Rough Thought on Play Wants (Part 2)

It didn’t go; in fact it’s worse than ever.

For play not to be innate goes against the very core Principles of Playwork and everything I’ve ever been taught about it.

Heck the very first Playwork Principle states, and I quote “The impulse to play is innate”.
And it stands to logic that it is innate.  Yet at the same time it’s such a big concept that I wouldn’t know where to begin. I think I’ll explore the concept of it not being innate first and then let you guys find the flaws in what I’ve said and what I’m probably about to say.
I use the word happiness in its most general definition, that being any form of positive emotion.

 

At the moment, however at war with myself as I am, I think that in the wider sense, in the practical field of Playwork, the concept of play not being innate makes little difference. For it to be innate or not doesn’t challenge the importance of play or how to go about supporting and facilitating it. It just challenges the origins of such behaviour.
On that note, if such a train of thought was to be followed and play was considered the method by which we seek positive emotion, following out first good feeling as a foetus or baby. It could be said that not only are there infinitely more types of play than previously conceived (as now anything that makes us happy is a form of play) but also; that play is nurtures means to natures end. Nurture here referring to anything that isn’t biological.

But on that thought play could be innate, a natural process that is only triggered upon our first good feeling. Much in the same way that puberty doesn’t occur until later in life. The understanding of biological processes that don’t occur from birth could rectify my conundrum.

Yet my mind remains unsatisfied.

 

So now potentially Play Wants are even more abundant and important than originally thought. The Play Need is happiness and play itself is a biological trigger that activates after our first experience of positive emotions; only to expand and evolve as nurture increases in influence.

 

Play is the means by which we seek happiness. That much I’m sure of.