On the elementals and their qualities in David Foster Wallace’s Derivative Sport in Tornado Alley

This article addresses the phenomenological concept of the ‘world’, the ancient Greek notion of the ‘elementals’ as well as their empirically accessible derivatives (‘qualities’). These concepts are examined from the philosophical perspective, with David Foster Wallace’s essay Derivative Sport in Tornado Alley serving as an illustration. The purpose of the examination is to show how the world communicates itself through its basic structures and their qualities to a child who is engaged in play. The works of Edmund Husserl, Martin Heidegger, and the Presocratics assist this study with a methodological framework. The provisional findings include the significance of the elementals (fire, water, earth, and air) for the perception of the world and its structures, as well as the role of ‘wind,’ which is presented as a quality of the elemental ‘air’ and, in a different interpretation, as a divinity. The collusion between a mortal and wind, with sky and earth forming the background for this relationship, produces unique circumstances for playing tennis in a place, which constantly challenges this activity. The notions of ‘childhood’ and ‘nostalgia’ are also touched upon, albeit in a cursive manner. This study is designed to show advantages of employing phenomenology and ancient Greek philosophy for the humanities in general and specifically for the analysis of contemporary literature.