Kontroversielle lege og deres implikationer

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In Western culture many regard play as a powerful activity that is eminently suited as a vehicle through which children may develop qualities that are deemed desirable. The great faith in play as a developing activity is often accompanied by some side effects which the present author regards as detrimental to the understanding of play. Certain types of play are widely regarded as inherently good, while others are depreciated. Frequently, there is a disregard that children are different, even when they engage in the same type of play.

The present paper is meant to counteract this tendency. It focuses on games that many adults regard as controversial, i.e., games that contain aggressive elements. It argues that children have valid and various reasons for playing even those games, and that they play them in different ways and with different implications for their social relations.

It is recommended that in the practical intercourse with children an open and inquiring attitude should be adopted, and that scholars should think of play as an activity that can be powerful because its characteristics vary with the playing children and their social contexts, and not because it has a specific penetration or power of its own.