W.E.A. LECTURE.

Hutt News, Volume 11, Issue 13, 25 August 1937, Page 2

W.E.A. LECTURE.

1 . LBI&JBE AND SOCIETY. i •"•" ■ , V'vVXi- ... r J' In ; a democracy leisure j should be the rewand for' accepting the . social service rather j than be' ari*' ; exemption from it," declared Mr; L; F.jd'e Berry, in his second : 'address on'"Slan - 'and His Leisue" at 1 the W.E.A. session in ithe Council 1 . Chambers on Wednesday last. ' Quoting from Bertrand' Russell, the 3 lecturer said that the mark of a good ' social system was found in one that ' gave the eitizen ample leisure and un- ' trammelled freedom in 'the use of-it. The 3 social system, however, was possible, " first, "because in the past the leisure of r the elders or the priests of the people > maide organisation into social groups ' possible, and secondly, bccause in that " organisation each free member was pre--5 pared vdltintarily to surrender a part of ! his freedom for the purpose of building ' up a stable society. The great problems of government, however, devel- ' oped when subsequent generations ' found themselves bound, and their leis- ' ure either curtailed or entirely taken ' away, by the very ordinances that freedom and altruism had so nobly given ' in the past. . 2 The development o,f social order was " tracetdJ and the part played by the pro- ; phets, priests and kings suggested; and 1 the value of that vision, without which ' the (people perish, demonstrated. 'A very 1 great part had been played and, it was 1 hoped, always would be played, by. 3 those expert and altruistic, people who employed a good portion of their leisure in rendering efficient and yet' unpaid services to the Stato or committees an® in various other ways. These al- | ways provided a cqrrective to the growing tendency "to hand government over 1 to the professional politicians. The question ;of the relationship of the 3 relationship of the laboured' Wd his leis- ' ure to" itho socialisation'; ojE his work was discussed, and it'- ivas shown that so far as the labourer was concerned, ' so&alisation left him exactly where he was, for lie was still working for a 5 master, whether that master was a personal capitalist, an impersonal capitalist, joint stoft'k company, of an equally impersonal municipality or a state. l . In each ra,se the worker needed a change' from, his labour and he found 1 that/ two great de'ijiands maide them- | selves insistent —:th'c first, tho urge to enjoy ..life 1 ," to express himseli; and, as he becarCt© older, urge to enrich life. In order 40-* do this- .adequately' he needed to discover for himself some motive force and some goal towards j. whichto journey. This he attempted to achieve during those ;hours whieti he be--3 longed to himself —in liis lcisuie hours. Thestj two great demands upon the leisure of miulMnd normally seek satisfaction along varied 1 lines of action j that are capable of being arranged in j three groups:—, , , . The first-seeking .satisfaction through the senses, th£-'s'econd through a:Combination of both physical and intellectual appwachfes but ■ with the physical predominant; and the third, almost; entirely intellectual: To the first group belong all those activities- th%t come ;under. the heading of spoTt.. To-day, a:> in Roman times, sport has; developed to suich an extent as to require vast ampitheatres and stadiums to accomm-odate the spectators. In Romfe rthe 'CblHiseum held 50,000 people; but e'vdn that! vast' place sinks almost to insignificance when compared I with the great at Chicago—a place that^has' seating .accommodation for J350,0(f0 people <aind is so big that W th'c time of Dempsey v. Tunney fight, fully two-thirds of tho vast, concourse did t not know who 'had won.' the fight,' so far" were they away from the ring., Reference was made to the anti-social effect of partisanship in such vast crowds, and examples were quoted from Roman history of the dangers that arise from such a spirit. The evils' of professionalism dangers of standardisationl consequent upon organisation .'were also'referred to. The great be of exercise in the opc*n air and oi its influence towards the perfection of the human body and the ideals of ep<ort were clearly drawn. ' The second group of leisure activities included social intercourse in all its wide range f roftn, gossip; to the symposium, and the philosophical diseusshwi; seeing shows and entertainments in .all their wide range culminating in tho ' opera, the drama and the ballet; and orf travelling for the purpose ,o,f seeing and learning. The third group..of leisure time activities has for its general purpose the enrichment of life and includes the acquisition of beautiful skills and crafts, finding expression ho/bbies. ' These lead to the (cultivation o,f .the arts and finally to scientific enquiry and experiment. All the varied activities whilst, .being in a very true sense '' self seeking'' ' yet gained the highest significance when they were engaged in as service to the community. "The vital point to remember is that uales.s you use and emplay and beautify yoirr leisure, making it give you a return in creative ability, some one or some or/jansation will undoubtedl explot it far some selfish and mercenary purpose," said Mr. <Ie Berry in conclusion.