From Sociable Leisure to Exhaustion: A Tale of Two Revolutions

Abstract

Chapter 5 weaves together cultural economy accounts of leisure (focusing specifically on non-obligatory physical exertion) and sporting activity (both organised and more spontaneous forms of play) across the twentieth century with how each of our three generations has interacted with their distinctive ‘activity environments’. In addition to exerting themselves through play, sport and leisure pursuits, physical exertion is a by-product of other aspects of daily living including food provisioning, transportation and domestic and workplace technologies. Thus, this chapter needs to be read in conjunction with the chapters on family dining, car reliance and busyness, and time pressure. The reported patterns call attention to the way the wide variety of practices and environments both alter practical opportunities for physical activity and change how different forms of physical activity are culturally constructed and personally assessed.