Thursday, August 08, 2002
Searching for Playfulness
Still searching for a term that not only describes what I have to offer, but also embraces a perceived need, I re-evoked the term "Playfulness Training." I'm not sure how close that is, but I did discover, whilst Googling for "playfulness," this remarkably relevant article from the Naked Ape dude:
"How has evolution managed to give us such a powerful drive to explore the world in which we live? The answer is that we became 'neotenous' apes. A neotenous animal is one that retains its juvenile qualities into adult-hood. In one sense, it is an animal that never grows up. We are like that we never grow up. We retain the playfulness of childhood all through our lives. And playfulness is the quality that is essential for high levels of curiosity and inquisitiveness. Like children, we are always ready to try out something new, to develop it, tame it, control it and finally to use it to our advantage. So the secret of our high level of motivation is that the human being is the ape that never stopped playing. Of course,as we get older, the play gets more complicated. We call adult play by many names, such as science, art, sport, dance, architecture, costume, literature, and music. These are far more fulfilling activities than simple childhood games, but they exist because we are driven by the childhood motivation of wanting to explore new toys, play new games, create new patterns, or vary new rhythms.
"For those who work in the world of commerce, industry, politics or social organiza-tion there might seem to be less opportunity for creative playfulness, but this is deceptive. The business world is full of minor rebellions and innovations, where new methods are introduced, new social structures tested out, and new concepts applied. These may be less overt and flamboyant than in the world of the arts, but they are present nonetheless, and styles and fashions are forever being introduced to replace older traditions. As a result of our neoteny, we humans have an in-born, insatiable appetite for activity. We easily become bored if there is nothing new happening. We are addicted to change and to making that change occur. The greatest punishment for a human being is to be shut away in a small, bleak prison cell, where nothing ever changes and there are no challenges. Prisoners are well fed, kept warm and safe,and protected from the outside world, and yet they feel deeply punished by this experience."
- Desmond Morris
"How has evolution managed to give us such a powerful drive to explore the world in which we live? The answer is that we became 'neotenous' apes. A neotenous animal is one that retains its juvenile qualities into adult-hood. In one sense, it is an animal that never grows up. We are like that we never grow up. We retain the playfulness of childhood all through our lives. And playfulness is the quality that is essential for high levels of curiosity and inquisitiveness. Like children, we are always ready to try out something new, to develop it, tame it, control it and finally to use it to our advantage. So the secret of our high level of motivation is that the human being is the ape that never stopped playing. Of course,as we get older, the play gets more complicated. We call adult play by many names, such as science, art, sport, dance, architecture, costume, literature, and music. These are far more fulfilling activities than simple childhood games, but they exist because we are driven by the childhood motivation of wanting to explore new toys, play new games, create new patterns, or vary new rhythms.
"For those who work in the world of commerce, industry, politics or social organiza-tion there might seem to be less opportunity for creative playfulness, but this is deceptive. The business world is full of minor rebellions and innovations, where new methods are introduced, new social structures tested out, and new concepts applied. These may be less overt and flamboyant than in the world of the arts, but they are present nonetheless, and styles and fashions are forever being introduced to replace older traditions. As a result of our neoteny, we humans have an in-born, insatiable appetite for activity. We easily become bored if there is nothing new happening. We are addicted to change and to making that change occur. The greatest punishment for a human being is to be shut away in a small, bleak prison cell, where nothing ever changes and there are no challenges. Prisoners are well fed, kept warm and safe,and protected from the outside world, and yet they feel deeply punished by this experience."
- Desmond Morris
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