ABSTRACT
Play as an activity of free, voluntary self-determination, without economic gain, was the perspective of Johan Huizinga. Play as a form of as-if activity is another definition derived from Huizinga's theory. Play is a form of meta-communication this was how Gregory Bateson defined it, while trying a more formal understanding. Play as a certain form of learning and thus as useful for the development of the human being this is a widespread view, especially among educationalists and developmental psychologists. The one-way directionality of "play" in sport as well as in education is problematic. Curiosity, whether asking or playful, leads furthermore in the direction of oddity. Curious, i.e. strange, quaint, or peculiar, is something which makes people wonder. And furthermore, a pictorial connection can be seen between the curious hand, which is delousing, fumbling, and searching, and the quest in the curved paths of the labyrinth.
