Walden, a (historically authentic and meaningful) game

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Video games that attempt to convey an experience or historical moment effectively must balance historical authenticity with engaging, accessible mechanics. Walden, A Game attempts to virtually represent Henry David Thoreau’s experience of living off the land at Walden Pond, near Concord, Massachusetts in the 1840s. The game does this by allowing the user to play as Thoreau and partake in many of his experiences portrayed in his book, Walden, and also includes many excerpts from the book, which Thoreau’s character recites throughout the game.

Walden, A Game is effective at creating a historically authentic experience while also engaging the player. The gameplay itself can draw the player out of the immersive experience at times. The food mechanics, which involves picking fruits, growing vegetables, and hunting, can seem clunky. Ralph Waldo Emerson serves as your spiritual guide throughout the journey, and even places inspirational books throughout the woods for you to find. Arguably the strangest mechanic is your inspiration meter, which you must keep at a high enough level that you can continue to write and reflect. While these mechanics can detract from the authenticity and immersion of the experience, they make it an engaging, challenging game that keeps the player interested. The game is not perfect in either of these aspects- It is not as challenging as many “survival” games, and its clunky mechanics can break immersion- but the balance the developers strike between them keeps the game interesting enough that the user plays long enough to absorb the historical message of the game: Thoreau’s experience and the fundamental tenets of transcendentalism.

HIstorical Critique of Walden: A Game

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Walden does a fantastic job of situating Thoreau’s whimsical prose in a well-designed and visually appealing context. The game combines the low barrier to entry of an audio book with the immersion and flow of a video game. Walden: A Game manages to make Thoreau more than just accessible but actively engaging as well. The environment begs the player to explore every nook and cranny with rewards like quotes, books, and nature facts. The player also uncovers a series of mini games, each of which provide the player with a useful resource. These resources provide a sense of progression and purpose. While it might not attract every kind of game, it should appeal strongly to players who like to manage their resources and explore virtual environments. The game also doesn’t overstay its welcome. Whereas Thoreau has a tendency to digress, Walden: A Game only takes twelve in game days. Games like these can quickly become repetitive to the point of feeling like a grind, but Walden opts for a small play-space so that it can be well saturated with collectibles and activities. The resource system provides a goal, but it doesn’t become over complicated or stressful. All the while, Thoreau’s prose and the beautiful environment make the game a real treat.

Regardless of its merits as game, does Walden deliver on its goal: communicating the essence of Thoreau’s account to the player? I think so. Walden: A Game manages an impressive balancing act between game and academic work. There’s enough fun to keep the player from getting bored, and part of that is thanks to the unobtrusive way Walden communicates its source material. The narration is pertinent, brief, and doesn’t take control away from the player, who is free to continue walking through the environment. Crucially, the developers did not bend the story beyond recognition to make a more widely appealing game. Plenty of people will think that Walden: A Game is just as boring as the book, but the goal of the project is not to make Walden a mass hit. The two major goals are to give those who already have experienced Walden a new way to interact with the work, spurring new thoughts, and to invite those who do enjoy the game to dig further into Thoreau’s Walden.

The Colored Apron

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I chose the colored apron that was given to Mary Collins on January 30th 1796. A different colored apron also appeared in the Staplehurst Kent Inventory taken in October of 1806. When displaying this object in the context of a museum, it would be interesting to identify that the colored apron belonged to an individual pauper, as that evokes a sense of connection with individuals within the workhouse, allowing for more compassion and empathy. Including an interactive element where visitors would get to dress up in pauper’s uniforms would help visitors understand the feeling of wearing the clothes and having their choices limited. Then, allowing one of the visitors a colored apron, saying they had been “well-behaved”, demonstrates how the parish functioned to promote hard-work and good manners. The colored apron then demonstrates how parishes functioned as total institutions, restricting individuality, while also demonstrating how parishes did serve to aid the poor and allow them not only basic necessities but also occasional frivolities.

St. Sepulchre’s third ward clock

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In the third ward at St. Sepulchre’s workhouse in 1751, a clock was listed in the inventory. No information is given about the clock other than that it was held in a Wainscot case. Wainscot was a term used for riven oak boards which were used because of their lighter weight as well as desirability in maintaining their shape. Using this basic description, as well as the location of the object, the clock would likely have not been very ornate but rather fairly basic and practical with simple decorations. Images of clocks from that time and location suggest that the oak might have been stained or colored in some way as well. The clock stands out as none of the other ten or so wards have clocks listed. At the same time though, the clock seems like a good symbol for life in the workhouse as it represents the strictly regimented days the residents are subject to. In a museum display, the clock could be used to symbolize pauper life in the workhouse. It can represent the strict timetables residents must adhere to and the long work hours they are subject to. Additionally, the clock would likely have been made by some sort of mechanic or more skilled laborer which were jobs probably out of reach for many of the poor in the workhouse who were subject to intense manual labor.

A Colored Apron

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I chose to focus on a colored apron, which was found both in the Staplehurst workhouse inventories and the St. Andrew Undershaft records which we used for our pauper biographies.

In terms of it being presented in both physical and digital forms, a dual approach would be particularly interesting. This could be an object that would be purely on display, but it could also be integrated in an exhibit where visitors could try on and experience the clothes firsthand with replicas. This would be much more of an experience, though difficulties might arise in the making of the exhibit.

As for the digital side, that too has a great deal of potential. An image or even a 3D model of a person wearing everyday wear, including the apron, would aid in understanding the period visually. Furthermore, digitally it becomes significantly easier to illustrate how a colored apron would be special. Having multiple people in plain aprons with one person in a colored apron in an image, etc. gives the visitor a better context and understanding of the significance that the apron is colored, as opposed to a single item on display.

