Difference between fun and enjoyment?

[harryjr2p2]

So I came up with an odd question during lunch.

Is there any difference between enjoying yourself and having fun?

To clarify a bit, when I say "having fun", I don't mean "having fun at someone's expense" i.e. making fun of someone.

At first glance, I can't come up with a solid difference between the two. The best question I can post regarding it is, "Is it possible to enjoy yourself without having fun?"

My brain is tired, plus I have to get back to work, so I thought I might tap the collective internet poker brain to see what y'all think.

[harryjr2p2]

Upon further reflection, I suppose one possible distinction is that "enjoying yourself" doesn't necessarily imply frivolity, while "having fun" does imply just that.

[kerowo]

I can enjoy a fairly mindless task at work that I do well; manually fixing records in a file using Excel for instance, which isn't fun.

I think it would be easier to enjoy something that wasn't fun, than to have fun at something you didn't enjoy. However, I suppose you can hate to play board games and get sucked into one and have fun while still not enjoying the process of the board game.

[RoundGuy]

I can enjoy watching my daughter sing at the high school choir concert, but I would in no way consider it "having fun".

[samsonite2100]

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I can enjoy watching my daughter sing at the high school choir concert, but I would in no way consider it "having fun".

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Right, b/c "having fun" implies taking an active role in the activity in question. Playing baseball is fun. Watching baseball on TV is enjoyable, but not fun, at least IMO. I can't think of too many purely passive activities that would qualify as fun.

[kerowo]

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Right, b/c "having fun" implies taking an active role in the activity in question. Playing baseball is fun. Watching baseball on TV is enjoyable, but not fun, at least IMO. I can't think of too many purely passive activities that would qualify as fun.

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I've been to plays and movies that were fun.

[harryjr2p2]

I suppose, at this point, I should make a distinction between "enjoying something" and "enjoying yourself".

You can discuss both permutations of the original question, but I believe "enjoying yourself" would definitely be closer to "having fun" than "enjoying something".

Anyway, thanks for the replies so far. Some amusement for the mind, at the very least.

[samsonite2100]

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Right, b/c "having fun" implies taking an active role in the activity in question. Playing baseball is fun. Watching baseball on TV is enjoyable, but not fun, at least IMO. I can't think of too many purely passive activities that would qualify as fun.

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I've been to plays and movies that were fun.

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Yeah, but I think what you mean here is that you'd describe the movie as "fun." Which is different from saying that the actual act of sitting in the theater watching the movie was fun.

[kerowo]

I worked in theater for a long time and there were productions that were fun to watch. When The Matrix came out I was a huge geek and that movie was fun to watch. More than enjoyment.

Granted this all comes down to defintions but you can certainly be into something that doesn't require participation to be fun. I'm sure there are music geeks out there that can list any number of concerts they've been to that have been fun.

[soon2bepro]

I enjoy reading philosophy, but I would never in my sane mind call it "fun".

[soon2bepro]

[ QUOTE ]
I suppose, at this point, I should make a distinction between "enjoying something" and "enjoying yourself".

You can discuss both permutations of the original question, but I believe "enjoying yourself" would definitely be closer to "having fun" than "enjoying something".


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Granted.

[kerowo]

I think the biggest problem with this question is that it gets awfully close to telling people how to feel. "Oh, that's fun not enjoyable." "No way, I enjoyed the hell out of that but had no fun."

[samsonite2100]

[ QUOTE ]
I worked in theater for a long time and there were productions that were fun to watch. When The Matrix came out I was a huge geek and that movie was fun to watch. More than enjoyment.

Granted this all comes down to defintions but you can certainly be into something that doesn't require participation to be fun. I'm sure there are music geeks out there that can list any number of concerts they've been to that have been fun.

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IMO, in addition to participatory connotation "fun" often has, it also implies a kind of playfulness. I can see you saying watching the Matrix was fun, as it kind of appeals to people's youthful sense of fantasy. IOW, I have a hard time imagining someone saying that going to the opera is fun.