The Schoolboy’s Enclosure Symbol Analysis

The Schoolboy’s Enclosure—a section of Arsenal’s stadium meant for children—represents the significant role that Arsenal Football Club plays in Nick Hornby’s identity and how his personal identity shifts as he matures. Nick first starts attending Arsenal games after his parents separate as a way of bonding with his father. Football turns out to be the only thing that Nick and his dad successfully connect through, and Nick’s immediate obsession with Arsenal speaks to how important this connection is to him. Soon after Nick discovers Arsenal, his dad moves out of the country, leaving 11-year-old Nick with no significant adult male presence in his life. This is a key factor that leads to Nick’s obsessive fixation with and admiration of Arsenal and football in general, as the games provide Nick with the adult male presence that he lacks and desires. Nick only starts watching games from the Schoolboy’s Enclosure after his father leaves. This highlights how Nick clings to Arsenal as a source of guidance and stability even though he is now alone—his real father figure is gone, and Nick now views games surrounded by other young boys who are unaccompanied by adults.

The biggest milestone in Nick’s maturation is his “graduation” from the Schoolboy’s Enclosure to North Bank, a regular terrace for adults. Fifteen at the time, Nick considers this a more significant milestone in his life than his first romantic relationship or his first alcoholic drink. He even plans his move to the North Bank meticulously for weeks, and he feels deeply anxious and embarrassed for not having done it sooner. The gravity he places on this transition speaks to how profoundly entangled Nick’s identity is with Arsenal. Arsenal once played the role of a father figure, but now that Nick is an adolescent, the team plays a similar role in his social development to a peer group. After successfully transitioning out of the Schoolboy’s Enclosure, Nick experiences a satisfying sense of belonging within the community. This feeling ultimately sustains his deep infatuation and dependence on football throughout much of his adulthood.

As he matures further, Nick relies on Arsenal at various points in his life as a substitute for career satisfaction and gratifying relationships. Of course, this is an unhealthy dependency, and Nick eventually becomes depressed as his social needs increase and football’s inadequacy as a substitute for genuine fulfillment becomes clearer. Though Nick only spends a few years in the Schoolboy’s Enclosure, his transitions into and out of the section are momentous occasions that symbolize how deeply and dangerously his identity and development are enraptured with Arsenal and with football as a whole.