Why Does Paper Beat Rock?
Why Does Paper Beat Rock?
A Conversation with a Curious Child
“The rules don’t have to be true they just have to be rules and either you accept them, or you don’t.” — Isaiah Berlin
The Conversation
“Kids say the darndest things,” is an expression we hear when a child says something out of the blue that evokes a look of perplexion or horror. I am not sure whether we are surprised by what they say or when they say it. As it happens, earlier today, my youngest son and I were driving in the car after a parent-teacher conference. We were discussing his favorite teacher, the Sonic graphic novel purchased at the book fair, and various other school-related topics. Then as we sat in a moment of silence, out of nowhere, he asked me with a serious ponderous look, “Dad, why does rock beat scissors?”
The question caught me off guard because the philosophical implications of the game “Rock, Paper, Scissors” were not anywhere on my thought radar. “Well its quite simple actually,” I began, “the scissors would break against the hard surface of the rock.”
Simple Question. Simple Answer. Or so I thought.
“But wouldn’t the rock rip right through the paper?” he returned quite reasonably.
“I suppose so, but those are the rules of the game,” I explained but also pondered his logic further and began my research.
You’ll be surprised to find the explanation takes us back as far as Imperial China.
Origins of Rock, Paper, Scissors
Apparently, hand games were created in Ancient China, and one explanation credits a particular emperor who decide his decrees by placing the bundle of paper under a rock as a sign of approval or over the rock as rejection. The paper over the rock became a symbol of defeat as time went on.
While the Emperor of China theory is satisfactory, The World Rock Paper Scissors Association considers that story pure fiction and credits Japan instead for the creation of RPS as we know it today, only it was called Rock, Cloth, and Scissors originally. Their explanation for cloth/paper beating rock was that a cloth could cover a rock, rendering the rock hidden and useless. I personally prefer the story about the Chinese Emperor regardless of whether it's true or not. The “cloth hidden rock” explanation is lackluster and anticlimactic, revealing nothing about Japanese culture or mythology.
Functionally, I also don’t understand the transition from cloth to paper. If the purpose of the cloth was to cover the rock, then why would we change it to paper? I’ve personally never used paper to cover a rock and I wouldn’t depend on the paper to shield me from an oncoming rock.
What’s The Point?
Not all rules or laws exist to make perfect sense but to establish order. There’s no rational explanation as to why the king can only move one space in the game of chess but it is essential to the successful outcome of the game. If one person doesn’t agree with this rule, then it is no longer chess and chaos ensues. Hence the quote at the beginning of this article:
“The rules don’t have to be true they just have to be rules and either you accept them, or you don’t.” — Isaiah Berlin
Mathematics, the concept of time, and the systems we’ve created to maintain order in society are not always agreeable with our natural inclinations or rationality, but we agree for the sake of playing the game of life. So when it comes to RPS, there is no logical world where paper beats rock but we subject our reason to the rule in order to play an organized game with a clear winner.
The Conversation
“Kids say the darndest things,” is an expression we hear when a child says something out of the blue that evokes a look of perplexion or horror. I am not sure whether we are surprised by what they say or when they say it. As it happens, earlier today, my youngest son and I were driving in the car after a parent-teacher conference. We were discussing his favorite teacher, the Sonic graphic novel purchased at the book fair, and various other school-related topics. Then as we sat in a moment of silence, out of nowhere, he asked me with a serious ponderous look, “Dad, why does rock beat scissors?”
The question caught me off guard because the philosophical implications of the game “Rock, Paper, Scissors” were not anywhere on my thought radar. “Well its quite simple actually,” I began, “the scissors would break against the hard surface of the rock.”
Simple Question. Simple Answer. Or so I thought.
“But wouldn’t the rock rip right through the paper?” he returned quite reasonably.
“I suppose so, but those are the rules of the game,” I explained but also pondered his logic further and began my research.
You’ll be surprised to find the explanation takes us back as far as Imperial China.
Origins of Rock, Paper, Scissors
Apparently, hand games were created in Ancient China, and one explanation credits a particular emperor who decide his decrees by placing the bundle of paper under a rock as a sign of approval or over the rock as rejection. The paper over the rock became a symbol of defeat as time went on.
While the Emperor of China theory is satisfactory, The World Rock Paper Scissors Association considers that story pure fiction and credits Japan instead for the creation of RPS as we know it today, only it was called Rock, Cloth, and Scissors originally. Their explanation for cloth/paper beating rock was that a cloth could cover a rock, rendering the rock hidden and useless. I personally prefer the story about the Chinese Emperor regardless of whether it's true or not. The “cloth hidden rock” explanation is lackluster and anticlimactic, revealing nothing about Japanese culture or mythology.
Functionally, I also don’t understand the transition from cloth to paper. If the purpose of the cloth was to cover the rock, then why would we change it to paper? I’ve personally never used paper to cover a rock and I wouldn’t depend on the paper to shield me from an oncoming rock.
What’s The Point?
Not all rules or laws exist to make perfect sense but to establish order. There’s no rational explanation as to why the king can only move one space in the game of chess but it is essential to the successful outcome of the game. If one person doesn’t agree with this rule, then it is no longer chess and chaos ensues. Hence the quote at the beginning of this article:
“The rules don’t have to be true they just have to be rules and either you accept them, or you don’t.” — Isaiah Berlin
Mathematics, the concept of time, and the systems we’ve created to maintain order in society are not always agreeable with our natural inclinations or rationality, but we agree for the sake of playing the game of life. So when it comes to RPS, there is no logical world where paper beats rock but we subject our reason to the rule in order to play an organized game with a clear winner.
It's crazy what a conversation with a kid will do to your brain.
P.S.
And don’t get me started on Rock, Paper, Scissors, Lizard, Spock…
