Ted Lasso and Philosophy explores the hidden depths beneath the vibrant veneer of AppleTV's breakout, award-winning sitcom. Blending philosophical sophistication with winsome appreciation of this feel-good comedy, the collection features 20 original essays canvassing the breadth of the series and carefully considering the ideas it presents, including the goal of competition, the role of mental health, sportsmanship, revenge versus justice, the importance of friendship, the imperative of respect for persons, humility, leadership, identity, character growth, courage, journalistic ethics, belief, forgiveness, what love looks like, and just how evil tea is. In a nod to the show’s many literary allusions, the compilation concludes with a whimsical appendix that catalogs the books most significant to Ted Lasso's themes and characters. If football is life, as Dani Rojas fondly repeats, then this book’s a fitting primer.
Ted Lasso and Philosophy is for the curious, not judgmental. Sport is quite the metaphor, and we can't wait to unpack it with you.
MARYBETH BAGGETT is Professor of English at Houston Christian University. She is co-author of Telling Tales: Intimations of the Sacred in Popular Culture and The Morals of the Story: Good News about a Good God, which won Christianity Today's 2019 Award of Merit for Apologetics and Evangelism.
DAVID BAGGETT is Professor of Philosophy at Houston Christian University and Director of the Center for the Foundations of Ethics. He's the author or editor of fifteen books, including a tetralogy on the moral argument for God's existence.