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Chapter 27
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Fever Pitch, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Obsession vs. Fandom
Sports, Identity, and Community
Escapism
Sports and Masculinity
Summary
Analysis
Cambridge United is having a good season, and they must win their game against Exeter to advance. Nick is at the game with his girlfriend and some friends, and at one point, his girlfriend faints. Nick, gripped by the gameplay, does nothing to help while her friends take her to the hospital. Thirteen years later, Nick is concerned about his attitude toward his girlfriend that day. He fears he hasn’t changed at all. If his current partner passed out during an important game, he worries that he would do nothing to help. Nick notes that though he thinks of women as more likely to faint during a football game, he himself has been closer to passing out at an Arsenal game than his current partner ever has.
Nick’s concerningly lacking reaction to his girlfriend’s medical emergency is another way that the relationship helps him realize the severity of his obsession. Even though he now understands just how concerning this is, present-day Nick considers that he might make the same mistake again. This is the nature of true obsession—simply realizing that it is a problem doesn’t stop it.
Themes
