Abstract
What was the meaning of play in Old English (OE) writings, and how does this relate to the way play works in Middle English (ME) and beyond? This paper will consider scenes of child’s play in OE literature as well as the wider OE terminology of play, comparing both with ME words for the activity and key ME literary episodes such as Lydgate’s representation of Youth in his Pilgrimage of the Life of Man (1426). All will be approached through the lens of modern play theory, including that of D. W. Winnicott and Brian Sutton-Smith.
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