In a strange rash of random thought, I started thinking about all those childhood games we play and the even more devious songs that we sing. Do you remember "The Farmer in the Dell?" How about playing a game of Duck, Duck, Goose? What do these two seemingly innocuous memories have in common? How about the fact that there's always one person singled out.
Think about it, you have yourselves a mushpot when someone is called "Goose," and in the case of "Dell" whoever is the "Cheese" stands alone. What in the world does this teach kids today, that being cheese isn't good enough? There's no kid in his right mind today who readily wants to be in the mushpot. Then again, it's inevitable in childhood hierarchy for someone to be the outcast.
There are plenty of other games out there that single out this behavior. A simple game of "Tag" for instance always leaves the slower child running from one end of the field to the other, practically heaving for air when trying to catch up with the others. Is there nothing worse in life than to be "it" when you're 9 years old? Even when it comes to sports in general, there's always the one who's picked last. Is this prevalent across all childhoods?
Maybe it's a type of social Darwinism, not in the sense of natural selection, but more in the sense of survival of the fittest. A symbolic game of Dodgeball, where the champion is always the last one standing. The single kid on one side versus a pack of wolves with red, rubber balls on the other stands no chance, but to be stung with a hundred welts.
This isn't really the be-all end-all of any childhood though, but why does it ring up bad memories for some. Think about it, there's no one who's really lionized in his class for being the best in math. Does that drive children to achieve? I suppose it's part of anyone's experience really.
I'm not saying it's my own, but it's a matter of thought to consider...
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3 comments:
the business world is a competitive one, some would even say cut throat. social skills are a must, and the workforce must constantly improve themseleves if they wish to remain competitive. thus there are a lot of parallels with these childhood games and life in the workforce. that being said, i think all these childhood games help prepare them for adult life. note i said prepares them - i did not say they are just or by any means good for the child at such an early age.
while i agree that it is bad to have children singled out, and the slower child is def. at a disadvantage in a game of tag - what can be done to improve this situation? it's easy to point out the problems, but much harder to come up with solutions. one solution that comes to mind is to somehow make everyone and everything equal - but would we then be doing the children an injustice? when they grow up and expect mediocrity to be acceptable, when they expect to be handheld and treated nicely under any and all circumstances... i do not think this individual would be able to do well in today's society - they might not even be able to survive.
this is where parenting comes into play. and to me, this is where the solution lies. there's nothing wrong with being picked last, for whatever reason you were not wanted. singled out? for some reason it happened, sometimes for no reason at all. so you have a few options - most of which revolve around bettering yourself, not giving up, etc. when something happens and you don't like it - don't blame others or bury yourself in self pity. do something about it. and with the help and support of family and friends, a child will be able to handle any bad situation and make the most of it. more importantly, make it into a learning experience.
and do you really think people are not praised for being the best in math? while it may not be considered "cool" among child peers, they definitely receive praise from adults and are rewarded by the whole education system. for most (not all) that qualifies as praise and gives students drive the achieve.
it bothers me when games such as dodgeball or red rover are banned from schools. maybe because i was rarely the kid who was picked on, but these games are all a part of growing up. the "cool" kids won't always be cool... elementary school/high school/college/adulthood, there is a place for each to succeed, to grow, to learn, whatever. kids are cruel, people are cruel, you won't ever get rid of that experience even w/o those games.
I gotta agree with you guys on this one. No matter how cruel it may seem, or whatever, it doesn't matter if there is a good support system behind those kids. It just seemed funny to me, no one ever wanted to be the cheese.
It can go two ways I guess, kids can let this get them down and become suicidal goth emotional swiss cheese or they overcome everything and learn to turn that competitive spirit into something positive. What fun, it's like junior high roullette!
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