Play is a term so loosely used that its real significance is apt to be lost. It is any activity engaged in for the enjoyment it gives, without consideration of the end result. It is entered into voluntarily and is lacking in external force or compulsion. Work is an activity toward an end; the individual carries out the activity, not necessarily because he enjoys it, but because he wants the end result. Work may be done voluntarily or involuntarily. Drudgeryâwork that is imposed on the individual by othersâhas no element in common with play; it is not engaged in voluntarily, nor is its end result important to the person.
â Play versus Work.
Although many people try to make a distinction between work and play activities, there are no activities that may be classed exclusively as either. Whether an activity belongs in one category or the other depends not upon the activity itself but upon the individual's attitude toward it. Collecting, for example, is a form of play for a child or an adult who makes it a hobby, but it is work for the person who collects articles to sell for a profit. Similarly, drawing may be a pleasant pastime, but if the motive is to enter one's drawings in a contest or to earn a living as an artist, drawing becomes a form of work.
Any activity that is directed toward an end other than enjoyment cannot rightly be called "play." Games and sports are "play" to young children because the thought of winning or competing with others does not enter in; the only aim is to have fun. As children grow older, however, competition between gangs becomes important, and games or sports then become highly competitive. As a result, these activities become more like work than play. Beating the rival gang is more important than the enjoyment derived from the activity. Likewise, in junior and senior high school, competition with other schools or with other classes emphasizes the end result-winning-rather than the fun of playing.
Children distinguish between work and play on the basis of exterior conditions. Work is class activity or chores done around the house, while play is everything else. To them, play means doing what they want to do, while work means doing things they have to do. Bright children emphasize that work is useful activity, while play is useless; work is a serious activity requiring application and attention, while play is a restful and easy activity. Bright children thus come closer to the adult distinction between work and play than children of average intelligence.
Adults regard play as a means of gaining pleasure; they look upon leisure activities as a change from their usual work activities. Much of the pleasure they gain from leisure-time activities comes from being able to do what they want to do rather than what they must do. They may want to be creative to achieve something that will give them satisfaction or they may merely want to be with their friends. Thus, what they do in their leisure time is regarded as "play," but how they play will depend upon what gives them enjoyment.
