Defoe v Heskey = category mistake

Philosopher Gilbert Ryle introduced the term ‘category mistake’: this mistake occurs when we talk about the properties of an entity in terminology which applies to a different type of entity. Ryle uses the example of a person being shown around a university and being shown the buildings, departments and libraries but then asking: “But where is the university?” The error being made is considering that the University exists in the same category as the units of infrastructure of which it is comprised, rather than as a term which describes an abstract, emergent aggregation of these components.

A form of category mistake is often made when considering the England football team. The tendency is to view the team as 11 independent components rather than as a collaborative, emergent whole. In England, we would be shown the players in the side and would not then consider asking: “Where is the team?” But the error, in this instance, is the assumption that eleven individual players are the sum total of the team and that collective enterprise has no distinct categorical properties over and above this individual-level. A team, like a University, has to be a balance of different but complementary elements. The student union building might be popular, but that doesn’t mean a campus with ten student unions and no libraries would still be a functioning academic institution!

A key example of this orientation was demonstrated when Emile Heskey was selected over Jermain Defoe for the crucial qualifier against Croatia at Wembley. Defoe had been in fine form. However, the less goal-hungry Emile Heskey had become established as England’s centre-forward over what had been a successful qualifying campaign: England went into the game having scored 26 goals which suggested that the team was doing something right. England started well against Croatia and they were 2-0 up by half-time. Heskey provided the offensive apex of the team structure as usual, but missed two good chances in the first-half. Following these misses, the ITV cameras were quick to focus on Defoe sitting on the bench, the clear implication being: there is a natural goalscorer on the bench so why isn’t he playing?

The error being committed by ITV was that, in a team game it is not feasible to simply replace one component with another; the impact upon the team structure must be considered. Defoe is a qualitatively different player to Heskey: if he had been leading the line then the team structure may not have been so ably supported. (It would have been less of a category mistake if ITV had shown a still of Kevin Davies every time Heskey missed a chance.) Only by denying the unique features of the category ‘team’ was it possible to view Defoe as a straightforward replacement for Heskey. The focus on Defoe intimated the assumption that England would have performed identically if he been included, with the only difference being that he would have finished the chances which Heskey missed. However, the game would have been very different: the chances Heskey missed could not be viewed as discrete passages of play.

This doesn’t mean that individual abilities cannot be considered, but demonstrates that these cannot be assessed without reference to the independent category ‘team’. Accommodating a goal-shy target man may become a hindrance for England, but simply hauling him off and replacing him with a different type of player is only rational if we believe that a team is purely explicable in terms of individuals.