her piece with a one word quote from Rousey and her sports bra struggle that sums up her entire piece. Rousey says that she calls her neutralization of Carmouche and adjusting her bra during her fight “Multitasking!” Overall, Hess sheds light on women in sports by utilizing elements of humor such as satire and hyperbole to highlight how female athletes overcome the obstacles their bodies create.
