Though
to say that America is what the United Kingdom and even just England once was,
is to ignore the long history of what they had done to the world. Even we are part of that history, kind of
like a phoenix that rose from the ashes of their empire.[i] They were once the only thing in the
world. It was a truly global empire that
they say the “Sun Never Set On”, in the sense that there was always some part
of the empire that was in daylight. If
America is the only global superpower right now, England once was the globe. Why else would this language developed on an
island in the North Sea with French (yeck!) influences become the dominant
language in the world today?[ii] Essentially, they had influence in so many
parts of the globe, that it’s almost impossible to go some place that doesn’t
have some kind of influences from this place.
And
therefore, my tribute to authors from across the pond is a show of appreciation
for their past influence (and in reality, a certain amount of continued
influence) on the modern world. You
can’t ignore any kind of place where any sort of thing, specifically something
as important as soccer, is done at the highest level.[iii] There are 6 billion people in the world, but
the best of those at the most popular sport in the world come from all over the
face of the earth to play in a country of about 50 million. And England itself is impressive enough at
the sport for a country of that size, but at a certain point they simply cannot
overcome their lack of a population base.
And it’s their fault, really.
They’re the ones who spread the sport all over the globe.
What
seems to be the difference between the time when England ruled and the present,
dominated more by America, is that there’s a lot more acceptance of the other
countries and their cultures. It’s a
much faster-moving society, and we’re all now on a more level playing
field. And it’s not a surprise that the
country that was founded and grew based mostly on immigrants and the joining of
many different cultures is now the most successful in an era of a lot of
equally-recognized cultures. I think if
we recognize those ways we are better than other countries and cultures, we
will not only help ourselves grow, but also continue to improve the world as a
whole.
[i]
Phoenix, by the way, is a terrible name for a city. Sorry about that, World.
[ii]
There’s actually reasonable evidence to suggest that what is now known as a
British accent is more recent than the founding of America. Something to do with an influx of French
culture into England around the time of Napoleon, which may have entered into
their mode of speaking. An interesting
argument to make, as there were no recording devices to attest to this either
way. The point being, we may actually be speaking in the original pronunciation
of the language. Go America, and
Minnesota most of all!
[iii]
America carries on this tradition, in its truest manifestation, in the game of
basketball. It is everything that soccer
could never be (high scoring/small playing surface) and therefore everything it
is (exciting/nuanced) and has itself become a truly global sport.
