42 pages • 1 hour read
W.C. MackAthlete Vs. Mathlete
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2013A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Summary
Background
Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Character Analysis
Themes
Symbols & Motifs
Important Quotes
Essay Topics
Tools
BetaSymbols & Motifs
Basketball
Basketball represents The Effects of Peer Pressure and conforming to stereotypes, as well as the rivalry and resolution between Owen and Russell. From Chapter 1, basketball brings stress to Owen because selection for the team is being handled in a new way that he doesn’t like—via tryouts. This associates basketball with the pressure to do well and make the team, because it is what he and his peers expect from him. When the coach tells Russell to try out, this makes basketball an even bigger stressor for Owen. Not only is basketball no longer something he can count on, but the potential of Russell joining the team makes Owen feel as though his brother is encroaching on his space and taking over the thing that lets Owen stand out.
Basketball also tracks along Owen and Russell’s relationship. The leadup to tryouts is a time filled with stress and fear, as Owen and his friends wonder what will be expected of them. For Owen, these fears are compounded by the desire to out-perform Russell but also keep his brother from being an embarrassment. This emotional struggle, aligned with the leadup to the tryouts, builds toward the moment where everything changes for both Russell and Owen. The tryouts themselves offer a mixed bag of emotions. Owen feels confident in his own skills but torn about Russell. Though Owen has distanced himself from Russell at school up until this point, he chooses to help Russell at tryouts, figuring it is a nice thing to do and that it doesn’t matter because Russell won’t make the team anyway. When Russell’s jump shot turns out to be the asset that wins him a spot on the team, the feud between the brothers begins in earnest. While Owen curls in on himself, trying to hide his anger and frustration that Russell is good at basketball, Russell comes out of his shell and thrives in his new environment. This makes Owen even angrier because he doesn’t want Russell to be good at or enjoy basketball, and these pent-up feelings lead to the brothers’ major argument in Chapter 16. Following this, Russell’s disappearance from the team correlates to a terrible loss, showing how a team suffers when it isn’t in proper working order. When Russell returns to the team, he heals his relationship with Owen and the team’s ability to bring their best game.
Masters of the Mind
Like basketball, Masters of the Mind relates to the theme The Effects of Peer Pressure, as well as It’s Okay To Be Who You Are. Russell’s relationship with Masters of the Mind begins similarly to Owen’s relationship with basketball. Circumstances have recently changed (one of the club members moved away), which has brought new challenges to the group and turned Masters of the Mind from a fun activity to a stressful one. This is compounded when Arthur is the only student interested in filling in the final necessary position so the team has enough participants for the upcoming competition. Like Russell is to Owen in basketball, Arthur is an unwanted addition who brings the group stress, even though he is filling a needed role. In addition, Russell doesn’t want Arthur there because Arthur starts to encroach on Russell’s position as team leader. Once Russell makes the basketball team, the pressure increases as he struggles to find a balance between the two activities. His friends in Masters of the Mind want him to dedicate himself to their group because they’ve been a team for so long, but the basketball kids want Russell to commit to the team because he brings a skill they desperately need.
Masters of the Mind symbolizes Russell’s identity at the beginning of the novel. As a result of two different groups wanting Russell’s attention, Russell is caught between opposing pressure groups, unable to fit in either place until he realizes his identity is not locked into either group. At the beginning of the novel, Russell believes he knows where he belongs—with the Masters of the Mind group. However, his increased interest in basketball coupled with the pressure Arthur puts on Masters of the Mind makes Russell want to distance himself from the club because it is no longer the place where he feels most like himself. This makes basketball more appealing than it previously was because the sport offers Russell a way to start fresh. At this point, Masters of the Mind represents an older version of Russell with which he is no longer satisfied. However, once the feud between Russell and Owen begins, Russell returns to Masters of the Mind, which once again feels like the place he truly belongs. At the end of the book, this is revealed not to be the case—Russell can occupy any group he likes without taking it on as his whole identity.
The Nikes
Russell’s Nikes symbolize how Mindset Matters, as well as his journey on the basketball team and his relationship with Owen. When Russell first sees the Nikes, he thinks they feel magical and like they bring out a part of him he didn’t know he had. The shoes themselves have no mystical powers, which shows the strength of one’s view on a situation. Russell starts to feel like basketball is something he wants after trying on the Nikes because the shoes are so different from anything he’s ever worn. They take him away from the stress surrounding Masters of the Mind and offer a stress-free alternative in basketball, a place where Russell is free of expectations and responsibility. Once Russell makes the basketball team, the meaning of the Nikes begins to shift. At first, they are his lucky charm—the object that allows him to achieve something he never thought possible. Next, they are a representation for the new part of his identity as a member of a sports team. As the argument between Russell and Owen comes to a head, the Nikes become a symbol of how something new doesn’t stay stress-free forever. Basketball has its own set of challenges, and Russell must deal with them just as he must go back and deal with the challenges facing Masters of the Mind.
At the end of the book, the Nikes become the focal point for the feud between Russell and Owen. Since Russell got them, Owen has been jealous of the Nikes because they are much cooler than his own shoes. For Owen, the Nikes represent the loss of everything he holds dear—his identity as the family athlete and a place where he can be separate from his twin brother. Throwing the Nikes in the dumpster is a physical manifestation of Owen’s loss, as well as an inappropriate outlet for his anger. Owen’s actions are wrong, and his willingness to see this, coupled with his desire to set things right are a turning point for him. Once he rescues the Nikes from the dumpster, the shoes become a beacon for the future of his relationship with Russell. The shoes barely sustaining damage while in the dumpster foreshadows that Owen and Russell will resolve their issues and become a team by the end of the book.
