nd views on the interrelationship of leisure, recreation, play and work are provided in this paper, followed by my examination of what constitutes the ôgood life.ö I then provide an analysis of how I will put this philosophy into practice in my role as a Therapeutic Recreation Specialist working with patients with disabling conditions. A brief conclusion will summarize the philosophy in which I believe, as it has been proposed in this paper.
Definition, Examples & Interrelationships
There are a number of definitions of work, leisure, recreation and play. Plato and Aristotle maintained that work should be viewed as a ômeans,ö while play should be viewed as the ôend,ö (Kimeldorf, 2004, p. 2). The rise of industrialism and labor increased pressures on individuals, pressures that required ôfree timeö as a means of recuperation and refreshment. Work is often something done out of necessity to provide for a living, something that we undertake for profit but not necessarily pleasure or refreshment. Kimeldorf (2004) maintains that the stresses of work created its counterbalance, free time, ôFree time did not exist prior to industrial clock time,ö (p. 2).
One often chooses to engage in leisure, recreation and/or play during oneÆs free time. Leisure activities are often those that are sought for personal fulfillment and pleasure. The concept of leisure encompasses volunteerism, since one typically voluntarily chooses oneÆs leisure activities. As Fave and Massimini (2003) assert, leisure is something that provides ôintrinsic motivationö in the doer, (p. 325).
Recreation activities are related to leisure activities in that they are typically undertaken voluntarily, provide intrinsic motivation, and are often pleasing and refreshing. However, recreation activities often involve a g
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