The Origins of Sports and Competitions (Final Part)

Glad to see you back again! Today, I would like to conclude our exploration of the origins of sports. To recap quickly, In our initial segment, we explored Agon or war-like games. In our second, we explored Alea games, which involved aspects of risk and chance. Finally, in our third segment, we journeyed through the world of Ilinx games, which appeal to our sense of excitement and danger. Now, I would like to discuss one of the more clear-cut types of play: Mimicry.

Mimicry play is a surprisingly broad and vague group of competitions that people of all ages partake in, sometimes unknowingly. Mimicry recreations are games that involve individuals impersonating or enacting the actions of others in an organized manner. However, the term organized manner can be misleading, as it does not refer to the scheduling of the activities but rather the definition of rules and regulations. The rules and regulations of this play do not need to be written down or codified, as their only role is to control the recreation. For example, think of two kids pretending to be firefighters. The kids might agree that they should wear firefighting hats, essentially establishing a dress code. Although the very informal nature of this type of play would suggest that it is uncontrolled, a lot of this play does contain simple rules. The rules help maintain a sense of realism within the play, separating it from purely imaginative play.

Although this type of play is often associated with children, many teenagers and young adults partake in these activities. Mimicry play in this age group has become increasingly clear through the increasing popularity of video games. Many video games allow people to participate in life-like simulations that permit them to partake in mimicry. Games like NBA 2K and many other sports games allow users to be the stars of their own virtual world through specialized and customized in-game storylines.

Mimicry games can be especially useful for both young and old people, as they provide a medium for the user to expand their imagination. It allows the user to participate in both a fun and productive activity, as mimicry play often leads to self-discovery. Its practical purposes have allowed this type of play to thrive throughout history. A lot of this play stemmed from children watching their parents perform different actions. For example, if a child watched their carpenter parent make something, they might also be inspired to play around and try and build something. Because mimicry games have allowed kids to expand their imagination and also have many practical uses, they have persisted throughout history.

Mimicry games are some of the most exciting and imaginative games, where participants are free to explore their imagination. They have persisted throughout history as they teach many life skills to kids and allow them to explore activities that they are passionate about. While these activities are usually associate with young children, they are still very useful to adults and teenagers and should be pursued throughout one's lifetime.

Works Cited

Starn, Orin. "Origins of Modern Sports." Sports and Society, 15 Jul. 2020, Duke University, https://www.coursera.org/learn/sports-society.