September 23, 2016 - 16:56
In the post “Play”, written by the user Porkchop, the author describes her early experiences of play with her three younger siblings. Their activities seem to fit perfectly within the mainstream conception of childhood play. Her and her siblings built forts, played with army toys in a sandbox, and made up their own games, into which they incorporated everything around them. The author’s description of play feels timeless, it could have easily taken place several decades ago, and free of any serious concerns. In some ways, it seems that the author has been influenced by the myth of childhood, as described by Molly Knefel in her article “Kid Stuff”. While this misconception may not seem harmful on the surface, the danger of romanticizing childhood is two-fold. For one, as Knefel discusses, it disregards the fact that children often incorporate complex, “adult” issues into their play, and that these issues affect them in real life. Additionally, it gives adults the misconception that they are no longer young, innocent, or unburdened enough to engage in play. Just as children use play to interact with the ideas and issues of the adult world, adults could use play to bridge the gap between adulthood and childhood, but they must first be willing to understand play as legitimate and necessary.
There is a common understanding that becoming an adult requires not just gaining skills and independence, but also abandoning all childish things, including play. The assumption is that once you reach a certain age, playing ceases to be a priority, and either becomes a luxury or is neglected altogether. As Porkchop writes in her post, “Until puberty, children thrive upon play - social interaction, creativity, imagination. But when hormones set in, children grow up. Play is not a priority anymore, because teens center their new world on romance. After romance comes school, jobs, college, friends.” (Porkchop) Growing up seems to require a reshuffling of priorities in which play is expected to fall to the bottom of the list. It raises the question of how play, which is crucial in childhood, could suddenly become unimportant after reaching a certain age. While there is some science to this idea, with it now being common knowledge that play is necessary for healthy development, the effects of play go far beyond just benefitting an individual’s brain.
Play functions as a means of bringing people closer together and allowing them to communicate on more equal footing. Typically, a parent-child relationship has a clear power imbalance, with the parent having complete authority over the child. However, play allows for these dynamics to be explored and subverted. When a child and an adult are playing in an imagined scenario, such as playing “house”, it’s very likely that the characters they take on will have roles very different from the roles they have in reality. A child could pretend to be the head of a household while their parent pretends to be their child or the family pet. These kinds of exercises are helpful for increasing the child’s understanding of the social world, but they are not without concrete benefits for adults.
As much of a cliché as it may be, there’s a lot we can learn from children. Children have the ability to create and become fully invested in an imagined scenario, which requires a level of creativity and improvisation that many adults would benefit from. Children also seem to use play to simultaneously escape from reality and gain a better understanding of it. In Knefel’s essay, she describes a play being put on by children as, “a pretty devastating portrayal of the cyclical criminalization of poverty, but it was scene among others containing ninjas and witches and ghosts and dragons.” (Knefel) There is no real divide between childhood and adulthood, but children are far more likely to recognize this fact. The adult misconception of childhood as some sacred, idyllic kingdom prevents adults from reaping the benefits of play and leads to an unnecessary gap between people of different ages. In her post, Porkchop writes about how “As the oldest child, I feel that I abandoned my three younger siblings, and my brother followed, and then my sister. Now my 9 year old sister has no one to play with at home”. (Porkchop) Her mindset, that play is unique to childhood, made her feel isolated from her siblings. The refusal of teenagers and adults to engage in play on the grounds that it’s only for children creates a wholly unnecessary divide which harms people of all ages.
Play has an extraordinary ability to bring people together. Even if they come from completely different walks of life, two children who create and engage in an imagined scenario together will be able to enjoy a shared experience. Knefel writes in her essay about how, “while my back is turned the kids have invented an elaborate 20-person game.” (Knefel) Play brings her class together and allows them to interact seamlessly, and in doing so, allows them to form relationships and learn from one another. The same could be true of play between adults and children, or among adults, if they are willing to accept play as beneficial to people at every stage of life. Play helps develop the skills of empathy, communication, and creativity, none of which cease to be relevant the moment you turn 18. When teenagers take the time to play with their younger siblings, college students babysit toddlers, or adults take some time out of their day for a game with their child, niece or nephew, it should not be taken as a sign of immaturity. For all its childhood connotations, play may very well be the key to being a better adult.
Works Cited
Knefel, M. (2015, July 16). Kid Stuff. The New Inquiry. Retrieved September 22, 2016, from http://thenewinquiry.com/essays/kid-stuff/
Porkchop. (2016, September 19). Play. Retrieved September 22, 2016, from /oneworld/changing-our-story-2016/play-0