Safety, education, and physical development: playgrounds in the first half of the 20th century in China’s treaty ports

Abstract

This article examines the emergence and development of playgrounds in the most significant treaty ports of China — Guangzhou, Shanghai, and Tianjin — during the first half of the 20th century. It contributes to understanding the unique evolution of playgrounds and children’s play in modern China by exploring the interaction between imported ideas from the endogenous development of playgrounds in Europe and America and new ideas on children’s development with local circumstances and social ideas. It reveals that initially, children’s play was mainly adult-oriented, but after certain ideas on safety, education, and physical development were introduced, playgrounds were constructed. Later, physical constructions and management methods were added until they developed into particular landscapes that were constructed to meet the perceived physical, social, and mental needs of children. During this process, urban citizens changed their ideology on play, viewing playgrounds as a tool for training children to conform to society.