Summary Of Street Smart And The Sports World

Street Smarts and the Sports World; How are They Beneficial? Ask yourself this, why are street smarts considered inferior to book smarts? And why are sports considered non-intellectual? These are just two major questions Gerald Graff, University of Illinois at Chicago English Professor asks his readers in his essay, “Hidden Intellectualism”. Graff uses personal anecdotes and his own personal opinion to skillfully assess the similarities between the sports world and the intellectual world, Graff highlights the sense of community the sports world contributes to society, and proves the importance of street smarts in our modern culture. Graff argues that the educational world is much like the sports world in the way that it is organized. He elaborates on his claim by stating that sports stimulate the mind in the same way that the educational world does (249). I can see how this is true because for example a football player must

He continues this theory by stating that if students were to begin with subjects that interest them they could more easily evolve into intellectuals who read challenging writing (245). I agree with this idea because if students begin reading about things that interest them they may realize that reading is not such a ghastly thing contrary to what they may have originally thought. Graff believes that students will produce higher quality material if they write about their interests. By stating his own personal anecdote, he gives even more insight on how students can become intellectuals by practicing his ideas (245). After reading his anecdote, I became more of a believer in the idea Graff presents in his essay. I can reflect back on my own childhood much like Graff and what I found is that I can remember essays on the topics of enjoyment for me. On the contrary, I had little remembrance of the subjects that I had little or no interest