Middle Ages, the Renaissance, and early modern world. With an eye for our own times he writes: "In American politics [play] is even more evident. Long before the two-party system had reduced itself to two gigantic teams whose political differences were hardly discernible to an outsider, electioneering in America had developed into a kind of national sport." With its remarkable historical sweep, Homo Ludens defines play for generations to come. "A fascinating account of 'man the player' and the contribution of play to civilization."-Harper 's "A writer with a sharp and powerful intelligence, helped by a gift of expression and exposition which is very rare, Huizinga assembles and interprets one of the most fundamental elements of human culture: the instinct for play. Reading this volume, one suddenly discovers how profoundly the achievements in law, science, poverty, war, philosophy, and in the arts, are nourished by the instinct of play."-Roger Caillois, editor of Diogenes