The Shadow-gloom and Weight of the Sacred

The most recent Tiger Woods/Nike commercial is also NOT ABOUT THE PRODUCT. In a matter of speaking, it's about Tiger. But, it's also about much more than just Tiger and the recently revealed struggles and misdeeds in his life. It's about the whole community of people gathered around Nike products. The ideals of this community have often been vague and influx over the years, but it is not a community without ideals. For instance, we know it is a group of people who expect excellence. They pursue excellence in sports. They expect achievement. They expect victory. They also expect excellence in a shoe. They are determined. It's not that defeat isn't a possibility, that's the nature of competition. Rather, it's that defeat won't come easily. In order to win over a Nike person, you simply cannot coast through, you must conquer them. It will be a such a defeat that we leave respecting the loser wearing Nike more so than the winner wearing something else. Watch Nike commercials and you will find the look of determination throughout. Watch this Michael Jordan commercial (circa 1997) to see how Nike people understand and interpret defeat:We also see that happiness is important in the Nike world. Watch the "Instant Karma" commercial again and look for the happiness. I particularly like the moments of joy scattered throughout this Nike advertisement:Also, on a side note for those of you who noticed, this commercial is titled "My Better is Better." It's important to recognize, I think, that this is not better in the old "er" word sense of advertisement. It's not the product that is better--it's the person. "I was already better, but I happen to use Nike." This commercial also highlights the ideal of confidence.

I suppose a diligent person could go through all the Nike commercials of the last 15-20 years and identify the ideals of the Nike Nation as they've developed over time. I suppose we'd learn a lot about Nike people. But, to get the point, the new Tiger Woods/Nike commercial invites a question: Is this the first time repentance is represented in a Nike commercial? Or, for that matter, any commercial? Is repentance now an ideal of the Nike Nation? Maybe I'm way off, but if not, it is very interesting marketing.

The people who use this product make mistakes.
The people who use this product sometimes make bad mistakes, hurt the people they love.
The people who use this product embarrass their parents.
The people who use this product must live the rest of their lives in repentance.