Mascot -n. A person, animal or thing considered to bring good luck.
Etymology - 1881 - from provincial French 'mascotte': "sorcerer's charm, 'faerie friend,' good luck piece," from Prov. 'mascoto': "sorcery, fetish."
History-
The use of mascots goes back to antiquity but they were not always called mascot. The word "mascot" itself suggests a connection with the occult. How the word entered the English language is a story in itself. At the turn of the century, a French composer, Edmond Audran (1842-1901) wrote a series of operettas. One of the most popular was called "La Mascotte" (1880), a light-hearted plot about a farm girl who brought good luck to whoever possessed her, provided that she remained wholesome. This ran for over 1,000 performances between 1800 and 1882. Its popularity was so great that it was translated into English and staged in England (Comedy Theatre, London, October 15, 1881), and staged in the United States (Gaiety Theatre, Boston, April 11, 1882). The translated title became "The Mascot" and the concept of a mascot as a person, animal, or thing bringing luck was thus established.
Man has always admired the wild beasts he used to hunt, the grace and power of the big cats, the speed and persistence of the wolf, the intelligence of the fox and the sheer power of the bear. All of these animals made fearsome opponents and early humans must have had a fair amount of guts to tackle them without today's weapons. It was this awe and respect that probably led to
the adoption of these animals as tribal symbols or totems and the belief that by communing with these animals, some of these powers will magically transfer to the their tribe. They used likenesses of these animals in their ceremonies, both in primitive costume form and as models and statues to bring good fortune in battle, a bountiful harvest, protection against misfortune, to heal the sick and to bring misfortune on their enemies. Some of their gods were, in fact, mascots. The earliest example of mascots in graphical and model form has to be the cave paintings in various parts of the world and the tribal statues and totem poles in existence even today
Performance -
Entrance - Set your mark. Whether it's a football game or a store opening, with a big entrance.
Exaggeration - You need to double or even triple the actions you would normal do so your costume doesn't hide what you're doing. Use your whole body.
Emotion - Think about how emotional sporting events can get. Shivering, slow motion, trudging feet, tantrums, kowtowing, jumping up and down, skipping, and elation are great actions to try. And remembering that the costume will hide a lot of your gestures, make sure you exaggerate.
Hall of Fame -
The mission of the Mascot Hall of Fame is to honor great mascot performers, performance, and programs that have inspired tradition and positively affected their communities. Each year, mascots and mascot performers will be elected to the Mascot Hall of Fame and inducted celebrating their achievement.
Characters are as much a part of the game as the players themselves. They are even by many standards the true face of the team. Players come and go but the mascot is there to stay. They entertain fans time after time developing deep rooted relationships with their community.
Pro Characters -
Professional characters are those characters that represent professional sports franchises and are the team's official mascot. This includes all sports at every professional level. Professional level is determined by the fact that the athletes that are participating in the sport are being paid a salary.
Collegiate Characters -
Collegiate Characters are those mascots that are the official costume character representing the college or university. This includes all institutions of higher learning above high school.
Controversy -
According to the National Coalition on Race and Sports Media, which is part of the American Indian Movement (AIM), there are more than 3,000 racists or offensive mascots/nicknames used in high school, college, or professional sports teams. They use Native American symbols such as braves, warriors, chiefs, or Indians. These nicknames and mascots are false portrayals that encourage biases and prejudices that have a negative effect on contemporary Indian people.
In the controversy, the nickname "redskins" is particularly offensive. Historically, the term was used to refer to the scalps of dead Native Americans that were exchanged for money as bounties. When it became too difficult to bring in the bodies of dead Indians to get the money (usually under one dollar per person), bounty hunters exchanged bloody scalps or "redskins" as evidence of the dead Indian.
Resources:
Emert, Phyllis R., and Barbara Sheehan. “Respect: A Newsletter About Law and Diversity.” The New Jersey State Bar Foundation. 2 (2 Nov. 2003): 1; 4-5. Digital.
"Mascot - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary." Dictionary and Thesaurus –Merriam-Webster Online. Web. 03 Oct. 2011.
"Mascothalloffame.com: History of Mascots." Mascothalloffame.com: Home. Web. 03 Oct. 2011.
"Mascothalloffame.com: Our Mission." Mascothalloffame.com: Home. Web. 06 Oct. 2011.
"Promascot.com: What's New?" Promascot.com: Home. Web. 06 Oct. 2011.
Welcome to MascotNet! Web. 06 Oct. 2011.
"What Is a Mascot? About Face Mascots Ltd." Home About Face Mascots Ltd. Web. 06 Oct. 2011.
I'm really excited about putting a mascot into our show. I like the idea of Oedipus's swollen foot, but I think it's a little obscure and won't reach the audience as well as we think. What about some ridiculous collection of theatre memes? Like breaking a leg? Or not whistling backstage? Or saying Macbeth in a theatre? Maybe there's a viking helmet with horns thrown in the mix? Or a skull in hand? Quills? Ink? Parchment? Typewriters? Utili-kilts? Crescent wrenches? Fresnels? Fabric? Any suggestions?
ReplyDeleteI think all this is really interesting. I hadn't really thought of it before, but the mascot concept has a lot of ties to indigenous totemism. Not as cliched as a totem pole, and everything is essentially the same. The animal/thing lends its power to the one who controls it, their team. If another team steals your mascot, they gain strength and you are weakened.
ReplyDeleteSomething else that popped out to me is that "la mascotte" and all other variations of the word in other romance languages are all feminine nouns, but most mascots seem to be represented as male.
And it's interesting to note that those romance language words for mascot (they share the Latin root word for "witch"), can be translated as a "pet," depending on the regional dialect. While that has some parallels to today's mascots, the idea of owning the animal you draw your power from would be sacreligious in an indigenous society.