Games in Culture

Abstract

RECREATIONAL activities have been classic ethnographic concerns, and sophisticated questions about the distributions of games were asked early in the history of anthropology.1 Still, the science has yet to produce a general theory which deals with such anthropological problems as the description and explanation of the historical development of their world distribution, and their functional significance in various societies. This paper suggests a line of inquiry which might lead to the construction of such a theory. In the extensive ethnographic literature on the subject, a wide range of recreational activities has been called games, but this general category is too broad for the purposes of this article. Here, a game is defined as a recreational activity characterized by: (1) organized play, (2) competition, (3) two or more sides, (4) criteria for determining the winner, and (5) agreed-upon rules. Other recreational activities which do not satisfy this definition, such as noncompetitive swimming, top-spinning, and string-figure making, are considered amusements. It is relevant to note that most games reported in the ethnographies are activities in which adults can participate. The games of the world may be classified in terms of distinctive patterns of play. Some outcomes are determined primarily by the physical abilities of the players, some by a series of moves, each of which represents a player's choice among alternatives, and others either by nonrational guesses or by reliance on the operation of some mechanical chance device such as a die; some are determined by combinations of these patterns. All these ways of determining outcomes are widely distributed among the societies of the world, and it is therefore possible to offer the following general classification of games: (1) physical skill, (2) strategy, and (3) chance. Each of these three categories requires further definition. Games of physical skill as herein defined must involve the use of physical skill, but may or may not involve strategy or chance; examples are marathon races, prize fights, hockey, and the hoop and pole games. In games of strategy, physical skill must be absent and a strategy must be used; chance may or may not be involved. Chess, go, poker, and the Ashanti game of wari are examples. Finally, games of chance are so defined that chance must be present and both physical skill and strategy must be absent; examples are high card wins, dice and the