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Chapter 39
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
Nick feels “lost” at this time in his life. He starts teaching high school in a rough neighborhood in London. He hopes that his football knowledge will help him relate to his students, but he often finds himself unable to control his classroom. Nick discovers that one of his students is an Arsenal fan. The student jeers at Nick when he says that he is, too. Nick, enraged by the student’s accusation that he can’t possibly be an Arsenal fan, is tempted to attack the kid. The experience makes Nick realize that teaching is not for him, since he hasn’t really grown up yet.
Nick emotionally matures later, he suggests, because his football obsession has stunted his personal development. For many years he uses football to escape his real problems instead of confronting them, and he also uses it as a replacement for meaningful relationships. As a result, he is not yet equipped for the working world. The violent urge he feels towards his student reflects the harmful standards of masculinity that football has taught him.
Themes
