Theme

Part of your assignment is to discuss the importance of personal dreams and ambitions. This is also the main theme of “Sports Leader” by Jane Rogers, as the text illustrates the personal dreams and ambitions of the main character, the unnamed teenage boy.

The importance of personal dreams and ambitions

Although others do not believe in him, and he probably has a cognitive disability, the boy still has personal dreams and ambitions. His dreams are simple. He wants to be financially independent so that he can become fit and pursue a Sports Leadership course:

That’s what he was going to save up for. He was going to get back to being fit like when he lived with his mum and dad. (…)When he got the money he was going to join the gym at the Rec. He could do weights, cycling, push ups, and the ones where you open your arms wide and push the levers back. Then he could take his Sports Leadership. Once he got his qualification he’d be training athletes. Olympic, probably. (ll. 78-83)

This dream gets him going at work, even though sometimes he finds it hard. Having dreams and ambitions gives him a reason to carry on, and not sit at home and watch TV all the time. However, the boy is also not very realistic about his dreams, because he does not seem to realise that to pursue the Sports Leadership...