For
this assignment, I have to choose a “historical game,” describe the rules and
tell why I chose it. After reading this, the first thing that I thought of was
bowling. This was because bowling is believed to be one of, if not the, oldest
sports in the history of the world, going back to the days of cavemen.
Now
I must explain the rules for the two of you who don’t know them (For which I
say, “Congratulations. You finally made it out from under that rock.”) There
are a number of pins a short distance from the player who has two chances to
knock them all down by rolling a ball each turn. If a player knocks down all
the pins in one shot he gets a strike and if they do it in two shots it’s a
spare. The player who knocks down the most pins in ten rounds is the winner.
As
I said before, bowling has been with us since prehistoric times. But it also
has been part of many cultures as well. In fourth century Germany, it was
believed that those who would knock down all the pins were of good character
while those who missed had to do penance. In the colonial times, Britain
imported the sport to the colonies, which allowed it to evolve into the sport
we have today. I find it interesting how such a simple sport has had such an
impact on history and how we live today.
