Evolution of Playground Games - page 6
Keywords: Playground, Games, Playground Games, Folklore, Childhood, Play, School, Child's Play
By elliot5200 on 18/02/2007
Level: Bachelor Honours Degree (BA, BEng, BSc etc)
Page Number: 6 of 8 pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
wrong and strengthens their desire to win. Their belief that by quitting, they will appear cowardly in front of their friends also drives them to continue playing.
One would not usually consider associating childhood with such vicious feelings of revenge and domination, however the rise of violence in the media could be a key factor to account for this violent play in the playground. For example, in my primary school, boys used to re-enact wrestling matches they saw on television. This is supported by Trubshaw (2002: 138) who notes that, ‘While ‘folkloristic’ aspects of children’s games appear to have diminished in the last forty or fifty years, the ‘mythological’ content has increased greatly…’ This highlights the decline in traditional playground games as many children now choose to base their games on heroes from television programmes and video games, which are typically violent among boys.
Daniel explains that among boys, it is generally the quieter ones who now prefer playground games and usually feel neglected as most other boys are playing fighting games or football. However, this pattern is the opposite among girls, who continue to play traditional games. A reason for this difference in methods of play is that boys feel a greater need to conform to their stereotypical gender roles and through their play, will try to appear strong, tough and masculine, perhaps to impress girls. They will therefore avoid traditional playground games, which they believe make them appear childish.
Moreover, perhaps the abundance of enforced rules in the playground, which are designed to impede children actually make them want to rebel. This is emphasised by the presence of teachers – authority figures who are constantly watching them, together with the restricted environment they have to play in. This is supported by the Opies (1984: 10) who observed that children played less aggressively in their streets, where they are not under any marked confinements than in the playground. For example, many accounts from children they interviewed revealed that in school, they enjoyed games like Knuckles and Slappies where players are provided with a sense of authority as they harm other players, whilst in their streets, they would play calmer games like Hide and Seek and Kick the Can.
Traditional playground games encouraged interaction and cooperation between schoolchildren, leading to friendships forming and Daniel says that many children’s playtimes are now being spoilt by them being victims of bullying, which
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