The Sport of the Gods is a novel by Paul Laurence Dunbar, first published in 1902, cantered on American urban black life. Forced to leave the South, a family falls apart amid the harsh realities of Northern inner-city life in this examination of the forces that extinguish the dreams of African Americans. The Sport of the Gods by Paul Laurence Dunbar is a novel that depicts the struggles of an African American family when they move up North from the South. The author demonstrates the tough conditions that the Hamilton family must endure while living in New York City.