본고는 활쏘기와 장기바둑에 주안하여 유학자들의 전통적 놀이관을 집중적으로 고찰한 다음, 이를 토대로 개화 이후 놀이관의 변화에 대해 그 동인(動因)을 살펴보고, 결론에서 바람직한 현대 놀이문화에 대해 언급해 본 논문이다. 전통사회의 놀이는 예악사어서수, 즉 유예(六藝)의 예(藝)와 잡기(雜技)의 희(戱)로서 대별할 수 있는 바, 유학자들은 활쏘기를 대표적인 관덕지구(觀德之具)의 하나로 인식하였으며, 장기바둑은 잡기 중 아(雅)한 것으로서 예(藝)와 같은 반열의 관덕지구(觀德之具)는 아니더라도 예(藝)에 대한 전통적 인식에 따라 장기바둑에도 놀이 향유자의 덕(德)이 발현되어야 한다고 인식했다. 즉 향유자의 도(道)의 유무가 배격과 옹호의 중요 잣대가 되었다. 이와 같은 유학자들의 재도적(載道的) 놀이관을 살펴보기 위하여 본고에서는 놀이이론이 될 만한 경전의 몇몇 장구(章句)가 동원되었다. 유어예론(游於藝論), 완물상지론(玩物喪志論), 이장지도론(弛張之道論), 박혁유현론(博奕猶賢論), 격물치지론(格物致知論), 지지호지낙지자론(知之好之樂之者論)이라 필자가 발굴․명명․소개해 본 것이 그것으로, 이를 통해 고찰해본 결과 유학자들의 재도적 놀이관은 실학시대를 맞아 서서히 변모를 보인다. 이 시기가 되면서 격물치지의 새로운 인식에 따른 완물상지에 대한 인식이 바뀌면서 종전에 비난받던 완물상지가 격물치지로 격상되기 시작한다. 이러한 격물치지로의 격상은 곧 놀이에서의 도(道)의 추구가 약화되고 지(知)가 중시되는 변화를 의미한다. 한편 이러한 변화가 개화 이후에는 서구 과학 문물의 급속한 유입에 따라 약소민족의 개명의 차원에서 지(知)의 중요성이 더욱 강조되면서 그 속도가 가속화된다. 즉 놀이에서의 관덕의 요소가 약화되는 대신에 지능이 중시되면서 승부욕이 지나치게 조장된다. 그러나 바람직한 놀이는 즐기는 것으로서의 경쟁이지 지나치게 승부욕에 집착하게 되면 실덕지구(失德之具)로서 놀이의 즐거움은 감소된다. 인류의 제전(祭典)에 타락하지 않은 원초의 불처럼 타락하지 않은 놀이, 신성한 놀이, 건강한 놀이가 되어야 할 것이다. 끝으로 본고에서 다룬 몇 가지 놀이이론은 과문한 탓일지 모르나 동양의 놀이이론으로서는 최초의 체계적인 언급이 될 것임을 부기(附記)해 둔다.

This study explores confucian scholars’ traditional perspectives on play focusing on archery and janggi, the Korean chess. Based on it, the momentum of the change in play perspective after the time of Enlightenment will be examined, and more productive way of contemporary play culture is suggested in the conclusion. Play in traditional society was represented by six arts, including rites, music, archery, charioteering, calligraphy, and mathematics, among which the rite and joy of the play were considered as the distinguished component. The Confucian scholars have seen archery as one of the traditional plays designed to observe the players’ morality(觀德之具), and janggi as the one of the media that can manifest the player’s morality, although it is not the same level as the traditional plays designed to observe the players’ morality(觀德之具) as archery is. Therefore, the existence and manifestation of the players’ morality was the standard to decide whether to support of reject the certain play from the society. To see the Confucian scholar’s moral enhancing perspective of the play, the author employed and adapted several phrases from the Confucian Scripture that have the potential to become the play theories in traditional perspective. They are ‘playing in the art’ theory(游於藝論), the greed ruins the perfection of the skill theory(玩物喪志論), theory of looseness and tightness(弛張之道論), the theory promotes playing janggi over doing nothing(博奕猶賢論), theory of gaining knowledge by the study of things(格物致知論), the theory asserting one who knows is less than the one who likes and the one who likes is less than the one who enjoys(知之好之樂之者論). Based on these theories, the Confucian scholars’ morality enhancing perspectives of play starts to change from the emergence of the Realist School of the Confucianism. From this period, the new recognition of the ‘gaining knowledge by the study of things’ changes the perspective on ‘the greed ruins the perfection of the skill theory’, and ‘gaining knowledge by the study of things’ starts to replace traditional morale. Such change weakens the pursuit of morality in the play while emphasizing knowledge. Moreover, after the Enlightenment, with the abrupt influx of the western scientific technology and culture, the importance of the knowledge is even emphasized to enlighten the people of a small and weak power. In other words, while the element of morality was weakened, the importance of intelligence was emphasized, which led the excessive emphasis of the competitiveness. However, play should be ultimately enjoyable. If one adheres too much on victory, the joy of the play would transform into the greed and becomes the play that takes away one’s morality(失德之具). The play should be kept sacred and healthy. Finally, some play theory discussed in the article is revealed for the first time as the East Asia’s play theory as of our knowledge.

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Archery, Janggi, Morality(道), Morality conveying(載道的) play, Playing in the art theory(游於藝論), Theory warning the risk of focusing on the externals which takes away one’s real intention(玩物喪志論), Theory of looseness and tightness(弛張之道論), Theory promotes playing janggi rather than doing nothing(博奕猶賢論), Theory of gaining knowledge by the study of things(格物致知論), Theory that asserts that one knows is less than the one who likes and the one who likes is less than the one who enjoys(知之好之樂之者論), Traditional plays designed to observe the players’ morality(觀德之具), Tool that takes away one’s morality(失德之具), Dealing objects as hobby(玩賞), Contemplating the meaning of the objects(玩味).