Child’s Workhouse Uniform Shoes

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These rounded, sturdy-looking, brown leather child’s shoes are a replica of one in the October 26, 1806 inventory of the Staplehurst Parish Workhouse in Kent.

In the context of a museum exhibition, these child’s shoes can support the messages of other displays to help give visitors a more complete sense of a cobbler’s process, the workhouse uniform, or the life of children in the workhouse.

For a shoemaking exhibit, shoes can either act as a hands-on display using a replica or 3D digital rendering to help visitors understand the weight, feel, and size of uniform shoes, or as the image of a final product.

In an exhibit (physical or digital) on the uniform or the life of children, shoes can help illustrate the simple functionality of the pauper’s uniform, and if combined with a digital form of inventory/minute records, shoes could be used to help bring to life the wear and tear of workhouse life on the uniform. This digital tool can also reveal how often children received new shoes, combining the total institution feel of the workhouse with the evidence of some governing committee’s care for the maintenance of children’s uniforms.

Sources:

Photos by Susannah Ottaway.

“An Inventory of All and Singular the Good and Chattels of the Work-house of the Parish of Staplehurst Kent as taken the 24th of October 1806 by order of the Overseers Messrs Ts. Simmons & Ts Bromley at the Death of the late Master Daniel Axell.” Kent Library P.347/18/1.

 

A Child’s Shoe

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Gressenhall was one of a few workhouses that provided these shoes to the paupers in their care instead of giving them an allowance and letting them fend for themselves. Despite coming from the late 1700’s or early 1800’s, these shoes resemble modern day work shoes quite a bit. They appear to be made of brown leather with slightly raised heels (the newer shoes have heels made of rubber, but the older shoes’ heels may be made of wood). The laces are made out of leather as well. The material of the shoes, even to this day, is considered both durable and waterproof, although it’s unclear exactly how waterproof these older shoes are (current leather boots are treated with chemicals to be more water resistant).

The children’s shoes of Gressenhall are much more plain in color and decoration than the shoes of their peers. They also are of a different material: some shoes would be made of linen, cotton or even silk. Another thing to note is that the heel of the boots is rather low. This is another signifier of class; the richer the person, the higher the shoe’s heel. The fact that this idea was passed down to even the youngest of English people shows the extreme class stratification for English society at the time.

 

Men’s Boots & Shoes | Official Dr Martens Store. http://www.drmartens.com/us/c/mens.

“Girl’s Tie Shoe.” Girl’s Tie Shoe – MAAS. https://collection.maas.museum/object/239340.

“Pair of Silk Satin Buckle Shoes Wiith Buckles.” Pair of Silk Satin Buckle Shoes Wiith Buckles – MAAS. https://collection.maas.museum/object/239900.

Styles, John. The Dress of the People: Everyday Fashion in Eighteenth-century England. Yale University Press, 2013.

“Cobbler_replica_child.JPG.” Google Drive. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ebOhl4TLRr_GIywjQ3z9qBzA_Zu6yrWC/view.

 

The Paupers’ Looking Glass

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In the pauper dormitories of the St. Sepulchre Workhouse, a looking glass is listed in the 1751 workhouse inventories. By exploring the narrative of this object further we can uncover some aspects of the paupers’ lives as well as the true nature of the St. Sepulchre Workhouse as an institution.

The looking glass may seem insignificant at first, but upon further consideration, it seems out place and does not at all fit the common perception of the workhouse as an institution that attempts to destroy any shred of individuality that once belonged to its inmates. Additionally, looking glasses were not as common as they are today and probably would have belonged mostly to members of the upper class.

In a museum setting, this looking glass could immerse the visitors as an element of a larger display containing more of the elements of the dormitory environment. In this way, the setting would be more immersive and would also provide an opportunity to think critically about the workhouse institution and about the everyday significance of a looking glass for the average pauper.

Awl

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In the 18th century workhouses, many tools allowed for paupers to create, repair, and go about their daily lives. Awl’s provided just that. It was a tool that gave paupers to build or repair clothing and various other items. These would typically be found in tool shops, alongside

In the context of a museum, it would be useful to have visitors use awl’s to create something simple that paupers might have used them for. It would be a great hands-on, interactive experience for visitors of all ages. Some simple examples might be making holes for shoelaces, holes for buttons on a blouse, or holes on a belt.

A digital implantation of this tool could be used in an interface where users can use a set of materials to fabricate clothing or items using the awl alongside other tools, to virtually create or repair an item. This way users can get a glimpse into the labor that it would have taken in order to fabricate or repair items.

Large Tables

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The locations and uses of large tables in the English workhouses during the 18th and 19th centuries are able to provide us with information about the differences in lifestyle between those in charge and the working poor. The stories of two particular tables, one located in the governor’s room in the workhouse of Assington and the other located in the parlour in the workhouse in the parish of Staplehurst, help to highlight these differences.

I don’t think that the stories behind these large tables show in anyway that the workhouses were pernicious, but they definitely show that they were fairly institutionalized with disparities in power between those in control and those working, where only minimum care was provided for the latter.

Museums could help to contextualize this by showing, for example, a model to help visualize the difference between the cramped wardroom with a few smaller tables and the governor’s room with the large table in Assington. The same could be done with the table in the parlour in Staplehurst, as the use of a large table in such a room would have been for leisure time and socializing, something that not many poor workers had. Additionally, showing actual replicas of the large tables and what they would have been used for in comparison with smaller tables cramped with workers would also help to contextualize and explain the significance of large tables in a museum.