RAB Source Entry 3 — Joshua A.

Part 1: MLA Citation

Sam Martin – Peak Performance. “The Competitive Edge: Using Anger Effectively in Sports.” YouTube, www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-qR6PcU130. Accessed 15 Nov. 2023.

‌Part 2: Summary 

This 6 minute and 55 second video produced by Sam Martin discusses the three main benefits of anger in an athletic setting. He starts off the video by introducing a soccer player from Manchester United named Wayne Rooney. He was angry about his team’s inability to catch up with the other team’s score and decided to express his concerns to the referee. As he makes his way off the field, he encounters the ball and being that he had so much anger built up, he kicks the ball right into the goal. In most cases, anger has a bad connotation and is a misunderstood emotion that many feel should be suppressed. However, channeling anger into a sport isn’t a bad thing if you can do it properly.  According to Martin, the three benefits are that anger heightens focus, increases effort, and intimidates opponents. He states that, “…anger can be incredibly useful to gain an advantage over your opposition. We see time and time again that the team that loses is the one that psychologically collapses…” Martin’s video explains that emotions such as anger can help a player convey to the opposing team that they won’t back down from any challenge.  

Part 3: Reflection with my opinion and quotes

This video shown how anger can really be used to your advantage if you know how to use it. When I play with anger, I let it drive to win the game. That’s my only goal and thing on mind. Martin talks about how Michael Jordan used a couple of words that an opponent said and used it to drive him through the rest of the season. I remember when I was playing basketball with my friends, one of them decided to trash talk and I got mad and used the anger. Played my heart out scoring all the points and winning the game for my team. I believe anger isn’t only a negative emotion because you can really use it for good. People think only problem come with anger but if you really manipulate for personal gain then you can really do good with it.

Part 4: Rhetorical / Genre Analysis

Martin’s primary audience is the public, including athletes. His purpose is to inform about the benefits of anger in an athletic setting and people interested in sports and behaviors can reference his video.  The occasion refers to the multiple times commentators take shots at athletes for being in a vulnerable state and their reactions. His choice of the video as the genre is successful. Seeing how athletes’ emotions could heighten their chances of winning and can cause relief can make other athletes, specifically men, feel comfortable enough to express themselves the way they want to being that men are raised being told to “suck it up” and to suppress emotions. The video captures the real and raw behaviors of human beings and how if controlled properly can lead to a win. He uses the rhetorical appeal of ethos to convey his credibility. He uses statements from athletes such as Mike Tyson, “Tyson admitted that he too was fearful of his opponents. He would have dreams of them beating him and what they were capable of doing to him. But to crush that fear he had; he would start channeling his anger.” Viewers could trust in Martin claims being that these statements made by athletes reference their experiences. Not only does Martin reference athletes’ claims, but he also is a Mental Health Performance Coach and has a master’s degree in performance psychology.  Sam Martin’s video was uploaded to the social media platform YouTube. Although this platform is not a reliable source, it’s used to share ideas and perspectives with a wider audience. Martin does this by sharing his viewpoint on three specific benefits of anger and sports. 

Part 5: Notable Quotables

“I’m going after that kid” (Martin, 3:39)

“Channeled appropriately anger can increase an individual’s ability to concentrate and direct their attention towards a specific objective because when you’re angry you experience a heightened state of alertness.”  (Martin, 2:00)

“Instinctively uses angry energy to smash it with perfect Fallen power” (Martin, 2:38)