A Survey Of The Health And Physical Education Program In Negro Colleges And Universities Of Texas

The history of physical education provides data from which one may compare not only the methods and results but, also the importance and influence c£ physical education in the past with that of the present. To begin at the beginning of the history of physical education is to examine modern primitive society. Physical perfection is the only feature in primitive life that is comparable or superior to that of civilized man. This perfection among the savages was attained through daily activities, including mild labor, search for food, dancing, and games. The primitive tribes considered dancing a serious activity to evoke goodwill and favors of deities or demons. The leading forms of the primitive dance are the pantomine, the war dance, the initation dance. The steps are usually taken from nature, like the walk or leap of the deer, the swaying of the palms, the writhing of the snake. The instinct and opportunity to play have been more pronounced among primitive people than among those of civilized nations