Banter as transformative practice: linguistic play and joking relationships in a UK swimming club

Sean Heath

doi:10.1515/humor-2024-0005

Article

Banter as transformative practice: linguistic play and joking relationships in a UK swimming club

Sean Heath
Sean Heath is an anthropologist whose research is characterized by an examination of embodiment, sensory perception, and human-water relations. He has conducted research alongside youth, adult, recreational, and competitive swimmers in Canada, the UK, and Norway examining the politics of bodily knowledge, safeguarding, and wellbeing. His present work focuses on practices of water stewardship and processes of nation and identity construction through cold-water dipping and swimming.

Published/Copyright: August 14, 2024

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From the journal HUMOR Volume 37 Issue 4

Abstract

This article investigates the multiple interpretations and uses of banter as an inclusive and exclusionary practice amongst competitive youth swimmers in the Southeast of England. As a metacommunicative act, banter is a form of linguistic play that focuses on the ways in which the words are delivered, and the social relationships involved between those engaged in banter. Through an immersive “apprenticeship” within a competitive swimming club from 2018 to 2022, I was party to particular forms of English “humorous” communication and invitations to join in banter with coaches and swimmers. As competitive swimming can be a monotonous activity, with long periods between competitions and nigh endless repetition of training drills, coaches encouraged swimmers’ engagement in banter as an inclusive strategy for squad cohesiveness and to stave off boredom throughout the swimming season. Playful teasing was used to invite engagement in banter from one or more people, helping to foster social bonds, develop joking relationships, and create a relaxed atmosphere within training spaces. Mockery and teasing used to initiate banter were also mobilized as exclusionary social positioning strategies to test the limits of social interaction and define oneself against others. This article asserts that despite the nearly-totalitarian position of the coach within high-performance swimming humorous or joking banter does not simply function as a morale-booting activity or as a substitute for active resistance against monotonous training requirements. By paying attention to the intersubjective processes within joking relationships, here through banter, we can see how youth actively navigate sociality and assert their agency within institutional training environments.

Keywords: banter; joking relationships; tone; swimming

Corresponding author: Sean Heath, Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Social and Cultural Anthropology, Faculty of Social Sciences, KU Leuven, Parkstraat 45, Bus 3615, 3000, Leuven, Belgium, E-mail: sean.heath@kuleuven.be

Funding source: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada

Award Identifier / Grant number: 752-2020-0175

About the author

Sean Heath

Sean Heath is an anthropologist whose research is characterized by an examination of embodiment, sensory perception, and human-water relations. He has conducted research alongside youth, adult, recreational, and competitive swimmers in Canada, the UK, and Norway examining the politics of bodily knowledge, safeguarding, and wellbeing. His present work focuses on practices of water stewardship and processes of nation and identity construction through cold-water dipping and swimming.

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Received: 2023-07-01

Accepted: 2024-06-23

Published Online: 2024-08-14

Published in Print: 2024-10-28

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https://doi.org/10.1515/humor-2024-0005

Keywords for this article

banter; joking relationships; tone; swimming