其他摘要:Today, a certain number of sports are described as « fun » or « Californien ». These sports stand in contrast to «
traditional » sports in that their enthusiasts place great value on play, on the enjoyment of being with others, on fun and on
shared emotions. The use of these words in reference to these sports sets them apart from the « serious » competitive sports
and places them in the category of futile, shallow, marginal, even socially immature pursuits. This study, based on the
ethnography of a small community of climbers that has appropriated a rock face in the south of France, shows that far from
being futile, their activity is a theatre for social issues that go well beyond the limits of the sport. Thus, while on the one hand the
as- pects of friendliness, sharing and play associated with rock climbing give certain climbers the feeling of belonging to a
community, on the other hand the use of symbolic violence and a process of behaviour normalisation means that « others » are
excluded (others being those who do not « play the game » of the local population). These phenomena are examined here since
they show how, within the area of sport, tensions are played out between individuals (free and equal) and a community of
belonging develops. Indeed, these phenomena call into question contemporary ways of « living together ».