Leisure activities account for much of our time - and money. But are contemporary forms of leisure good for us? Are they really leisure? And how much does (and should) leisure matter? Classical philosophers paid attention to these questions. Increasingly, modern philosophers too are realizing the importance of leisure, and of a good leisure/work balance. Hayden Ramsay looks at the meaning of leisure, and the links between recreation, relaxation, virtue, and happiness. By focussing on leisure activities such as sport, travel, music and reading, Ramsay explores the need for good play in a good life.
The Eighth Edition Of This Classic Textbook Continues To Provide A Detailed Overview Of The History, Developments, And Current Trends In Leisure Studies. It Has Been Heavily Revised To Reflect Recent Societal Changes And The Challenges That Face The Leisure-Services Industry In The 21St Century. Students Will Learn How Trends Such As Dramatic Shifts In Population Make-Up, The Impact Of Technology, And Marketing Affect Leisure-Service Systems And The Recreation And Park Professions. To Reflect These Trends, The Text Focuses On Ten Different Types Of Organizations, Ranging From Nonprofit Community Organizations Or Armed Forces Recreation To Sports Management And Travel And Tourism Sponsors.
The introduction of sports and recreational facilities into natural environments calls for reflection on their impact on fragile ecosystems. This book is unique in providing an interdisciplinary approach to the ecological restoration of urban and industrial degraded habitats and their use by nearby city-dwellers. For the first time ecologists, sociologists and anthropologists have worked together on particularly sensitive ecosystems such as rivers and estuaries to propose recovery strategies that allow their basic ecological functions to be restored, and which can benefit local populations through nature activities. Nonetheless, the use of natural spaces calls for the building of sustainable towns. This is why this book is distinctive in considering quality of life and well-being as stated objectives of modern river towns. Recently, leisure time has become a part of urban rhythms. In order to favour personal development, an extensive palette of leisure activities is considered by the authors: bird watching entertainment sports culture Many aspects including physical and psychological attributes in relation to the contemporary socio-political fabric are dealt with. While creating areas of freedom, landscaping also induces certain forms of practice and encourages certain social skills. Conversely, the book questions certain types of management based on mass consumption. Don’t they, in the end, aim to satisfy needs that are impermanent and shallow? The image of the contemporary town relies on urban planning projects which, in a global economy, seek to capture the interest of tourists and local populations. How can suitable, diligent planning be successfully combined with both creative design and ecological care? This book demonstrates how biology and sociology can (and should) work in harmony in order to promote an ecosystem approach to environmental management.
2020 Miriam Matthews Ethnic History Award from the Los Angeles City Historical Society Alison Rose Jefferson examines how African Americans pioneered America’s “frontier of leisure” by creating communities and business projects in conjunction with their growing population in Southern California during the nation’s Jim Crow era.
What happens when our lives spin out of control because we are so busy and overcommitted? The negative consequences of such a lifestyle are well known, but few of us are able to put on the brakes so that we can truly enjoy the gift of one another. Tim and Sue Muldoon take both a meditative and practical approach to this issue. They help us experience the peace that only God can give, and they also share what has and hasn't worked in their own family. While there is no magic bullet, the Muldoons show us that when we put God first in our lives, our other priorities fall into line as well. That makes it possible to discern the best ways to spend our time, both individually and collectively, to build a strong foundation of lasting family relationships.
This addition to the award-winning Engaging Culture series explores the link between leisure and spirituality, offering a Christian perspective on leisure concepts and issues in contemporary society. Paul Heintzman, a respected scholar and experienced recreation practitioner, interacts with biblical, historical, and contemporary leisure studies sources to provide a comprehensive understanding of leisure. He also explains the importance of leisure for spiritual growth and development. This work will appeal to professors and students as well as practitioners in the recreation and leisure services field, youth and college pastors, and camp ministries.
Based on a controversial opinion piece originally published in the New York Times, Reclaiming Travel is a provocative meditation on the meaning of travel from ancient times to the twenty-first century. Ilan Stavans and Joshua Ellison seek to understand why we travel and what has come to be missing from our contemporary understanding of travel. Engaging with canonical and contemporary texts, they explore the differences between travel and tourism, the relationship between travel and memory, the genre of travel writing, and the power of mapmaking, Stavans and Ellison call for a rethinking of the art of travel, which they define as a transformative quest that gives us deeper access to ourselves. Tourism, Stavans and Ellison argue, is inauthentic, choreographed, sterile, shallow, and rooted in colonialism. They critique theme parks and kitsch tourism, such as the shantytown hotels in South Africa where guests stay in shacks made of corrugated metal and cardboard yet have plenty of food, water and space. Tourists, they assert, are merely content with escapism, thrill seeking, or obsessively snapping photographs. Resisting simple moralizing, the authors also remind us that people don’t divide neatly into crude categories like travelers and tourists. They provoke us to reflect on the opportunities and perils in our own habits. In this powerful manifesto, Stavans and Ellison argue that travel should be an art through which our restlessness finds expression—a search for meaning not only in our own lives but also in the lives of others. It is not about the destination; rather, travel is about loss, disorientation, and discovering our place in the universe.
During a 1980s Edmonton Oilers game, fans unveiled a banner claiming, "On the 8th day, God created Gretzky." Intersections between religious belief and sporting participation are nothing new, where players, coaches, and fans are known to pray, cross themselves, and point to the heavens during a game. But what should be the relationship between sports and religious faith? On the Eighth Day introduces the theology of sport from a Catholic standpoint. It wrestles with sport's universal appeal, its rich symbolism, and its spiritual and moral characteristics. Sport is a place where embodied games can be sacramental; where traditions of the past speak to contemporary peoples; and where truth and justice are demanded in a world affected by sin. The eighth day recalls the playful, re-creative work of God the Creator embodied in Christ's resurrection. In this sense, this book marks out a "new day" in Christian attitudes toward modern sport and the continuing call to redeem sport in service of human flourishing. Comprehensive yet accessible, the book will engage thoughtful lay sports fans and academic students alike.
"Stop slacking off!" Your parents may have said this to you when you were deep into a video-gaming marathon. Or maybe your roommate said it to you when you were lounging on the couch scrolling through Instagram. You may have even said it to yourself on days you did nothing. But what is so bad about slacking? Could it be that there’s nothing bad about not making yourself useful? Against our hyper-productivity culture, Alison Suen critically interrogates our disapproval of slackers—individuals who do the bare minimum just to get by. She offers a taxonomy of slackers, analyzes common objections to slacking, and argues that each of these objections either fails or carries problematic assumptions. But while this book defends slacking, it does not promote the slacker lifestyle as the key to something better (such as cultural advancement and self-actualization), as some pro-leisure scholars have argued. In fact, Suen argues that slacking is unique precisely because it serves no noble cause. Slacking is neither a deliberate protest to social ills nor is it a path to autonomy. Slackers just slack. By examining the culture of hyper-productivity, Suen argues that it is in fact OK to be a slacker. Key Features Demonstrates the uniqueness of slacking, via a critical examination of six distinct "pro-leisure" philosophical accounts. Articulates a taxonomy of slackers, as well as in-depth examinations of Hollywood slackers and slackers in academia. Examines common objections to slacking (like the freeloading problem), and offers a rebuttal to each of them. Offers an understanding of our productivity culture from an existential perspective.
