London Street Games by Norman Douglas
Norman Douglas realized that children’s games were an untapped, unstudied source of oral literature that was distinct from other sorts. He visited the streets in the early 1900s, observed Cockney children playing, and recorded everything in this unusual book. It’s a really excellent piece of social anthropology. It is all present. It also offers a very direct glimpse into the cockney culture of the period, free from the pressure to live up to bourgeois expectations, similar to the Frank Harris book with sex. Understanding what a working-class child’s life could have been like during the period, makes it invaluable.
London Street Games by Norman Douglas
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Also, it’s a lot of fun. Early 20th-century street games are listed in their hundreds: French foot, Paperchase, Egg-in-cap, Queenie, Missings out Wally, the punch ball, the bounce ball dust stains, a bunny in a hutch.
Hopscotch. Leapfrog. Marbles. Jacks. Hunt and find. Even the mere mention of these games conjures up recollections of a long-gone era. Our thoughts start to go back to wistful childhood recollections of a time when media didn’t steal our children’s formative years and send them into an electronic feeding frenzy… Through this piece, Norman brings back memories of a time when kids were left to amuse themselves with things like hats, shirts, chases, giggles, and marbles.
Because he spent the majority of his life alone, Norman Douglas typically had only his travels to call a buddy or companion. He was an observer, writer, traveller, outcast, and skeptic. It’s probable that this book is a collection of the author’s early memories as he spent a portion of his youth there. He is renowned for reporting what he discovered in an unbiased, objective manner. He simply states his opinion and continues in a detached, journalistic manner if something struck him as unpleasant, chaotic, or overly ritualistic. He is 100 years ahead of his time with his hedonistic viewpoint and almost sardonic writing style as he takes you on a tour of a world that no longer exists.
